The transition to a fully circular housing sector is urgent, given the greenhouse gas emissions and waste generated by the building sector, as well as the high energy demand that burdens both residents and the natural environment. This thesis advocates for a social approach to the Circular Built Environment, rather than one-size-fits-all technical solutions. It explores circular living environments and initiatives in the Netherlands to define the roles of architects and planners in the circular housing transition. To this end, ethnographic fieldwork has been conducted on circular initiatives in the Netherlands, such as ecovillages and the energy collective 015Duurzaam in Delft. The methods employed include in-practice studies of everyday human activity, participant observation, sketching, painting, in-depth interviews, volunteer work, and semi-structured interviews with researchers. The results indicate that both the circular housing transition and the energy transition depend on local community efforts, which are often unpaid and underrepresented in the current debate on the Circular Built Environment by policymakers and academia alike. This thesis advocates for a greater recognition of community efforts and identifies a role for architects and designers to facilitate this. Consequently, the thesis outlines six design principles for architects to foster resilient communities. Finally, it concludes with a design proposal for a circular catalyst in the form of a building that integrates a workshop and residential component. Situated in Tanthof, Delft, this proposal illustrates how circular development can respond to and build upon the specific conditions of an existing urban context. ... Read more

This research deals with some big questions architecture students might have during their education: How are good (design) decisions made? What makes a good architect? Why is a design process so uncomfortable? It’s an exploration of design process and ethics, set in the context of the ever-changing world that worries us deeply.

Being an Architecture student at a Technical University over the period of 2017-2025 caused the author of this paper to experience intrinsic discomforts. An accidental wicked problem approach to demystify this experience led to the insight that the knowledge gap was nonexistent in literature. However, the uncovered knowledge led the author to identify a relation between the intrinsic discomforts and lack of clarity about wicked problems and their implications at the faculty. This leads to a new hypothesis: there may be a predisposition for technical universities to favor science based approaches over more volatile iterative design practices. To approach this wicked problem, more explicit inclusion of wicked problem methodology in design education and more general focus on critical thinking are proposed. ... Read more

This design report illustrates how the research strategies, as formulated in the research report by the author ‘Towards Productive Neighborhoods’ (J. Vermeulen, 2024), can be applied to case studies on various scale levels. These range from the national scale, to the urban planning scale, the architectural scale, the level of the dwelling and even down to the details and materials. Potential solutions are investigated by research through design in addition to the theoretical research in the research report. ... Read more

This aim of this thesis is to discover which resource principle is the most affordable. To achieve this, case studies representing these resource principles are chosen and evaluated using a set of criteria. It was found that modular design was the most affordable of the chosen principles. The findings of this thesis was then translated into a housing design for Midden-Delfland in the year 2120. This design houses non-traditional family types by using modular and adaptable principles. The design also uses soil and water to drive the masterplan. Overall, this project is a result of the research executed as well as the conditions of the given site. ... Read more

Hospitable Movement results from a research and design-based search towards a form of temporary inhabitation of the Dutch Peat polders. Many of these polders are now dealing with subsiding peat and releasing greenhouse gas emissions by draining the landscape. A new way of cultivating the landscape is required, by raising the water level and changing to wetland agriculture. Changing the landscape in this rigorous way doesn’t happen overnight, leaving the landscape unused in the process. A form of temporary housing is sought to fill this time gap, utilizing the precious landscape in its transition years. By various means of research, varying from surveys, literature reviews, testing out variants, and calculations temporary hospice has been designed on a specific site. Even though palliative care is the outcome of this research and design project, many other forms of temporary housing can be applied to similar sites, enabling us to release pressure from certain housing problems, buying time in the permanent problem-solving process. ... Read more

