Abstract from AMS Scientific Conference '24, Amsterdam, Netherlands.In the two-year Nature-Based Area Development study researchers at four Dutch universities collaborated with planning professionals in cities, regions and companies to investigate how nature-based urban development can become a forceful reality. The study applied a combination of methods such as co-research sessions with consortium partners, in-depth interviews with experts and a multiple case study analysis of best practices in the Netherlands and abroad.Keywords: nature-based, area development, densification, urban ecosystem services, planning instruments
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Habitat fragmentation caused by urbanization and climate change are important drivers of biodiversity decline and ecosystem degradation (McKinney, 2002). Governmental inaction results in cascade effects, such as the extinction of species and the weakening of ecosystem services that citizens depend on. Alarming studies show the continuing loss of nature within European cities as they densify further to meet the demand for housing (Balikçi et al., 2022). The housing market is currently impacted negatively by economic factors and municipalities often respond by scaling back their sustainability ambitions. To avoid cosmetic greening of cities, the eco-social value of urban developments and their contribution to climate-change adaptation need to be made measurable. Developing nature-based urban areas offers opportunities to increase socio-ecological resilience (McPhearson et al., 2015; Spanjar et al., 2022).In the two-year Nature-Based Area Development study researchers at four Dutch universities collaborated with planning professionals in cities, regions and companies to investigate how nature-based urban development can become a forceful reality. The study applied a combination of methods such as co-research sessions with consortium partners, in-depth interviews with experts and a multiple case study analysis of best practices in the Netherlands and abroad. Malmö and Stockholm are frontrunners in applying innovative green planning instruments such as Green Area Factor to meet high environmental ambitions (Kruuse, 2011). These instruments were also analysed and compared with eco-city projects in the Netherlands to identify their effectiveness in fostering nature and ecosystem services.The analysis shows barriers in governance and spatiality between public and (semi-)private developments. Policy silos and ownership divisions often lead to standalone interventions that negatively impact social and ecological connectedness and projects’ potential for climate-change adaptation. Nature-based urban developments require a proactive effort to understand the precise ecological demands across scales and how they can be harnessed effectively in these complex planning processes. The results of the study provide key lessons and inspiration to enable authorities to implement more effective nature-based planning instruments.
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Abstract. In recent years circular economy has become more important for the development of many places including cities. Traditionally, urban development policies have mainly been aiming to improve the socio-economic wellbeing of neighbourhoods. However, technical and ecologic aspects have their effects too and need to go hand in hand. This paper is based on an urban area experiment in the Dutch city of Utrecht. In order to assess urban area developments, typically rather straight-forward quantitative indicators have been used. However, it has proved more complicated to assess multifaceted developments of the area studied in this paper. With the City Model Canvas a multi-layered model is being used to better assess the impact of the urban development being studied. Key findings include that the project studied resulted in more space for companies from the creative industry and the settlement of local ‘circular’ entrepreneurs and start-ups, although it remains unclear to what extent these benefit from each other’s presence. The increase in business activity resulted in more jobs, but it is again unclear whether this led to more social inclusion. From an environmental point of view the project activities resulted in less raw materials being used, although activities and public events bring nuisance to the surrounding neighbourhoods.
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The research focuses on the key role played by ‘collectives of makers’ from SMEs in urban transformations. Case studies are central. At a time when space in the city is becoming increasingly scarce, the pressure on space for work is increasing. Entrepreneurs of 6 best practices secure space for work by operating as a collective. By securing their (affordable) space for work, collective can yield added value for area development in urban environments. If applied to into a social investment businessmodel, entrepreneurs could 1. more clearly legitimise the position and relevance of SMEs in the city 2. make unprofitable end affordable (to be shared among the benefit-holders) 3. Offer SME collectives a permanent role in area development 4. Make better use of real estate, facilities and infrastructures (densify/stack/cluster) 5. Promote urban-mining and last mile of circular chains back to the city.We describe three specific preconditions that contribute to scaling up entrepreneurial collectives: 1) measuring their impact at building, area and city level, 2) embracing new forms of collaboration and 3) developing a long-term vision of workspace in the city. The perspective of the entrepreneur is central. But there is also a focus on the role of government, the necessary policy support and the tools to enable upscaling.
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Comprehensive understanding of the merits of bottom-up urban development is lacking, thus hampering and complicating associated collaborative processes. Therefore, and given the assumed relevancies, we mapped the social, environmental and economic values generated by bottom-up developments in two Dutch urban areas, using theory-based evaluation principles. These evaluations raised insights into the values, beneficiaries and path dependencies between successive values, confirming the assumed effect of placemaking accelerating further spatial developments. It also revealed broader impacts of bottom-up endeavors, such as influences on local policies and innovations in urban development.
