Cycling supports health, independence, and accessibility, which are especially important for older adults. Dutch cycling policy mainly focuses on objective physical safety, while perceived safety receives less attention.
Objective and perceived safety are often considered separately; their interaction in cycling environments remains unclear. This thesis examines how to balance the safety dimensions in a cycling environment for older adults (75+) through neighbourhood-level infrastructural design (De Lage Mors, Leiden), including policy and guideline reviews, GIS analysis of objective safety dimensions, and focus groups on perceived safety. An integrated synthesis figures out why and where safety dimensions align, conflict or reinforce each other.
Results show alignment of safety dimensions at intersections, transition zones of path types, and where separations between cycling paths and other roads disappear (objective risk concentration). Amplification occurs in medium-risk areas where older adults perceive safety through the predictability of routes, sightlines, surface quality, comfort, and control. Cycling tunnels in the area exhibit a pattern of misalignment: cyclists are objectively separated from traffic, but do not always feel safe.
This research recommends integrating perceived safety as a design criterion. Age-inclusive cycling infrastructure should include obstacle-free paths, manoeuvring space, surface maintenance, transition quality, and sightlines and legibility, creating a safer, more predictable, age-inclusive cycling environment.
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Urban mobility and car dependency represent major challenges for contemporary cities. In response, European policy frameworks advocate compact urban development, sustainable mobility, and the strengthening of public transport and walkable environments.

This thesis research the case of Vilnius city and examines two key components of the Vilnius City Master Plan: the planned New Public Transport System (NPTS) and the network of district centre zones designated around major public transport corridors. Although these initiatives do not explicitly refer to Transit Oriented Development (TOD), the research argues that they are fundamentally transit-oriented ambitions that currently lack a sufficiently integrated implementation framework.

Drawing upon TOD theory, node-place theory, and walkability principles, the research adopts the premise that public transport and walkability are inherently interdependent, as every public transport trip begins and ends on foot. The analysis evaluates the hierarchy of planned transit investments, the planned intensity of district centre development, and the spatial conditions surrounding future transit corridors and nodes.

The findings suggest that future accessibility within Vilnius will be highly differentiated, while planned district centre development remains relatively uniform. In addition, in cities where development opportunities exceed market demand, urban growth is not a spatial threat, but a limited strategic resource for creating walkable environments around transit.

The thesis therefore proposes a strategic TOD framework that links urban development intensity and objectives to the hierarchy of future transit investments. It argues that TOD should not be applied as a universal densification around- transit model. Instead, different transit nodes require different urban responses, ranging from intensive metropolitan centres to lower-intensity neighbourhood centres focused on local services and residential liveability. These principles are further explored through research-bydesign proposals for two contrasting sites in Vilnius.

Although grounded in the context of Vilnius, the findings contribute to broader discussions on TOD implementation by demonstrating the importance of integrating transit hierarchy, node-place balance, walkability, and realistic
development capacity when planning future transit-oriented urban environments. ... Read more

Energy poverty is an increasingly urgent issue in the Netherlands, particularly in neighbourhoods with a high concentration of social housing. As the energy transition progresses, vulnerable populations are at risk of being disproportionately affected. Many low-income households remain heavily dependent on gas and live in poorly insulated homes, meaning that policies aimed at phasing out gas can unintentionally exacerbate existing inequalities. These low-income households generally live in social housing and is either experiencing or at risk of energy poverty. Within this context, housing corporations play a central role, while residents often lack the resources, agency, and institutional support required to improve their conditions.

This project addresses the urgent need for strategies that ensure a just energy transition, focusing on the province of Zuid-Holland as a case study. It develops an integrated spatial strategy alongside a policy-oriented rulebook aimed at guiding housing corporations toward more equitable and effective interventions. The research is grounded in a socio-spatial justice framework, structured around recognitional, procedural, and distributive dimensions, and draws on the theory of the commons to emphasize collective governance and shared responsibility (Soja, 2010) (Ostrom, 2021). Central to the approach is the inclusion of community perspectives, ensuring that strategies reflect the lived experiences, needs, and values of affected residents.

