Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp as an example of the aspiration to achieve climate neutrality

Ewa Cisek

doi:10.37190/arc230407

Abstract

The article discusses the issues of deliberate design strategies aimed at reducing the effect of the urban heat island and improving the quality of air in the city, which have been implemented in recent years in Antwerp, Belgium. Literature studies and case studies (theory and practice analysis) supported by the in situ method, i.e. local visits in the field became our workshop method. The criterion for collecting data, systematization of issues and their synthesis depended on the interdisciplinary approach to the subject and the openness of ideas. The implementation of green areas in the form of wild ecosystems on composite roofs and terraces of housing complexes (e.g. Palazzo Verde in Antwerp, architect Stefano Boeri, implementation in 2018) and ecological education parks which are established in urban revitalized areas (e.g. Hobokense in Antwerp along with housing estates of the Polderstadt and Groen Zuid, architect Binst Architects, implementation in 2020), is part of actions aimed at increasing the quality porosity of the urban tissue and thus the biologically active area and effective rainwater retention. These new urban ecosystems, which are based on native species of plants and new ones coexisting with them in full synergy, are conducive to increasing local biodiversity, eco education of inhabitants and creating architecture as a form of art combined with biology. The location of housing eco-architecture along with urban crops areas on the border of new urban eco ecosystems and the possibility of breeding and grazing of small animals or organizing bees apiaries supports the trend for maintaining agricultural functions in cities and small gastronomy which is oriented to the promotion of local products. These strategies are part of the city pro-climate policy as effective grassroots actions aimed at obtaining the climate neutrality of our planet.

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2023

4(76)

Ewa Cisek*

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems

with housing architecture in Antwerp as an example

of the aspiration to achieve climate neutrality

Introduction

Nowadays, the importance of the city in the process of

achieving climate neutrality is enormous. It is estimated

that almost 2/3 of humanity will live in city agglomera-

tions by 2050 [1, p. 2], [2]. Therefore, it is advisable to

develop appropriate design strategies which are aimed at

remodelling urban structures so as to reduce the eect of

the urban heat island, ensure the retention of rainwater, its

collection, storage, and purication, as well as to improve

the quality of urban air. The key action in the process of

achieving climate neutrality is to ensure the largest pos-

sible biologically active area in cities, which would be

permeable to rainwater and biodiverse water. Therefore,

urban brown elds should play an important environmen-

tal role in urban pro-climate policy, as areas for urban ag-

riculture, including community gardens and new models

of urban parks – ecological education parks serving nature

conservation. Their creation is associated with the recon-

struction and protection of local species biodiversity, es-

pecially in the coastal zones of urban water bodies. Due to

the signicant size of these areas in the city, these activ-

ities visibly increase the so-called qualitative porosity of

the urban tissue, which is a key goal in achieving climate

neutrality. They are additionally supported by the inten-

sive use of green composite roofs of buildings and trees

in shaping the terraces and loggias of the buildings. These

solutions constitute the city’s green acupuncture, especial-

ly where there is a decit of green areas. They oer an

additional biologically active surface, slowing down the

peak ow of rainwater, which they purify and store. They

are also home to a variety of fauna and ora. An important

role in the process of increasing local biodiversity should

be played by eco-education of city residents, which is di-

rectly connected with the need to implement wild ecosys-

tems into the urban tissue and create Ecological Education

Parks within them. These new urban ecosystems, which

are integrated with housing architecture, services for res-

idents, and pro-social functions, generate eco-structures

which remain in constant synergy with nature. Their cre-

ation is undoubtedly related to a change in the lifestyle of

potential users, including lowered consumption, spending

more time outdoors, and necessary restrictions on travel-

ling by road in favour of rail and bicycle transport. These

practices are heading towards a new bioclimatic model of

the city whose inhabitants protect local biodiversity and

integrate around actions for nature.

