With the development of the ecovillage in Hanover, there is a great chance to make an important contribution to future-oriented urban development. One of the most specific features of the ecovillage, and its guiding principle, is sufficiency. To possess more by sharing more: a highly flexible approach that, here, is not only preached but also practiced. In addition to a co-working space and several workshops, ecovillage also offers common rooms in the buildings and gardens that belong to and can be used by everyone, and there is even a special guest house for visitors to stay the night.

The nucleus of the urban design is the lively village square, that is surrounded and framed by the commons. This is the green heart of ecovillage; where water is being managed, food is being produced and the spirit of community is being lived.

One of the drivers for the development was the ambition to become a CO2-neutral settlement. Everything is built from wood, and the sealing of the surfaces is being minimized as well. Biodiversity is promoted and gray- and rainwater are treated and cleaned with the help of a plant-based sewage treatment system. After being directed into a biotope-like lake, it seeps away and evaporates, or serves the residents to water their gardens.

The mobility concept also sets high goals with regard to future viability: it focuses entirely on local mobility. (local public transport, as well as pedestrian and bike path traffic). In concrete terms, this means only 0.2 parking spaces per residential unit are provided. In return, however, there are generous areas for bicycles, rental stations, handcarts, etc. A direct connection to the light rail system rounds off this concept.

The neighbourhoods, which are connected to each other and to the centre by the commons, consist of differently sized clusters. These clusters comprise various building typologies, which in turn provide space for a wide range of apartment forms. This 'democratic' housing mix promotes social integration and creates strong neighbourhoods.

ecovillage can be regarded as a pioneer in a long-overdue discussion of principles in which frugality is pursued as a philosophy.

All facts

500 residential units
900 inhabitants
5 hectares total area
2 hectares of garden land
3100 m² of commercial space
2500 m² communal facilities
Start of construction in 2021
Completion in 2026
More information: ecovillage-hannover.de

The 17,3 ha site is currently isolated from the urban space and polluted with emissions. The environment is characterized by deficits in the open space and local supply with green spaces and represents a structural and programmatic caesura in the otherwise small-scale district structure of Ehrenfeld.

With the „Best-Of Ehrenfeld" an open quarter with a strong character is created, which combines a high urban density with open, diversely networked and richly programmed open spaces. It is a Cologne Veedel (Kölsch for „quarter") in the best sense of the word: living, working, culture and education are fused in small spaces and linked with each other over short distances. The mix of uses is derived from the urban planning concept at the construction site level. The new district is green, culturally anchored and creatively attractive.

The urban development forms a structural and programmatic bridge between the districts of Ehrenfeld, Müngersdorf and Braunsfeld. Urban density and diversity meet a green network with a wide range of offers and possible uses.

When we completed our research project titled 'Carbon-Based Design' in 2020, we were left with more questions than answers. That study had focused on means to draw down the embodied carbon of buildings, and had explored improved materials, changes to construction processes, improvements in design and incorporation of modern insulation and other technology. But we're urbanists as well as architects, and one statistic stood out. In the built environment, buildings themselves account for only 3% of total emissions. So what about the other 97%?

And so Carbon-Based Urbanism was born. This research begins by recognizing the building as embedded within its neighborhood, and its residents' lives as guided and shaped by the form of the city and its planning. Together with our partners at the Gemeente Rotterdam and PosadMaxwan, we set out to explore what truly Paris-proof urban planning might look like in practice. The project, which runs from 2024 until 2025, will culminate in the publication of a report whose findings will provide valuable insights for urban planners, architects and citizens alike.

The project explores the city through the lens of four key typologies–high-rise, urban block, garden city, and sprawl–and asks the true carbon cost of each. Crucially, in its measurement of emissions the CBU approach considers more than just buildings. By recognizing the impact of public space, user emissions, maintenance and other key areas, it provides an integrated understanding of the city as more than just the sum of its buildings. And, by expanding our measurements to include the choices of residents, we can understand more about how the city shapes the lives of its citizens.

We measure everything from energy consumption to mobility, and sewage to holiday preferences. The resulting data allows us to propose improvements to urban developments that help municipalities and developers to create attractive and welcoming communities whilst also achieving substantial reductions in overall emissions. Our research also identifies sustainable choices that improve the lives of residents and ensures that they're included in the decision-making process from the earliest stages of development.