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Paper presented at EURAM 2019: Exploring the Future of Management, Lisbon. Solution ecosystems can help to solve or minimize societal problems. A wide range of different actors are involved in co-creating a solution. Together, they form a ‘solution ecosystem’. They co-create different forms of value for different stakeholder groups. They create value at the ecosystem level, for different stakeholder groups. Moreover, they create system-resources. Value capture and distribution among ecosystem actors can therefore be challenging. Moreover, little is known on the role of ecosystem orchestration and goal-alignment of ecosystem actors. In this paper, we shed light on these aspects with a case study of an emerging solution ecosystem that develops a circular urban area in the Netherlands, with the aim of tackling a number of societal problems. We explore the challenges this solution ecosystem faces with regards to value creation, value capture and distribution, ecosystem orchestration and goal alignment. We conclude with avenues for future research on solution ecosystems that enable sustainability transitions. Submission to track ST13_08 - The inner life of business ecosystems, http://www.euramonline.org/annual-conference-2019.html
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from the article: Abstract Based on a review of recent literature, this paper addresses the question of how urban planners can steer urban environmental quality, given the fact that it is multidimensional in character, is assessed largely in subjective terms and varies across time. The paper explores three questions that are at the core of planning and designing cities: ‘quality of what?’, ‘quality for whom?’ and ‘quality at what time?’ and illustrates the dilemmas that urban planners face in answering these questions. The three questions provide a novel framework that offers urban planners perspectives for action in finding their way out of the dilemmas identified. Rather than further detailing the exact nature of urban quality, these perspectives call for an approach to urban planning that is integrated, participative and adaptive. ; ; sustainable urban development; trade-offs; quality dimensions
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Stedelijke natuurversterking is bij uitstek een thema dat door de schalen heen moet worden bekeken. Van pocket park en gevelbekleding tot stedelijke groenstructuur, de biodiversiteit komt het beste tot bloei door samenhang.In het SIA-project Natuurinclusieve Gebiedsontwikkeling onderzochten vier hogescholen - Aeres Hogeschool, Avans Hogeschool, Hogeschool van Amsterdam en Hogeschool Van Hall Larenstein - drie schaalniveaus van gebiedsontwikkeling om de transitie naar natuurinclusieve gebiedsontwikkeling te versnellen. Gekoppeld aan drie casussen waren dit: gebouw (Spoorzone Waarder), straat (Knowledge Mile Park - KMP - Amsterdam), en gebied (Almere Centrum-Pampus). De casussen belichten veelvoorkomende typen ingrepen, zoals kleinschalige nieuwbouw, verbetering van de publieke ruimte, en binnenstedelijke woningbouw. Ondanks dat elke case een eigen thematisch zwaartepunt had - biobased materialen (Spoorzone Waarder), natuurlijke vergroening (KMP), en governance (Almere) - heeft via deelonderzoeken en tussen hogescholen kruisbestuiving plaatsgevonden. De white paper geeft de belangrijkste resultaten en lessen hiervan weer.Urban nature enhancement is a theme that needs to be considered across different scale levels. From pocket parks and façade greening to urban green infrastructure, biodiversity thrives best through connectivity.In the SIA-project Nature-inclusive Area Development, four universities of applied sciences - Aeres University of Applied Sciences, Avans UAS, Amsterdam UAS, and Van Hall Larenstein UAS- researched three scale levels of area development to accelerate the transition to nature-inclusive area development. This was linked to three case studies: Waarder Railway Zone (building), Knowledge Mile Park (KMP - street - Amsterdam), and Almere Centre-Pampus (area). The case studies represent common types of urban interventions, such as small-scale new developments, improvement of public space, and inner-city densification. Despite each case having its own thematic focus - biobased materials (Waarder Railway Zone), natural greening (KMP), and governance (Almere) - cross-pollination took place through sub-studies and collaboration between universities. The following pages present the main results and lessons learnt.
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This paper examines how a serious game approach could support a participatory planning process by bringing stakeholders together to discuss interventions that assist the development of sustainable urban tourism. A serious policy game was designed and played in six European cities by a total of 73 participants, reflecting a diverse array of tourism stakeholders. By observing in-game experiences, a pre- and post -game survey and short interviews six months after playing the game, the process and impact of the game was investigated. While it proved difficult to evaluate the value of a serious game approach, results demonstrate that enacting real-life policymaking in a serious game setting can enable stakeholders to come together, and become more aware of the issues and complexities involved with urban tourism planning. This suggests a serious game can be used to stimulate the uptake of academic insights in a playful manner. However, it should be remembered that a game is a tool and does not, in itself, lead to inclusive participatory policymaking and more sustainable urban tourism planning. Consequently, care needs to be taken to ensure inclusiveness and prevent marginalization or disempowerment both within game-design and the political formation of a wider participatory planning approach.
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Post-war urban neighbourhoods in industrialised countries have been shown to negatively affect the lifestyles of their residents due to their design. This study aims at developing an empirical procedure to select locations to be redesigned and the determinants of health at stake in these locations, with involvement of residents’ perspectives as core issue. We addressed a post-war neighbourhood in the city of Groningen, the Netherlands. We collected data from three perspectives: spatial analyses by urban designers, interviews with experts in local health and social care (n = 11) and online questionnaires filled in by residents (n = 99). These data provided input for the selection of locations to be redesigned by a multidisciplinary team (n = 16). The procedure yielded the following types of locations (and determinants): An area adjacent to a central shopping mall (social interaction, traffic safety, physical activity), a park (experiencing green, physical activity, social safety, social interaction) and a block of low-rise row houses around a public square (social safety, social interaction, traffic safety). We developed an empirical procedure for the selection of locations and determinants to be addressed, with addressing residents’ perspectives. This procedure is potentially applicable to similar neighbourhoods internationally.
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