The Nature-Inclusive Redesign

The possibilities of nature-inclusive redesign in Dutch urban monumental buildings

Master thesis (2022)

Authors

R.S. Simons Architecture and the Built Environment

Contributors

W.L.E.C. Meijers Heritage & Design - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
F.W.A. Koopman Heritage & Technology - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
H. Zijlstra Heritage & Design - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 1)
M.J. van Dorst Urban Studies - Architecture and the Built Environment (supervisor 2)
Faculty
Architecture and the Built Environment
Copyright: © 2022 Robin Simons
Nature Biodiversity Nature-inclusive Redesign Toolbox Monumental buildings Haarlem Koudenhorn Nature-inclusivity Possibilities Decission trees
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Published Date

20-06-2022

Language

English

Reuse Rights

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Faculty

Architecture and the Built Environment

Abstract

In the last century, biodiversity has come under increasing pressure, and this is also the case in the urban context. The preservation of biodiversity is an important issue. Research shows that part of this biodiversity is largely dependent on the buildings and vegetation in the city and to help this biodiversity we need to build as nature-inclusive as possible.

There is a wide range of nature-inclusive options that can be applied to make a building and its surroundings more nature-inclusive. The application of nature-inclusive aspects in the design of new buildings is easy and relatively inexpensive due to the blank canvas. However, the aspects are more difficult to integrate into existing buildings. Especially in the case of monumental buildings, where several parameters have to be taken into account. For monumental buildings, it is currently unclear whether, and if so, what needs to be taken into account to make them more nature-inclusive.

The study seeks to answer the following question: ''How can Dutch monumental buildings in an urban context be redesigned to be more nature-inclusive?'' This research is validated with a design. This results in the following
How can the monumental building Koudenhorn in the urban context of Haarlem be redesigned to be more nature-inclusive while retaining its heritage value?
The monumental Koudenhorn building is situated in the urban context of Haarlem. It was built in 1768 as a deacon's house and is currently used by the police. It is a building with a story and many values. At present, the building and the plot show a limited degree of nature inclusiveness.

The research question is answered with a toolbox and three decision trees divided into the categories: flora, water, and fauna. The decision trees provide insight into which nature-inclusive options could be applied to a case and which aspects would need to be adapted to enable implementation. To fill in the decision trees, certain case analyses were carried out. The decision trees were filled in for the monumental part of the Koudenhorn building. This showed which nature-inclusive options are applicable and on which specific elements. Eventually, 17 of these options were applied in the design. The toolbox contains a clear description of what the nature-inclusive option entails, the extra points of interest and an optional design. This toolbox was then used to integrate the application in the redesign of the Koudenhorn building.