Arne Boenders
Heritage and Architecture
How will we live together? Rethinking the role of heritage as connection between humans, nature, and buildings
How will we live together? A relevant question in these times, where we need to start rethinking the relationships between humans, nature and buildings. This graduation project aims to improve these relationships and find a way of living together by creating a new transformation concept in which a building becomes circular and has a positive impact on its environment.
The concept of urban metabolism is used to analyse, define and calculate the current energy, water and biotic flows in the neighbourhood. Utilising this knowledge, the urban metabolism is improved by integrating circular systems throughout the design that bring technology and ecology together. A living machine (ecological water filtration) becomes the beating heart of the building.
All in all, a strategy is created to transform vacant heritage into cyclifiers: buildings that have a positive impact on their environment by creating a way of living together in balance with nature, humans and buildings.