Fabio Alberto Alzate Martinez
Urban Transformation and Sustainability
The Blue Heart: A territorial envisioning of agro-urban ecologies
The Blue Heart is a Delta composed of the IJssel, IJsselmeer-Markermeer, Wadden Sea and the reclaimed polders. Due to its endogenous habitats, the Blue Heart is an important global migration node for aquatic and aerial species. However, as a dynamic environment, the deltaic territorial condition is prone to storm surges, which demanded climate adaptation measures that led to extensive alterations in its geomorphology after the implementation of linear flooding defence mechanisms. This thesis explores an evolutionary planned adaptation system based on a cyclic, ecosystem-based territorial design model to recompose the deltaic fragments, thereby decompartmentalising ecological habitats through new hybrid forms of regional land use and infrastructure in Flevoland. As leverage, the design starts with a paradigm shift in the nexus of water infrastructure-ecology-food-housing responding to current territorial challenges. In a multiscalar study, the design revealed agro-urban ecological interfaces that guided two regional deconstruction iterations in future socio-climate scenarios for the Netherlands in 2050.