A model example of a city which has decided to im-

plement necessary planning activities in order to enable

it to achieve climate neutrality is Antwerp – a recently

dynamically developing metropolis with numerous green

suburbs which were organized on the model of garden

housing estates. The aim of the study is to demonstrate,

based on the presented case studies – selected implemen-

tations in Antwerp – the advisability of successively in-

creasing the biologically active area in cities and biodi-

versity, through the use of green roofs of buildings and the

reconstruction of local wild ecosystems on urban brown

elds. These biologically active areas of various scales,

in accordance with the principles of deep ecology, should

combine the functions of protected areas with eco-eld

education of residents and ecological crops. The described

implementations indicate that both strategies, both the

idea of implementing wild ecosystems in cities in the form

of ecological education parks integrated with residential

eco-architecture, and the city’s green acupuncture in the

DOI: 10.37190/arc230407

Published in open access. CC BY NC ND license

* ORCID: 0000-0002-7613-6612. Faculty of Architecture, Wro-

cław University of Science and Technology, Poland, e-mail: ewa.cisek

@pwr.edu.pl

76 Ewa Cisek

form of green, combined roofs of buildings, terraces and

loggias, are equally important and implemented depend-

ing on the context of the place. The best solution seems

to be a deliberate combination of both strategies into one,

as a conscious, responsible action consisting in shaping

a new image of an organic city with protected, wild eco-

systems and the possibility of breeding and grazing of

small animals, which additionally favours the preserva-

tion of agricultural functions in cities. The idea of a city

shaped in this way and the introduction of nature into

cities in various forms of eco-architecture are part of the

long-term movement of deep ecology initiated in Norway,

becoming a means to ght the ecological crisis, i.e. global

warming, water decit, loss of biodiversity and decreas-

ing qualitative porosity of the urban tissue [3].

State of research

Studies on the syndrome of nature-decit disorder in

cities and on the importance of new urban ecosystems in

the context of environmental psychology along with their

inuence on man were carried out by Richard Louv [4].

Gernot Bӧhme emphasizes the signicance of designing

wild ecosystems in the city as necessary for the harmo-

nious functioning of the human psyche [5, p. 60]. In his

research, Todd Christopher, the author of the theory of

“one green hour a week” for children for unrestricted fun

in nature, emphasizes the need to increase the availability

of wild green areas in cities for the youngest age group

as a condition for their proper development [6]. In his re-

search, Robert I. France indicates a direct relationship be-

tween eco-education of children and protection of biodi-

versity in urban areas [7, pp. 127–237]. Tony Kendle’s and

Stephen Forbes’ studies prove that along with spreading

the knowledge and making natural elements of the envi-

ronment in Ecological Education Parks more understand-

able, social acceptance for its wild disordered aesthetic

form increases, which as a result leads to greater empathy

and sensitivity to the spontaneity of manifestations of all

possible lives [8, pp. 319–335]. Agata Zachariasz denes

greenery as a city-creative factor and considers the avail-

ability of wild ecosystems for city residents to be one of

the fundamental measures of sustainable development [9].

Deep ecology and the related need of joy to identify with

wild nature, i.e. friluftsliv (Norwegian), is present in the

studies by Arne Næss [10], [11], David Abram [12], Bill

Devall, and George Sessions [13]. Research into the use

of ecological succession in cities in the areas abandoned

by man by implementing interesting urban projects which

create the synergy of architecture and nature, as well as

studies on new models of city parks in favour of nature

protection service are present in Kasper Jakubowski’s

works [14, pp. 87–97], [1, p. 2]. In his research, Richard

Mabey discusses the environmental role of urban brown

elds as an opportunity to realize the idea of returning to

urban countryside in cities [15]. In his studies, Andy Mil-

lard draws attention to the signicance and the resulting

need to protect the biological diversity of post-industri-

al brown elds in cities [16, pp. 63–65]. Research on the

anthropogenic environment, the eects of changes in the

natural environment caused by urbanization processes and

ecological importance of transformed city ecosystems are

present in the works by Tomasz Molenda [17, pp. 76–80].

Considerations on the impact of a building on the urban

heat island eect, the idea and image of which are a combi-

nation of art and biology, can be found in the studies of Ale-

xandra Martins Tavares and Ines Daniel de Campos [18].