A combination of quantitative and qualitative methods was employed, including spatial data mapping and media analysis, to understand energy poverty across multiple scales. This multi-scalar analysis provided insight into spatial inequalities, power dynamics, and the lived realities of residents in Zuid-Holland. Based on these findings, a community-informed vision was developed, prioritizing health and wellbeing, improved living conditions, and the recentring of resident agency.

The resulting strategy operates across regional and local scales, with spatial interventions explored in the context of The Hague. By combining a spatial framework with a procedural rulebook, the project proposes a comprehensive approach that not only addresses the physical conditions of housing but also restructures governance processes. In doing so, it aims to create the conditions for a more just, inclusive, and future-ready energy transition.



Sources 

Ostrom, E. (2021). Governing the commons: The evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge University Press.  

Soja, E. W. (2010). Seeking spatial justice. University of Minnesota Press.  ... Read more

This research and design project investigates the small, isolated port communities found in and around the Port of Rotterdam. Defined by their small size, high social cohesion, and multi-generational social and economical ties to the port, these isolated towns have historically faced pressure from expanding industry. In light of the global climate crisis, another significant era of change is ushered in: the energy transition. European and national frameworks necessitate a substantial increase of renewable energy production, a structural shift towards carbon free fuel systems, and a considerable expansion of supporting grid and pipeline infrastructure.

Characterised not only by their close proximity to industrial activities, but also by socio-economic dependencies, these communities are uniquely affected, resulting in a multi-layered set of challenges, and giving rise to the central research question: How can the future of isolated port communities in and around the Port of Rotterdam be safeguarded in the face of the energy transition, whilst ensuring a sustainable symbiotic relationship between port industries and port residents?

Combining research and design within an iterative methodology, a proposed vision responds to the specific values and concerns of these fenceline communities. Structured around three thematic pillars (autonomy through collaboration, connection to nature, and relationship with industry) design measures emerge to enhance liveability, whilst capitalizing on an opportunity to reform the relationship of (dis)trust between residents and corporations, allowing for a more sustainable and just exchange of burdens and benefits. In a phased strategic plan key spatial interventions are laid out and combined with supporting policies. At each stage, a focus is placed on the participation tools that must be enabled to support just spatial planning processes.

By integrating community‑driven governance, ecological upgrades, and targeted economic restructuring, the proposed strategy seeks to give shape to a resilient, inclusive transition that safeguards the future of Rotterdam port neighbourhoods.
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Because of the housing shortage in Amsterdam and limited space for the city to grow outwards, the city council decided to focus on inner-city densification in its planning strategy. The increase in housing and accompanying infrastructure puts pressure on spatial health promotion aspects e.g. green infrastructure, places to meet, and sports facilities. To measure this pressure on health in the living environment, health impact assessments (HIA) can play a role in mapping out the impacts on public health of inner-city densifications. The technical nature of this kind of assessments does often not consider more normative and context-specific aspects of health though, such as mental health and social cohesion. This prevents the assessment of getting a full overview of health impacts of the urban development process (UDP). To bridge this gap, this research explores to what extent the conception of health of three actor groups in the UDP process can contribute to a more just HIA.
The neighborhood transformation of Hamerkwartier, Amsterdam provides an interesting case to investigate conceptions of health as the tension for space weighs heavily on the neighborhood. Through participatory co-evaluation sessions with three actor groups, the conceptions are being retrieved and subsequently analyzed. This analysis links values of health, with spatial components and principles of justice upheld by the actors. The outcomes of the sessions showed that residents have more socially-oriented conception of health. Meanwhile, both the conceptions of experts and the project team of the municipality seem to be centered more around green infrastructure and technical integrations of health promotion. The principles of justice of the actor groups were mainly centered around the utilitarian and sufficientarian principles, where the residents also reasoned with both prioritarian and limitarian principles. The use of participatory methods in this research made it possible to explicitly identify these differences and relate them to the normative nature of health. In that sense, participation does not only support inclusion, but also helps to make implicit values visible and discussable within the UDP. This is the main contribution of this research: showing how participatory methods can help operationalize health and prioritize certain aspects of health within HIA by incorporating actor and context-specific conceptions of health. In doing so, they contribute to the justice of HIA in the UDP.
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Amsterdam Zuidoost is characterized by a modernist spatial structure that strongly prioritizes car infrastructure, resulting in fragmented public space, limited accessibility to everyday facilities, and reduced street-level livability. Despite generous green spaces and public transport provision, walking and cycling remain discontinuous and secondary, while large amounts of space are reserved for car traffic and parking. This project investigates how Amsterdam Zuidoost can be redeveloped to redistribute urban space away from cars and toward active mobility, with the aim of improving access to daily amenities and enhancing overall livability.