Chapter 1: National Productive Park Delfland
This chapter summarizes casestudies from “Redesigning the Deltas.” It discusses the various factors that led to the design framework of the Urban Dyke.
Chapter 2: Research
The second chapter provides the foundational research that informs the design. It critically examines contemporary approaches to real esta-te concerning environmental impact. This chapter investigates whether architecture can play a significant role in minimizing the environmental footprint of the construction industry. The findings offer practical gui-delines for architects, designers, and developers to achieve real estate projects with minimal environmental impact.
Chapter 3: Research by Design
The third chapter involves design-based research that led to the concept of the Urban Dyke. It explains how casestudies and existing architectural theories can lead to an integrated design. This design aims to enhance the valuation of post-war neighborhoods like Tanthof in Delft while also serving as a flood defense. Each chapter is interconnected, providing a comprehensive understan-ding of how the Urban Dyke concept can address both environmental sustainability and urban development challenges.
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Intergenerational co-housing could provide a solution to enable the ever-growing group of older people who want to live independently for as long as possible. The government also encourages older people to age in place to relieve pressure on healthcare services. For this form of housing to succeed, there must be good social cohesion between generations, where both older and younger people benefit from mutual exchanges of knowledge and support, ensuring they both feel cared for and valued. Building mutual relationships is essential to making these communities a success.

The aim of this research is to identify architectural elements and best practices that promote social encounters among different age groups, thereby enhancing social inclusion. This interaction between built environments and social dynamics originates from Foucault's concept of architectural influence on behavior and Bourdieu's idea of habitus.
To increase the willingness to move among different age groups, their housing preferences have been researched and categorized into the eight domains established by the World Health Organization to create an age-friendly neighborhood.

An analysis of case studies from intergenerational communities in Germany, Belgium, and Norway revealed insights into privacy levels, collective spaces, safety perceptions, and circulation patterns. The findings highlight the importance of creating in-between spaces that serve as informal meeting points, promoting social inclusion and community cohesion. By integrating functional design elements and fostering intergenerational interactions, the research aims to identify best practices for developing inclusive and supportive housing environments that cater to the needs of all age groups.
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This research delves into the emergence of participatory design processes in Midden-Delfland, Netherlands. The design hypothesis posits that ZUS plan creates a great opportunity for affordable housing to emerge as an alternative to existing developments that cater to welloff members of the society. The complex socio-economic and historical context of Midden-Delfland, rapid urban growth, coupled with the array development plans, underscores the necessity to provide affordable housing. This research explores the concept of a community land trust cooperative capable of addressing the evolving needs of the inhabitants. Drawing inspiration from the successful participatory projects, this study employs a structured framework based on five fundamental tools: aggregation, variability, clustering, self-development, and support-infill. The aim is to propose a participation enabling process while addressing the need for inclusive and affordable housing in areas such as Midden-Delfland. ... Read more

Resource depletion, environmental degradation and rising water levels due to climate change are the main global concerns. The built environment is a tremendous contributor to these pressures. Buildings are currently responsible for 39% of global energy related carbon emissions: 28% from operational emissions, from energy needed to heat, cool and power them, and the remaining 11% from materials and construction (WorldGBC, 2019). It is therefore important to seek solutions that challenge the current way of living, and minimise impact from operational emissions and materials and construction.
Throughout history battling these environmental problems has been done by making things more ‘sustainable’. Sustainability is a rather ambiguous term. William Rees argues that in order for something to become sustainable it must be detached from all unsustainable systems (Rees, 2009).

In this spirit the main research question this research plan investigates is the following:
How to design a sustainable housing district in Midden-Delfland?

with subquestions:
How to be sustainable in materials & construction?
How to be sustainable in operational emissions?
How to have a sustainable water management?

In this research two case studies into Ecovillage Olst and Ecovillage Boekel have also been done, looking at what their approach is. The two examples were chosen based on their differing approach in managing their heat. Ecovillage Olst makes use of passive solar gain while the Ecovillage Boekel stores the heat from the sun in its CESAR-heat battery system. The report consists of a catalog for biobased building, a map and categorisation of second hand building material stores in Noord-Brabant & South-Holland. It reviews various energy storage systems and finally compares different modes of off-grid water sanitation.
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