Research method

Literature studies and case studies (theory and practice

analysis) supported by the in situ method, i.e. local visits in

the eld became our workshop method. The criterion for

collecting data, systematization of issues and their synthe-

sis depended on the interdisciplinary approach to the sub-

ject and the openness of ideas. When selecting publications,

eorts were made to present items representative of a given

subject group. When no suitable monograph was available,

publications from specialized journals and the Internet

were used (the choice of websites was veried by checking

their credibility, inter alia, people and institutions).

Case studies – selected implementations

Design strategies which are applied in Belgium can be

described as exemplary, especially since in recent years

many solutions have been adopted to reduce the eect of

the urban heat island, which perfectly match the pro-cli-

mate policy of the city.

The rst of the strategies which have been introduced in

Antwerp is the implementation of biologically active sur-

faces into the urban tissue. They perform the role of wild

ecosystems in the form of crowning of buildings, i.e. inte-

grated green roofs and terraces which are lled with trees

and fruit shrubs. In this solution the building forms a sup-

porting structure for the designed ecosystem. A proper se-

lection of plants belonging to native species and growing

in a given location and the new ones which could coexist

with them is the key to such solutions. This type of strategy

was used in Palazzo Verde in Nieuw Zuid District.

The second trend being developed is the conscious de-

sign of forest and park areas as ecological education parks,

integrated with residential architecture. These new urban

ecosystems are being created in revitalized areas, which

gives the opportunity to recreate the original ecosystems,

which consist of native plant species and the return of lo-

cally occurring life forms. A representative example is the

HoboKense Ecological Education Park in Hoboken Dis-

trict and housing complexes Polderstadt and Groen Zuid

which are connected with it.

The latter Groen Zuid represents the third direction –

a combination of two strategies, where a residential struc-

ture with green, composite roofs remains in close synergy

with urban crops and a new urban ecosystem – an ecolog-

ical education park.

These concepts are part of actions which are aimed at

increasing the quality porosity of the urban tissue and spe-

cies biodiversity of urban local ecosystems as well as cre-

ating optimal conditions for rainwater retention. They sig-

nicantly improve the air in the city and reduce the eect

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp 77

of the urban heat island. While the rst of them, dened as

the city’s green acupuncture, applied pointwise on relative-

ly small areas of building roofs, gives the desired eects

on a city scale only as the sum of additive green surfaces

and requires additional construction expenditures, the sec-

ond strategy concerns urban brown elds and areas revital-

ized, which often constitute a signicant percentage of the

city’s area, which ultimately determines whether it should

be treated as a priority over the former. Additionally, eco-

systems organized on green roofs of buildings limit access

only to the facility’s users, while new urban ecosystems in

the form of ecological education parks allow participation

and eco-education for both local residents and people from

other parts of the city.

Palazzo Verde

– an example of a new urban ecosystem

on the building’s combined roofs and terraces

The use of trees and shrubs in shaping the image of

a building can be considered to be a certain form of art in-

tegrated with biology [18]. It is also a method to support

actions which are aimed at increasing the biologically active

area and local biodiversity as well as an opportunity to im-

prove the quality of air in the city. Stefano Boeri’s buildings

which are dened as Vertical Forest constitute an excellent

example of this. Representative projects were implement

ed in Milan, Italy (2014, Fig. 1), in Switzerland (Laus-

anne, 2017), and in the Netherlands (Eindhoven, 2021 and

Utrecht, 2024). Among the Polish examples, the green roof

of the University Library in Warsaw (landscape architect

Irena Bajerska, implementation in 2002) is worth noting.