Using the 15-minute city framework as a guiding concept and spatial justice as a normative lens, the project translates abstract principles of equity and accessibility into concrete, spatial design interventions. The design approach is structured through six thematic layers—active mobility, car traffic and parking, barriers and permeability, public facilities and proximity, staying and meeting space quality, and social safety—allowing for an integrated and operational redesign of the neighborhood. A pilot area serves as a testing ground where car dominance is gradually reduced through street re-profiling, car-free interiors, parking reduction, and improved cycling and walking networks, while simultaneously strengthening local facilities and public spaces.

Rather than proposing an abrupt removal of cars, the project focuses on realistic behavioral change by pairing spatial restrictions on car use with high-quality, attractive alternatives for everyday mobility. The results demonstrate how a phased, design-led transformation can improve accessibility, activate public space, and create a ripple effect that supports future transformations in surrounding areas. The project positions active mobility not as an add-on, but as the spatial backbone of everyday life in Amsterdam Zuidoost. ... Read more

This thesis explores the justice implications of implementing Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) systems in Amsterdam South-east (ASE). ASE is characterised as a rapidly developing and socioeconomically diverse urban district in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. While V2G is often presented as a technological solution to net congestion and renewable integration, this study argues that its implementation must be critically examined through the lens of social justice. Furthermore, this study emphasises the importance of integrating justice principles into theories for socio-technical transition. Therefore, this study combines the Multi-Level-Perspective on socio-technical transitions with theories on distributive, recognition, and procedural justice in the energy and mobility transition. This helps to conceptualise what a just V2G system could look like over time.
The study is designed as a single-case qualitative analysis. A literature review, stakeholder analysis, and semi-structured interviews reveal justice implications of V2G implementation. The empirical insights are used to develop two contrasting narrative scenarios, a business-as-usual and a just V2G scenario. These scenarios are complemented by user personas to make the justice dynamics tangible and relatable.
The findings of this study highlight that current V2G pathways risk reinforcement of existing injustice through how public infrastructure is allocated and financed, benefit concentration around affluent EV owners, and limited procedural inclusion of vulnerable groups or people with different mobility behaviour. This study conceptualises a just implementation of V2G as a system with a hybrid governance structure: standardisation and technical feasibility combined with decentralised ownership, equitable revenue sharing, and meaningful citizen engagement. Central to this is a multi-stakeholder core, able to balance community, technical, and institutional interests, ensuring that V2G becomes a shared asset. This thesis contributes to current literature on V2G through proposing a framework to assess justice implications of urban socio-technical transitions, in this case V2G. Next to that, the research provides strategies for just deployment of V2G technology for ASE, its stakeholders, and can be applied in similar contexts.
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Life in the 21st century moves faster than ever, leading to a society that is increasingly unsustainable for both people and the planet. This thesis proposes a shift toward slowness in the Netherlands by encouraging everyday walking through better spatial planning and design. It explores how planning and design can support both behaviour change and broader social change—by starting with walking.
Using practice theory, walking-based research, and case studies in Heerde and Zwolle, the project rethinks walking in the Netherlands—not just as transport or leisure, but as something deeply personal and part of daily routines. This broader view challenges current strategies that rely mostly on infrastructure, individual nudges, or one-size-fits-all solutions.
The thesis introduces a new way of planning for walking, with clear aims, new methods, and practical tools. It focuses on three goals: 1) encourage walking, 2) sustain walking habits, and 3) create time and space for walking. Methods include walking-based research, using personas and daily routines in design, and imagining better future scenarios. A pattern language is developed, linking eye-level walking experiences and larger-scaled spatial, social and policy interventions.
The project proposes a phased strategy, explored in Heerde and Zwolle: starting with small changes encouraging rethinking daily spaces and habits, creating a foundation of localized, quality spaces and practices supporting walking, restricting fast practices, and finally supporting long-term walking practices, with flexibility, diverse experiences and ever evolving meanings of walking.
All in all, walking is shown to be more than just a slow experience, as promoting it reflects values of Slowness like quality and local connection. This prompts policy-makers, designers and citizens alike to reflect on the values shaping our everyday lives and spaces, recognising how small changes in day-to-day life, such as walking, can contribute to broader societal shifts. Walking thus emerges as a practice, method and a framework for envisioning desirable, sustainable futures rooted in wellbeing. ... Read more

