Help us pave the way for place-based urban planning and architecture!
Much of what is being built today lacks a strong connection to the location where it will stand for decades. Now is the time to show how contemporary urban planning and architecture can enhance what makes different places unique. Do you want to join? Submit your best Nordic example of place-based architecture now!
A knowledge-generation effort
How do we leverage the resources already present in a location when we develop it? How can the built environment strengthen local culture and the sense of belonging? How can contemporary construction more accurately reflect what is unique about each place?
In collaboration with SUSTAINORDIC, the City of Malmö is now taking the initiative to gather examples of placed-based urban planning and architecture in our time. We aim to increase understanding of a more placed-based approach and identify methods for how contemporary urban planning and architecture can enhance what makes different places and local communities unique.
What is place-based urban planning and architecture?
Sustainable development and place-based urban planning and architecture encompass many different dimensions. Place-based design is characterized by being adapted to both the built environment and the surrounding culture and could not have been built the same way anywhere else. It can be described as an architecture that is more defined by access to materials and resources locally, as well as culturally, socially, and aesthetically. Here are some good examples from the Nordics where the site has been central to development.
Examples
Varvsstaden, Malmö, Sweden
At the old Kockums shipyard area in Malmö, Varvsstaden AB is developing a new neighborhood, aiming to bring the 'heritage of the shipyard' into the future. For example, several old brick buildings are preserved and gradually transformed to accommodate new activities.
Other buildings have been dismantled, and the materials that can be reused become part of the so-called 'material bank'. The material is registered in a database and stored on-site to, once again, become part of the emerging area.
Photo: Petra Bindel
Suvilahti cultural center, Helsinki, Finland
The Suvilahti cultural center, a former power plant and gasworks, now hosts diverse cultural activities. Its industrial charm evolves daily, notably seen in its ever-changing graffiti wall. Once powering the city, Suvilahti now fuels culture, attracting numerous events and festivals.
The former power plant and gasworks area in Suvilahti comprises nine buildings; Voimalaitos, Makasiini, Tiivistämö, Puhdistamo, Konttori, Kojehuone, Mittarikorjaamo, Porttirakennus and Valvomo and 2.5 hectares of open-air yard space.
The two gasholders, built of steel and brick, have become city landmarks and are administered by the City of Helsinki. The brick gasholder has been fully refurbished and planning of repairs to the steel gasholder has begun. Once refurbished, the gasholders can be repurposed for cultural use.
Photo: Sami Lamberg, Kapina Oy
Institut for (X), Aarhus, Denmark
Institut for (X) is a culture and business platform for young designers, musicians, artists, entrepreneurs and craftsmen working side by side. Since 2009, the institute has been located in and around a former customs building in central Aarhus, Denmark. The various, more or less temporary, buildings in the area house workshops and office facilities created by initiatives of all sorts representing approximately 90 projects, 50 businesses and 35 associations.
The vision of the centre is to facilitate cultural and creative grassroots initiatives in Aarhus and help create a ‘good city for all’, with a special focus on social environments. (X) also works actively with the municipality of Aarhus on furthering development of the city as a whole.
(X) attracts citizens of all ages ranging from young primary school students in the FabLab to Viking martial arts practitioners, designers, jazz musicians, beer brewers and many more all with an interest in creating something and making Aarhus a better city.
Be part of the change!
What contemporary examples of placed-based urban planning and architecture in the Nordic region are already available to learn from? By sharing examples with us, you can inspire others towards a more sustainable and inclusive urban development.
Submit your suggestions in the form below by June 30, 2024. These can be urban development projects, buildings, and/or outdoor environments from across the Nordic region. The form is available in both Swedish and English.
What happens to what you submit?
The suggestions and motivations you submit will contribute to the development of Malmö's built environment, and their dissemination will hopefully inspire more places and municipalities across the Nordic region.
Both SUSTAINORDIC and the City of Malmö will review the material, draw lessons, and use the knowledge in their continued missions to promote place-based urban planning and architecture. Initially, each organization will draw conclusions about the characteristics of the various project proposals and about what a place-based approach entails in our time.
The conclusions, along with a selection of the learning examples, will be presented on malmo.se by the end of 2024 so that others can also benefit from the lessons learned.
About the collaboration
City of Malmö
Building on the foundation of their architecture policy, ‘Malmö as the City of Architecture’, the City of Malmö is now undertaking a deeper exploration of place-based construction. The goal is to ensure that changes in the built environment more accurately reflect the people of Malmö, leverage local resources, strengthen the unique characteristics of neighborhoods – and thus make Malmö more Malmö!
SUSTAINORDIC
SUSTAINORDIC is a platform operated by Form/Design Center in Malmö. It is part of an initiative by the Nordic Council of Ministers aimed at promoting sustainable cities and communities in line with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals 11 and 12 in Agenda 2030.
As part of SUSTAINORDIC's work to provide policy recommendations to Nordic decision-makers, there is ongoing work on how to work with a more place-based community planning and architecture. As a first step in building knowledge, SUSTAINORDIC has interviewed several experts within and around the architecture and planning sectors to gather their perspectives. Read the article ‘Perspectives on Place-Based Architecture’ here »