Antwerp can boast its own implementation of this type

from 2018. Palazzo Verde in Nieuw Zuid District is a lay-

out which consists of 66 ats. Its integral part include a lot

of rooftop gardens in the form of one whole, which pro-

vide a common space for residents and home to numerous

representatives of ora and fauna (Fig. 2). They are ac-

companied by green individual private terraces adjacent to

housing units. This local ecosystem, which is arranged on

the roof of the building, consists of 86 trees, 1000 shrubs

and 1200 plants. Many of them are fruit trees and shrubs

such as pear trees (Pyrus) and black currant shrubs (Ribes

nigrum L.) [19]. Stefano Boeri, the author of the project,

emphasizes that every place where Vertical Forest is to be

created is rst checked in terms of climate conditions and

plant species occurring in a given area and which create

a local ecosystem as well as other life forms connected

with them, mainly from the world of insects [20]. It is

only on this basis that plant species which coexist with

native species creating a vertical garden in the structure

of a building, i.e. a new urban ecosystem, are selected.

Fig. 1. Trees as integral parts of the building structure

in Vertical Forest pilot layout – Bosco Verticale in Milan,

architect S. Boeri, implementation in 2014 (photo by A. Van Herck)

Il. 1. Drzewa jako integralne części struktury budynku

w pilotażowym założeniu Vertical Forest – Bosco Verticale w Mediolanie,

arch. S. Boeri, realizacja 2014 (fot. A. Van Herck)

Fig. 2. Composite roof gardens of Palazzo Verde layout in Antwerp,

architect S. Boeri, implementation in 2018

(photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 2. Zespolone ogrody dachowe założenia Palazzo Verde w Antwerpii,

arch. S. Boeri, realizacja 2018

(fot. E. Cisek)

78 Ewa Cisek

The concept of their selection must also be applied in the

future, which means that owners of ats cannot interfere

in the designed plant compositions, change them, or elim-

inate them. Thanks to this approach, ecosystems are sta-

ble, native, and remain in a constant balance. At the end

of this complex process, the functional and spatial sys-

tem of a building with a division into publicly available,

semi-private, and private spaces within the structure of

ats and created gardens is designed.

Similarly to the other Dutch implementations of the au-

thor of the project, apart from the oce space and apart-

ments, 30% of this layout are social ats with signicantly

reduced rents. This detail proves that pro-environmental

and social activities are combined, which brings satisfac-

tory results.

Façades, which are lled with trees and shrubs, are not

only cyclically recurring colour phenomena as an imita-

tion of the year-round vegetation cycle of plants. They

also form a design strategy to increase the share of the bio -

logically active tissue in the structure of the city. These

actions substantially improve the quality of urban air and

signicantly reduce the urban heat island eect. The trees

in the structure of towers produce an average of 41 tons

of oxygen per year, sucking carbon dioxide and capturing

ne particles of dust. They produce the amount of oxygen

equivalent to the one obtained from one hectare of forest.

The green tissue clearly cools the façade in summer and

provides full insolation in winter when plant branches

shed their leaves. Thanks to this solution, the costs con-

nected with air conditioning of buildings are reduced [21].

At the same time, the sun rays which lter through the

crowns of trees, give the eect of Nordic light in residen-

tial interiors – a phenomenon occurring on forest glades

surrounded by high trees or in Norwegian small churches

stavkirke. This quality of space was used for the rst time

in architecture by Norwegian architect Sverre Fehn when

designing Nordic Pavilion (Norwegian Nordens paviljong,

implementation in 1962) at Venice Biennale, where a key

role in the structure of the building was played by trees

– newly designed and those outside within the park [22].

This implementation from Belgium is an example of

con structing a stable ecosystem which consists of fauna

and ora species characteristic of a given location. The

building is a supporting structure for it, with a given form

which improves the plant exposure to sunlight and supplies

the plants with rainwater. This concept promotes the recon-

struction and protection of local wild ecosystems as a meth-

od of increasing the species biodiversity and eco-education.

Palazzo Verde is a vertically designed local ecosystem,

which is a kind of green acupuncture of Antwerp. Appear-

ing in the city, it plays the role of “vanguard” of changes

and sets a new direction by introducing native nature into

the structure of the built environment. This solution is an

alternative to the existing urban planning which isolates

natural systems and dehumanizes the human living envi-

ronment. The colours which nally the image of the build-

ing obtains, i.e. unique just like in nature, are cyclically

changed, which makes them harmoniously become a part

of a larger image of the organic city, and thus becoming its

unrepeatable and attractive showcase.