Our project partners are PosadMaxwan, Municipality of Rotterdam, TU Delft , Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, DGBC, ERA Contour and Synchroon.

This project was made possible by the generous support of TBI, Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie and the Municipality of Rotterdam

The design is based on the concept of a "Circular City", a circular organised neighbourhood, and is guided by the spatial principle "Landschaf(f)tStadt": The landscape creates the city.

A structural and design focus is on the blue-green infrastructure: a 60-hectare landscape park with garden, forest and water land not only offers various places for leisure, sport and recreation but also provides numerous ecosystem services such as climatisation in urban areas, rainwater management, food production and the strengthening of biodiversity.

The neighbourhood is divided into four sub-sections, each with its own specific building and open space structure. All buildings open up to green space and offer a variety of affordable housing options. Construction with wood and recycled materials and the creation of blue-green roofs contribute to the neighbourhood's good climate balance. A new type of building, the so-called CYC Hub, acts as a circulation interface. It houses the technical infrastructure of the circular organised neighbourhoods - such as the energy station and the neighbourhood garage with a mobile station as well as socio-cultural and educational facilities such as a kindergarten, youth club, neighbourhood meeting place and neighbourhood management.

CITYFÖRSTER has been unanimously selected for the design for the "Stadtteil der Quartiere" (district of the quarters)" in Frankfurt am Main, Germany with a concept that combines urban growth with circularity.

The central challenge was how to create up to 10,000 apartments and 8,000 new jobs in an agricultural area on the northwest outskirts of Frankfurt, without losing the scenic qualities of this area. At the same time, the design also had to take into account various challenges; for example, like many peripheral metropolitan areas, the region is intersected by infrastructure - of which the six-lane Autobahn A5, which effectively divides the study area in two, has the greatest impact. A situation that is by no means exclusive to Frankfurt or even Germany, but can be found in most cities.

One of the most remarkable choices was to keep 75 percent of the study area undeveloped, thus preserving the landscape and the connection to the Taunus. The design, which is based on the "Landschaf(f)tStadt" principle, consistently takes the possibilities offered by the landscape and the open space as a starting point.

In order to protect as much of the landscape as possible, the development was kept in compact areas. This means, for example, the abandonment of single-family houses and the planning of mostly apartment complexes of five to six floors, occasionally even higher buildings. The underground and city railways form the backbone of the new districts; the expansion area "Steinbach-Ost" is directly connected to the existing S-Bahn line, and in the districts east of the Autobahn the metro network is being expanded. A number of the neighbourhoods will be car-free.

The aim is to create circularly organized neighbourhoods - neighbourhoods as part of a cycle, in which they make an important contribution to water management, energy, and food supply, that promote environmentally friendly mobility, that regulate the climate and that enhance biodiversity - while naturally offering space for social exchange, providing a home to the community.

All facts at a glance:

4 new residential areas
up to 10,000 apartments
up to 8,000 new jobs
5 schools
20 nurseries
47 hectares of public green within the neighbourhoods
425 hectares of study area
75% of the study area remains undeveloped

The project brings the master plan for the sponge city of Hefei to life and realises a 3 km long green ribbon as a pilot project for integrated water-sensitive urban and landscape planning. Starting from the central water system of river and reservoir, a networked green-blue infrastructure is being created that combines flood protection, local recreation, climate adaptation, ecology and social interaction. The park is divided into five sections, each with a different focus of use.
The floodplain park is the green living room of the neighbouring residential areas and, in addition to its essential role in flood protection, creates spaces and offers for urban life and active leisure activities. Here, a near-natural dry stream runs through a gentle floodplain landscape lined with groups of trees and urban forests.
The lush water biotopes of the wetland park buffer and clean the rainwater and relieve the burden on the sewage system. Extensive terraced slopes characterise the landscape and create an additional flood buffer.
The urban terraces give the city centre an urban face to the water. The multifunctional public bank is a central meeting point and enables a variety of water-related uses.
On the eco shore, the renaturalised shallow water biotopes integrate existing vegetation, promote biodiversity and enable a direct experience of nature. A multi-stage system of nature-based solutions improves the water quality of the reservoir, whose ecology is under pressure from the surrounding urbanisation.
Depending on the season, the weather and the water level, the landscape changes its appearance as water surfaces swell and new perspectives emerge. A continuous cycle highway links the urban area from north to south, making cycling an attractive and sustainable mobility option.

