N Wageningen University and Research

 

As I dug through the internet finding contact details of Wageningen University’s student services, so that I can get my graduation certificate, I happily found that Wageningen is the #2 ranked university in the world for Environmental Sciences (only behind UC Davis) by the Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities.  Not bad, Wageningen!

N Spaceman Economy

Kenneth Boulding on urban metabolism in 1966 (far out, man) from his essay, The economics of coming spaceship earth (PDF):

“In the spaceman economy, throughput is by no means a desideratum, and is regarded as something to be minimized rather than maximized. The essential measure of the success of the economy not its production and consumption at all, but the nature, extent, quality and complexity of the total capital stock, including in this the state of the human bodies and minds.”

N Green Ziggurat

Emilio Ambasz & Associates, Inc. are, among other things, ziggurat experts, designing green stepped buildings.  I love the idea of “Green over the gray.”

N Exactly 2 years later

As of today, I have been living in the Netherlands for two years!  While time has flown by, a lot has happened, lets take a quick walk down memory lane…

Professional/research achievements
• On schedule to graduate with a Masters of Science degree from Wageningen University's Urban Environmental Technology and Management department
• Completed research/design for the City Planning Office of The Hauge for innovative ecological infrastructure in their upcoming Erasmusveld sustainable neighborhood
• Still in development of solar heated podia for public squares in cold climates
• Special recognition for design with 2012 Architects in the Autarkic floating house competition in Amsterdam
• Contributed to the development of the Open Source House project
• My contributions to DSA's Renewable City were exhibited work in the Netherlands Architecture Institute and published by the Atelier Rijksbouwmeester (State Architect)
• Presented conceptual city plan for the Post-Oil City to the Crown Prince of the Netherlands at the Smart and Sustainable Built Environment Conference
• Member of the Programme Committee for the Urban Environmental Technology and Management MSc at Wageningen University
• Presented at Eureka da Vinci meeting on Sustainable Energy, Arnhem Nijmegen City Region. Published in book, Eureka: Sustainable Energy: Visions of the future.

Personal developments
• Squatted a house in Rotterdam, thus giving use to a space that otherwise would be vacant until demolition
• Joined my first Ultimate Frisbee competition team
• Polished my skills in vector and 3D design
• Planted my first urban garden
• Traveled widely in Europe
• Made a number of paintings
• Made a number of friends
• Kept my girlfriend!

What next?
• Start a studio?
• Work for an urbanism office?
• Finally reach fluency with Dutch?

N Adequate definition

What role is there for an urban planner? This definition cuts the tape on what must be considered:

“Urban planning in the 21st Century should evolve towards an ecologically-oriented macro-architecture, fully integrating the design and location of energy- and material-efficient buildings and urban infrastructure with overall spatial planning to minimize material throughput. The goal is to create safe, clean, self-reliant, and aesthetically attractive regional ecocities…”

William E. Rees, 1999. The built environment and the ecosphere: a global perspective.

This is appealing because it contains infrastructure within the urban planning discipline, which is important because infrastructures and their networks necessarily have spatial, social and environmental ramifications.  Considering urban form without considering infrastructure is akin to designing the car body rather than the engine and chassis; i.e. simply decoration.

N Improvised Architecture in Amsterdam: Industrial Squats and Collectives, by David Carr-Smith

Check out the impressive web-book by David Carr-Smith on Amsterdam’s industrial squats and the fascinating studios and living spaces created within them.  He documented four sites: Grain Silo, “Tetterode” factory, “Edelwels” theater, and De Loods complex.

Image © DAVID CARR-SMITH 2005

It would be interesting to do the same for Rotterdam, which, as industrial harbor, has its own collection of re-utilized spaces (some of which are institutionalized), including RDM, Poortgebouw, Slaakhuis, Quarantaineweg, Fabriek (closed), Marconistraat 37, Maassilo, Wolphaertstraat, foundation B.a.d, Brielselaan, and many more.

N MSc thesis colloquium invitation

You are invited to my MSc thesis colloquium, Proposed Plan for a Sustainable Implant in the Erasmusveld Neighborhood, Den Haag.  Learn about the Erasmusveld neighborhood development, about the Sustainable Implant concept, about urban metabolism, about ecological infrastructure, and socio-technological operationalization.

6 July 2010, 16:30, at Wageningen University’s Biotechnion building (Bomenweg 2), ground floor room V55.