Hobokense Ecological Education Park

– an example of transforming urban brown fields

into a new urban ecosystem

Eco-friendly architecture which is integrated with Eco-

logical Education Parks constitutes another form of spatial

organization of housing architecture that is conducive to

climate neutrality in cities. These new urban ecosystems

form closed wild local ecosystems which are created on

the basis of the existing forest and park greenery centred

around watercourses and water reservoirs. They are char-

acterized by semi-natural vegetation, limited maintenance

treatments, emphasis on education, and the use of ecolog-

ical succession as the creator of the park or a part of it [1].

The environmental context seems to be crucial for orga-

nizing this type of eco-structures because development on

the basis of place is the basis of all actions. This long-term

approach supports such values as increasing biodiversity

and eco-education of inhabitants of the city. Its fundamen-

tal assumptions include friluftsliv (Norwegian) – the joy

of identication with wild nature, i.e. going out to nature,

which ensures necessary balance and empathy [22]. In

the urban context, this role is performed by new urban

ecosystems, i.e. Ecological Education Parks and related

functions such as housing, including houses for seniors

and educational – forest kindergartens and schools, ser-

vice – small gastronomy based on local products and com-

munity spaces.

The main purpose of designing these urban eco-struc-

tures is the reconstruction of local ecosystems, which leads

to an increase in biological diversity in a given area, mod-

elling of ecological succession processes, as well as the

mosaic character of plant communities. Jakubowski aptly

notes that adaptations of urban brownelds for ecologi-

cal education parks make it possible to create new mo-

dels of leisure and recreational parks, where wildness is

a form consciously protected or introduced [1, p. 2]. This

function results in another goal, which is eco-education.

Thanks to it, inhabitants acquire knowledge about natural

processes and cycles which take place in ecosystems and

integrate in connection with protective actions. The last

and most important purpose, which is closely related to

the previous ones, is the reduction of the heat island eect

in the city and the improvement of air quality.

Such activities are perfectly reected in the Hobokense

Ecological Education Park in Antwerp and two connected

housing complexes, i.e. Polderstadt and Groen Zuid (ar-

chitect Binst Architects, implementation in 2020). This

implementation is an example of restoring and recon-

struction of the local wild ecosystem in the former polder

of the Shelde River and its strict integration with housing

architecture. Numerous small water reservoirs, eco-edu-

cational thematic paths, wooden shelters – walls for ob-

serving water avifauna and bridges above the wetland

habitats were designed within the park (Figs. 3, 4). There

has also been a return to the idea of farm animals grazing

in cities, which helps protect meadow environments and

makes it possible to maintain biodiversity appropriate for

the early stages of succession and exposure of valuable

views. Quoting Jakubowski […] the presence of animals

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp 79

is a magnet and an argument to visit these places and to

get acquainted with the recreational and educational oer

and natural wealth [1, p. 5].

The Polderstadt residential complex is located directly

at the border with Hobokense Park. The spatial layout of

the complex was formed still in the 1970s. It was designed

on the plan of header systems consisting of short streets

ending with small squares, concentrating residential de-

velopment (Fig. 5). It consists of single- and multi-family

buildings, where social ats with reduced rents constitute

30% (Fig. 6). This arrangement was characteristic of cit-

ies-gardens. The layout allows greenery to freely inter-

mingle with architecture and keeps ecological corridors

which connect the residential complex with the park. In the

centre of the housing estate there is a retention reservoir

which is integrated with the system of water reservoirs in

the Ecological Education Park. Pro-social functions along

with community rooms and services for residents were

located in this part of the layout (Fig. 7). Recently, a part

of them have been adapted to ats. The residential layout

and the new urban ecosystem within the park are closely

interconnected and form one eco-structure.