„Think about people first, then about traffic routes. A good city is like a good party. People stay there longer than necessary because they feel good." This quote from Danish urban planner Jan Gehl sums up our planning understanding of the Parkway well.

The Parkway is a place that is finely networked, that relates building and open space uses in a variety of ways, and that actively supports climate resilience. A green and diverse space that constantly links the opposites of MOBILITY and DISTURBANCE. Due to the valuable and spatially defining existing trees in the Patrick Henry Village as a starting point, the route was designed in such a way that as many woody plants as possible are preserved. Rainwater is stored in swales, infiltration trenches and rain gardens as a valuable resource, benefiting plants and groundwater. The paved areas are reduced to a minimum and designed as light-coloured surfaces.

The paving material is a newly developed and market-introduced climate stone which absorbs rainfall and can evaporate as much water as a meadow surface (50% instead of 11% to 18% as with conventional paving stones).
The Parkway fulfils the function of a linear park with a high quality of open space, encounter and stay, serves as an inner and outer distributor for the Patrick Henry Village and provides a safe framework for a broad variety of urban mobility types.

In its current state, the Guitanghe River harbours complex problems for the urban development of Changsha. In addition to frequent flooding events, there is a lack of integration into the city. The river forms the backside of the city, which is reflected in a lack of accessibility and unsafe, littered riverbank zones. In the rapidly growing metropolis, there is also a lack of green meeting spaces that regulate the urban climate.

The aim of the integrated masterplan is to emphasise the river as a central and lively lifeline in the city and to significantly increase its ecological, urban, social and cultural significance. Based on the flooding problem and different water levels of the Guitanghe, the result is a dynamically reacting urban design that considers water as a variable in the dimensioning and programming of spaces. A field of urban experimentation is being created where innovative water management and urban planning concepts intertwine and give the growing city an ambitious, positive and future-oriented perspective.

The river is therefore of great importance as the central and linear centre of the city, which offers opportunities for urban development improvements in addition to water management measures. As a green lung, the Guitanghe strengthens the urban ecosystem and creates new identity-forming spaces for local recreation as well as social and cultural infrastructure on its banks.

In the long term, the river and the green-blue corridors emanating from it can connect the city of Changsha both within the city centre and to the outlying areas and neighbouring recreational and nature conservation areas.

The transformation of Trnavské Mýto into a dynamic cultural and urban hub is entering its next phase. With the building permit secured, Istropolis—designed by CITYFÖRSTER and KCAP in collaboration with Immocap—will break ground in summer 2025.

The project will introduce a state-of-the-art concert and congress hall, modern residences, and high-quality office spaces. The 3,000-person venue will host diverse cultural and business events, featuring in-the-round seating and multi-event flexibility. Offices will include a grand atria and flexible workspaces, while the residences will be nestled within green courtyards and pedestrian-friendly streets.

Istropolis sets new standards in sustainable urban development, integrating passive climate solutions, energy-efficient design, and biodiverse public spaces with 147 trees, 70 local plant species, and dedicated cycling infrastructure. Long overlooked despite its central location, Trnavské Mýto will soon be revitalized with green promenades, fountains, and a lively public square, supporting markets, gatherings, and everyday life.

With construction set to begin, Istropolis moves from vision to reality, shaping the future of Bratislava through architecture, sustainability, and vibrant public life.

maritime. green. communal.

The framework plan for the Hafen-Ost (harbour east) quarter in Flensburg forms the basis for the development and transformation of Hafen-Ost into a climate-friendly and sufficiency-oriented city neighbourhood with mixed uses and a wide range of open spaces.

Based on three possible development scenarios, a cooperative development process was carried out to create the framework plan involving the city, politics, stakeholders and the population. The result is the synthesis scenario "Hafenband + maritime. green. communal.", which creates the basis for the framework plan.

In addition to the framework plan with an urban and landscape planning concept, a development and utilization concept and an integrated mobility concept, the focus under the topic "How will less be enough?" is on the development of a sufficiency quarter for approx. 1000 units and up to 2,000 AP in an inner-city location.

