News

12 September 2018

‘Without financial support from parents, no owner-occupied homes for Chinese youth’

‘Without financial support from parents, no owner-occupied homes for Chinese youth’

Young people who want to buy a home in China, are dependent from their parents to a large extent, according to Wenjing Deng. According to her PhD thesis, government policies should invest more into the development of a healthy rental market for housing, to make young people less dependent of their parents.

12 September 2018

Most neighbourhoods do not easily change

Most neighbourhoods do not easily change

The popular notion that city neighbourhoods easily develop into popular neighbourhoods for young professionals or unsafe ghetto’s is not true. Although some Dutch neighbourhoods have gone through the process of deterioration or gentrification, most city neighbourhoods remain stable in their ethnical and social economic composition, concludes Merle Zwiers in her PhD thesis.

30 August 2018

Understanding heritage values to design sustainable cities

Understanding heritage values to design sustainable cities

Ana Pereira Roders is Professor of Heritage and Values. The Chair of Heritage and Values focuses on further understanding the values that define heritage, such as cultural, social, ecological, and economic; and how they impact the sustainability of cities. One of the main goals is to define, develop, and test new integrated assessment frameworks to better monitor and strengthen heritage conservation worldwide.

30 August 2018

‘China could learn a lot from the Dutch polder model’

‘China could learn a lot from the Dutch polder model’

Over the past century, Delta cities have undergone significant spatial changes. We now know that in the long term, these don't always work out for the best. When the values we attach to water change, it is inevitable that they will impact on each other, concludes Yuting Tai in her doctoral research.

30 August 2018

Everyone has to make the energy transition leap

Everyone has to make the energy transition leap

Making all housing corporation properties energy-neutral is an operation of mythic proportions. Does the solution lie in technical innovations, or does the construction sector's entire approach require change? Both, argues PhD candidate Eefje Stutvoet; otherwise, we will never meet our objectives.

30 August 2018

New policies for improved housing in Nigerian cities

New policies for improved housing in Nigerian cities

Nigeria is struggling with a major shortage of housing, especially in the cities. Improving housing provision in Nigeria calls for concerted efforts from both the formal sector and the sizeable informal sector, concludes Job Taiwo Gbadegesin in his dissertation.

16 August 2018

Increasing pressure on Dutch housing market

Increasing pressure on Dutch housing market

The supply of houses for sale continues to dry up. Insufficient supply of new homes and a completely turned-over buying process on the market of existing homes are the reasons. Consumers want to buy, but have less and less choice. The twenty second Monitor Koopwoningmarkt, presented by OTB, shows how most residential market areas are becoming increasingly pressurised.

16 August 2018

Everything you should know about climate installations

Everything you should know about climate installations

Climate installations can be designed to create a healthy and comfortable indoor environment, while also maintaining a good energetic and economic balance. Professor of Indoor Environment Philomena Bluyssen has described how this can be achieved in the new concise guide ‘What you have to know about climate installations’.

16 August 2018

MOOCs for UN SDGs

MOOCs for UN SDGs

The United Nations have compiled a list of more than 100 courses helping to teach about the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Four Mass Open Online Courses of BK Bouwkunde have been selected.

16 August 2018

Amsterdam canals transformed by Roboat

The five-year research project on autonomous floating vessels in metropolitan areas investigates the potential of self-driving technology to change urban infrastructure. The collaboration between the Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions and the Massachusetts Institute for Technology has already resulted in a first series of prototypes, which will be presented on location in October 2018.