Fig. 3. Ecological Education

Park Hobokense – reconstructed

in a revitalized area, wild

ecosystem of the Shelde River

in Antwerp (photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 3. Park Edukacji Ekologicznej

Hobokense – odbudowany na

terenie rewitalizowanym

dziki ekosystem rzeki Schelde

w Antwerpii (fot. E. Cisek)

Fig. 4. Wooden shelter – a wall

for observing water avifauna

in Hobokense Ecological

Education Park in Antwerp

(photo by A. Van Herck)

Il. 4. Drewniany schron

– ścianka do obserwacji awifauny

wodnej na terenie parku edukacji

ekologicznej Hobokense

w Antwerpii

(fot. A. Van Herck)

80 Ewa Cisek

park greenery with three small lakes – rainwater tanks

(Fig. 8). This layout reects an interesting trend for main-

taining the agricultural function in cities [15]. The layout

is shaped in such a way as to recreate elements of a tra-

ditional landscape such as tree, meadows, and water res-

ervoirs, as well as crops with fruit trees and shrubs which

are characteristic of the countryside [1]. At the same time,

the skilful shape of the development ensures the comfort

of living in the city. The entire layout takes into account

both the local environmental and cultural conditions. The

housing complex was harmoniously connected with the

existing buildings and green areas and ensured the so-

called qualitative porosity of the urban tissue. Thanks to

the communication solutions applied, the entire layout was

car-free. The whole space has been optimally used, which

indicates the compactness of solutions. Sustainable ener-

gy and water management was provided. Architecture is

characterized by respect for diversity, which is character-

istic of Flanders. The buildings are characterized by the

additive nature of forms, a diversity of their heights, and

types of developments (Fig. 9). Apart from apartments,

there are social ats which constitute 25% of the entire

built environment, whereas multi-family housing is ac-

companied by single-family housing. In total, the layout

consists of 500 houses and ats, including 393 owner-oc-

cupied ats, 90 social ats and 120 ats for the elderly

– the ats which are in tower forms, with solutions em-

phasizing the role of light in shaping living rooms for se-

niors [23]. The closing of observation axes at the ends of

internal courtyards and the border with the park by means

of dominants was provided. Private space was also sepa-

rated from public space thanks to the small volume of util-

ity rooms. The screen development on the side of trac

arteries makes it possible to acoustically separate a quiet

space of internal garden courtyards which linearly change

into the park space (Fig. 10). Three retention inltra-

tion reservoirs collect rainwater, then purify and store it.

Fig. 6. Architecture of housing

development along cul-de-sac

streets of the Polderstadt

complex in Antwerp

(photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 6. Architektura zabudowy

mieszkaniowej, skupionej

wzdłuż ulic zaułkowych

zespołu Polderstadt w Antwerpii

(fot. E. Cisek)

Fig. 5. The Polderstadt housing complex closely connected

with Hobokense Ecological Education Park – plan, Antwerp

(elaborated by E. Cisek based on Google Maps)

Il. 5. Zespół mieszkaniowy Polderstadt ściśle połączony

z Parkiem Edukacji Ekologicznej Hobokense – plan, Antwerpia

(oprac. E. Cisek na podstawie Mapy Google)

Groen Zuid – an example of combining green,

composite roofs of a residential structure

with a new urban ecosystem

The second of the cited housing complexes is Green

South – Groen Zuid which is located south of Hobo-

kense. It is connected with the Ecological Education Park

by means of an underground tunnel for cyclists. It is an

example of a housing structure with green roofs integrat-

ed with green areas consisting of urban crops and a new

urban ecosystem, with an eco-educational character. This

layout is a fusion of two design strategies that support and

complement each other. Sequences of buildings designate

internal quiet garden interiors of a cultivated and recre-

ational character and gradually change into forest and

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp 81

Excess of water is discharged into the ground and some

amount is reused as green water. Green roofs of buildings

perform a compensation function. They constitute a bio-

logically active area within the place taken from nature.

They absorb rainwater, reduce the peak ow of rainwa-

ter and, most importantly, support biodiversity becoming

home to many forms of life. The whole area around build-

ings is a biologically active area of various categories of

availability. Rainwater is puried through ground culverts,

drainage troughs, and meadow plantings [24].