Taking into account the Cradle to Cradle philosophy, the Lune Delta forms an economic structure that provides design, ecological and social contribution even after the end of its period of use. The sustainable commercial area is based on the following principles: 1. integral: The structure fits into existing overall structures, arises and also benefits from them. 2. demand-oriented: Different requirements are covered by the initial cluster. The system of ditches forms its own ecosystem and areas for Commons are implemented. 3. diverse: Open space systems and the special sector mix resolve the contradiction between commercial use and landscape and contribute to creative and social diversity. 4.circular: Buildings, open space and infrastructures operate as material cycles. They support technical or biosphere principles and adapt functionally and in design. 5. sustainable: The use of renewable energies is a hybrid system, which is locally, infrastructurally and formally connected. 6. orchestated: The cooperative Development Company Lune-Delta controls processes, ensures synergies and promotes communication.

At Campus Flensburg the landscape takes center stage. The site, which is shared between the European University Flensburg (EUF) and the University of Flensburg, features areas of dense urban structures juxtaposed against expanses of undisturbed nature. Because of its proximity to the town's centre, the campus constitutes an important site for enabling citizens' access to nature, as well as a social space and a logistical link for students. Our design acknowledges this, and despite expanding the campus to accommodate more students and add new uses, no additional land is sealed.

The plan was developed through a cooperative workshop procedure together with our team-mates at TREIBHAUS. It embraces the different urban planning qualities of the two universities and the connecting landscape park as well as the needs of all stakeholders, locating shared facilities for all users at the heart of the campus. A central element of the design is the campus loop, which serves as an important pedestrian route across the campus while also facilitating orientation. This path is complemented by the garden loop, a greener route creating connections to the open spaces and the surrounding area.

The overall campus design observes holistic principles of sufficiency and circularity; requirements for buildings, infrastructure and parking spaces are critically scrutinised, while sustainable mobility and energy solutions go hand in hand with integrated design to ensure that resources are efficiently shared and reused. The consistent development of ground-level parking and a strategy of redensification preserves the defining quality of the campus to be preserved - its green, open landscape.

In recent years, the Bundesviertel in Bonn has transformed into a successful business location and headquarters of the United Nations. Today, the district in the former federal capital faces new challenges to remain and become attractive as a location for companies, politics, international institutions and congresses and at the same time as a 'piece of the city'. The aim of the framework plan is therefore to show an integrated approach for future development.

One of the main goals of the structural concept is to preserve and strengthen the identity-creating areas and to develop the inner potential areas structurally and openly in a sustainable manner. With the increase from currently around 4,000 to around 15,957 inhabitants, new needs arise in terms of supply and socio-cultural infrastructure.

The Bundesviertel of the future is urban mixed, offers affordable and attractive living and working space, is characterized by social and cultural, sports, leisure and supply offers as well as high-quality open spaces. Through more and a variety of living spaces, commuters become residents. As a sustainable location, the Bundesviertel is changing from a simple office location to a work landscape ('work-life blending'). A crisis-proof and innovation-promoting mix of industries offer employees an attractive working environment.

The concept is rounded off by a high-performance transport infrastructure that guarantees quick accessibility and good internal networking: An important role model for the traffic turnaround: cycle paths and footpaths are being greatly expanded and public transport is being strengthened.

In addition to the university, the campus is also home to the Technical University, the University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein and other research institutions. In the course of the redesign, strategic guidelines were developed to steer the growth into a cohesive campus. The focus was placed on the development of existing structures and the preservation and qualification of green spaces. The development strategies are independent of each other in terms of content and time and can react flexibly to unforeseeable events.

The profiling of characterful subspaces provides orientation in the placement of new functional modules, creates synergies between them and serves orientation within the campus through recognisability. In addition to high-quality places of arrival, a knowledge path creates clarity in the circulation of the quarter.

In order to become an independent, lively district, the aim was to intensify use through residential uses and community facilities. Underused places are activated and reprogrammed. The sense of belonging to the city is reinforced by numerous links with the surrounding area. Existing barriers such as fences are removed.

How can Düsseldorf react to demographic change? Who plays which part in current urban development processes? Where can we create affordable living space? How far away is the open countryside, the nearest playground? These and many other questions concern the citizens of Düsseldorf. The "Raumwerk D", which is being developed parallel to the "Mobility Plan D", is intended to provide answers to such questions that have been worked out together. The spatial image determined within this framework is not a plan in the conventional sense. It is based on the current state of urban and landscape spaces and emphasises structural elements. It marks identity-defining places as well as urban structures that take over important functions for orientation. Furthermore, it spatially and pictorially highlights the qualification and profiling of urban spaces and the focal points of urban development. The participants in the dialogue process have enriched and specified the spatial image with suggestions regarding content and illustration.