Maria Kritsioudi
Urbanism
Living with the others
Spatial transformations towards liveability of cities of social diversity: the case of the Schilderswijk, The Hague
This graduation project investigates new ideas for alleviating the conflicting social environment of Schilderswijk which in spatial terms is synonymous to anti-social phenomena in public space, perpetrated by youth. The socio-spatial research demonstrates that anonymity of the urban environment -an environment never designed to fulfill the necessities of its multicultural populations and its most vulnerable group; children- is the key factor associated with such phenomena.
The design solution proposes the idea of a clear demarcation between public and private space, in the form of a ‘territorial system in a neighborhood scale’, as a tool to attain a liveable and sustainably controlled -by locals- urban environment. The pattern language determines where locals’ and strangers’ territories should overlap and ensures a diverse/flexible physical form and program, able to increase tolerance among the conflicting ethnic/age groups, actions that have the potential to turn living in a multicultural environment into a pleasant, urban experience.