The aforementioned housing layouts of Polderstadt and

Groen Zuid, which are connected with Hobokense Eco-

logical Education Park in Antwerp, show the importance

of genius loci and the environmental context in planning

actions [25]. Biological diversity often goes hand in hand

with the variety of architectural forms and their aesthetics,

which is part of the organic city idea.

Summary and conclusions

The described implementations from Antwerp show

that the introduction of the design strategies presented in

them, maintained in the trend of deep ecology, into archi-

tectural education should be associated with the use of the

educational system from the pre-school level in the place

of residence. Friluftsliv (Norwegian) – education in wild

nature and new urban ecosystems which are designed in

this spirit, in the form of crowning of buildings and eco-

logical education parks, with eco-structures located on

their outskirts with the following functions: housing with

elements of city crops, education, exhibitions and ser-

vices, are one of the possible paths to achieving climate

neutrality and biodiversity. The presence of ecological

education centres next to new urban ecosystems, sensory

sound pavilions with exhibition and eco-educational func-

tions, as well as forest kindergartens with sensory spaces

which are created on the basis of image, sound, touch,

and smell – shapes an empathetic attitude towards other

forms of life in the youngest children, i.e. through living,

playing, learning, and working in direct contact with wild

nature. Each time they are created on the basis of place

– the existing ecosystem and the local audio-sphere create

the sensual complementary environment in which images,

sounds, and smells stimulate the harmonious development

of all forms of life without any exception.

The characterized examples also show that the imple-

mentation of green areas in the form of wild ecosystems

on composite roofs and terraces of housing complexes as

well as ecological education parks, which are created in

urban revitalized areas, is part of actions aimed at increas-

ing the qualitative porosity of the urban tissue and thus the

Fig. 7. Rainwater retention tank

with community buildings

and services for inhabitants

within the Polderstadt housing

complex in Antwerp

(photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 7. Zbiornik retencyjny

na wodę deszczową

z zabudowaniami

wspólnotowymi i usługami

dla mieszkańców w obrębie

zespołu mieszkaniowego

Polderstadt w Antwerpii

(fot. E. Cisek)

Fig. 8. Green South housing complex – Groen Zuid in Antwerp, plan

(elaborated by E. Cisek based on Google Maps)

Il. 8. Zespół mieszkaniowy Zielone Południe – Groen Zuid – w Antwerpii,

plan, arch. Binst Architects, realizacja 2020

(oprac. E. Cisek na podstawie Mapy Google)

82 Ewa Cisek

biologically active area and obtaining climate neutrality.

These new urban ecosystems are conducive to increasing

biodiversity, eco-education of inhabitants, creating archi-

tecture as a form of art combined with biology, reducing

the eect of the urban heat island and improving the qual-

ity of air in the city.

The solutions presented in the cited implementations in-

dicate that situating residential eco-architecture with urban

cultivation (city crops) areas on the border with new urban

ecosystems and the possibility of raising and grazing small

animals or organizing apiaries for bees supports the trend

for maintaining agricultural functions in cities and small

gastronomy which is aimed at promoting local products.

Translated by

Bogusław Setkowicz

Fig. 9. Screen development with

architecture characteristic of

Flanders – additivity of various

forms of buildings and the unity

of material, Groen Zuid, Antwerp,

implementation in 2020

(photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 9. Zabudowa parawanowa

o architekturze charakterystycznej

dla Flandrii – addytywność

różnorodnych form budynków

i jedność materiału,

Groen Zuid, Antwerpia,

arch. Binst Architects,

realizacja 2020 (fot. E. Cisek)

Fig. 10. Internal quiet garden

courtyards of a cultivated

and recreational character,

Groen Zuid, Antwerp,

implementation in 2020

(photo by E. Cisek)

Il. 10. Wewnętrzny cichy

dziedziniec ogrodowy

o charakterze uprawowym

i rekreacyjnym,

Groen Zuid, Antwerpia,

arch. Binst Architects,

realizacja 2020

(fot. E. Cisek)

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp 83

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References

Abstract

Modern design strategies for integrating new urban ecosystems with housing architecture in Antwerp

as an example of the aspiration to achieve climate neutrality

The article discusses the issues of deliberate design strategies aimed at reducing the eect of the urban heat island and improving the quality of

air in the city, which have been implemented in recent years in Antwerp, Belgium. Literature studies and case studies (theory and practice analysis)

supported by the in situ method, i.e. local visits in the eld became our workshop method. The criterion for collecting data, systematization of issues

and their synthesis depended on the interdisciplinary approach to the subject and the openness of ideas.

