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As a child he loved making treehouses. As an architecture student he admired structures in timber most of all. He started out as a practitioner by redesigning and rebuilding his mother’s house, using discarded plywood. “That made sense because I needed material, didn’t have any money and couldn’t bear waste.” As of November 2023, Alex de Rijke is professor of Timber Architecture at TU Delft Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment.

On Saturday 21 October 2023 John Habraken, one of the founding fathers of Open Building and SAR (Stichting Architecten Research), passed away. John was alumnus of TU Delft and has had a major impact on multiple generations of architects since the 1960’s.

The Netherlands is struggling with major issues in the areas of mobility, housing, sustainability and climate These major challenges result in multiple interests coming together in area development. Environmental and planning law are therefore in the spotlight. On 10 November 2023, Marlon Boeve will deliver her inaugural speech, "The Environment Act and Sustainable Urban Area Development. The Proof of the Pudding.'

It cannot have been missed by anyone, but the Dutch housing market is not doing well. Numerous problems are constantly in the headlines, a " building pause" because of nitrogen, stagnant construction due to a shortage of materials or skilled manpower. A stranded rental market, not enough social housing or the rising prices of owner-occupied homes due to scarcity and higher interest rates on mortgages. The problems are numerous and complex. How to find a way out of this? Professor Peter Boelhouwer wrote an essay.

The Urban Design month (UDM) will take place between October 24th and November 28th. It aims to inspire everyone, especially students, to dive into the work of this discipline. One of the organisers is assistant professor Victor Muñoz Sanz. “We want to spark new collaborations, new knowledge, new alliances, and new education practices geared towards addressing future challenges.”

On Saturday 21 October, the winners of the Dutch Archiprix 2023 were announced. Alumnus Jacopo Zani of the Master Track Architecture is one of the three winners with 'Gardens of Dialectics'.

Collaborative living is experiencing a revival in The Netherlands. In the midst of an unprecedented housing crisis, more and more people turn to collective self-organisation to provide housing that is community-oriented, environmentally sustainable, and affordable. But why is it so difficult for these initiatives to get off the ground? And what can be learned from other European countries?

Co Verdaas was recently appointed as government commissioner for the National Delta Programme and will start his work as Delta Programme Commissioner at the beginning of December: ‘It’s a real honour to be able to contribute to the climate-proof future of our delta in my role as Delta Programme Commissioner. Water has shaped the Netherlands and will continue to do so.’

The new GlassLab in our faculty will be the centre of innovation in architectural glass design and construction at TU Delft. In this lab, research will be conducted on glass products and structures that will transform the built environment.

On the 12th of October the BK Treasury will officially open its doors. Everyone is invited to come to the Oostserre between 17h and 18h to participate in this celebration of architectural and design history. For the coming weeks, the Treasury will display three chairs by iconic Dutch designer Gerrit Rietveld, together with documents on their creation. The display cases will continue to exhibit a revolving cast of treasures for the foreseeable future.