Urban viaducts are essential components of main road networks in large cities. Balancing the enhancement of urban traffic efficiency with the preservation of urban space vitality is a significant challenge for many major cities in China. The Renmin Road Viaduct in Guangzhou exemplifies the conflict between unsustainable traffic development and daily life, serving as the primary focus of this study.

This project aims to achieve the macro goals of community livability and sustainable transportation through the integrated transformation of the Renmin Road Viaduct. The objective is to convert the viaduct from a negative urban space into one that positively impacts the city, thereby improving the living conditions of surrounding residents and alleviating messy traffic situations.

The project employs a combination of literature review, GIS traffic data processing and analysis, and surveys. By focusing on cultural, economic, social, and ecological dimensions, the design goals of "neighborhood livability" and "sustainable mobility" can be achieved through the transformation of integrated infrastructure. Transforming the Renmin Road Viaduct into a pedestrian-priority bridge offers innovative ideas and references for the renovation of similar urban viaducts in China.
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In the last few decades, income inequality has globally grown. Over two-thirds of the urban population lives in cities where the income gap has widened. Especially in urban areas this has resulted in socio-spatial segregation.
This is also visible in Vlissingen, a coastal city in the Netherlands. The differences between residential neighbourhoods are huge (over 18.000 euros) when looking at the average income per person per year. This results in socio-spatial segregation between neighbourhoods. Socio-spatial segregation describes the concentration and residential separation of different social groups. The focus of the thesis is on poor social groups.

Socio-spatial segregation leads to negative (neighbourhood) effects that affect the living environment en opportunities of poor social groups, such as economic and educational disadvantages, unemployment and crime. Therefore socio-spatial segregation is a problem that needs to be reduced.

The outcome of the graduation project is a combination of design interventions on the city scale to reduce segregation between neighbourhoods and design interventions on the neighbourhood scale of the most deprived neighbourhood of Vlissingen (Bloemenbuurt) to improve the living environment and opportunities of poor social groups. To do so, the main goal of the project is to create an urban design for integration. More specifically, the urban design needs to stimulate diversity and interaction to counteract segregation. Theory about diversity and interaction have led into guiding principles that are needed to reduce socio-spatial segregation. These guiding principles are used in the final urban design for both the city and neighbourhood scale and consist of; indistinguishable side by side tenures, clear hierarchy between private and public, urban parks, mixed use neighbourhoods, walkability, accessible public transport, connected neighbourhoods, activity in public spaces, and eyes on the street. Together with the participation of inhabitants and general urban planning conditions it forms the input for the design.

Thus, this thesis aimed at reducing socio-spatial segregation between neighbourhoods and improving the living environment and opportunities of poor social groups, through design interventions that take into account the guiding principles about diversity and interaction, the general urban planning conditions, and the participation of people living in Bloemenbuurt. ... Read more