The implementation of green areas in the form of wild ecosystems on composite roofs and terraces of housing complexes (e.g. Palazzo Verde

in Antwerp, architect Stefano Boeri, implementation in 2018) and ecological education parks which are established in urban revitalized areas (e.g.

Hobokense in Antwerp along with housing estates of the Polderstadt and Groen Zuid, architect Binst Architects, implementation in 2020), is part of

actions aimed at increasing the quality porosity of the urban tissue and thus the biologically active area and eective rainwater retention. These new

urban ecosystems, which are based on native species of plants and new ones coexisting with them in full synergy, are conducive to increasing local

biodiversity, eco education of inhabitants and creating architecture as a form of art combined with biology. The location of housing eco-architecture

along with urban crops areas on the border of new urban eco ecosystems and the possibility of breeding and grazing of small animals or organizing

bees apiaries supports the trend for maintaining agricultural functions in cities and small gastronomy which is oriented to the promotion of local

products. These strategies are part of the city pro-climate policy as eective grassroots actions aimed at obtaining the climate neutrality of our planet.

Key words: bioclimatic architecture, ecological education park, deep ecology, vertical forest

Streszczenie

Współczesne strategie projektowe integrowania nowych ekosystemów miejskich z architekturą mieszkaniową w Antwerpii

jako przykład dążenia do osiągnięcia neutralności klimatycznej

W artykule poruszono problematykę celowych strategii projektowych wdrażanych w ostatnich latach w Belgii, w Antwerpii, mających służyć

zmniejszeniu efektu miejskiej wyspy ciepła i poprawie jakości powietrza w mieście. Warsztatową metodą badawczą stały się studia literaturowe

i studia przypadków (analiza teorii i praktyki) wsparte metodą in situ – wizjami lokalnymi w terenie. Kryterium zbierania danych, systematyzacji

zagadnień oraz dokonywania ich syntezy uzależniono od interdyscyplinarnego ujęcia tematu i otwartości idei.

84 Ewa Cisek

Implementacja terenów zielonych w formie dzikich ekosystemów na zespolonych dachach i tarasach kompleksów mieszkaniowych (np. Palazzo

Verde w Antwerpii, arch. Stefano Boeri) oraz parków edukacji ekologicznej powstających na miejskich terenach rewitalizowanych (np. Hobokense

w Antwerpii i powiązane z nim osiedla mieszkaniowe Polderstadt i Groen Zuid, arch. Binst Architects) wpisują się w działania zmierzające do zwięk-

szenia jakościowej porowatości tkanki miejskiej, a tym samym powierzchni biologicznie czynnej i skutecznej retencji wody deszczowej. Te nowe

ekosystemy miejskie oparte na gatunkach rodzimych roślin i nowych współegzystujących z nimi w pełnej synergii sprzyjają zwiększeniu lokalnej

bioróżnorodności, ekoedukacji mieszkańców i kreowaniu architektury jako formy sztuki połączonej z biologią.

Sytuowanie na styku z nowymi ekosystemami miejskimi ekoarchitektury mieszkaniowej z terenami upraw miejskich oraz możliwością hodowli

i wypasu małych zwierząt lub organizacją pasiek dla pszczół wspiera zachowanie funkcji rolniczych w miastach i małej gastronomii, nastawionej

na promocję lokalnych produktów, wytwarzanych na miejscu. Strategie te wpisują się w politykę proklimatyczną miasta jako skuteczne, oddolne

działania zmierzające do uzyskania efektu globalnego – neutralności klimatycznej naszej planety.

Słowa kluczowe: architektura bioklimatyczna, park edukacji ekologicznej, ekologia głęboka, wertykalny las