How can the public library fulfil its classic social mission in our individualized and sometimes fragmented society? And how does such a library fit into the urban public space, in which commerce and consumption seem to reign supreme? This requires innovative architecture, the strength of imagination and the willingness to think countercyclically.

In Imagination and Participation librarians Rob Bruijnzeels and Joyce Sternheim examine the most important transitions in public library work. They...

A sound understanding of how our built environment came about constitutes a core competence in any architectural training and professional experience. The history of urbanism on the European continent, in particular, constitutes a fundamental basis for thinking about the city today.

This textbook offers a synthetic, chronological and illustrated overview of the essential ideas, protagonists and paradigms that dominated the theory and practice of urbanism on the European continent from Antiq...

The housing stock in Vietnam has boomed in the last few decades, especially in urbanised areas. However, the increasing number of housing units did not go along with housing quality, a healthy living environment or a sustainable building stock. Recent legislation only applies to public buildings but not the private housing sector, which accounts for the majority of the building stock. Therefore, this research aimed to contribute to a more sustainable building stock in Vietnam by improving the...

Water management and cultural heritage in the Netherlands are inextricably linked. This edition of ‘OverHolland’ looks at the area known as the Randstad, where the water system is almost entirely below sea level. It is regarded as the main driver of the Dutch economy, being the most urbanised and most densely populated part of the country. A comprehensive map published by Willem Hendricus Hoekwater in 1901 was an important source of inspiration for the joint study of the genesis of the Ra...

Numerous actors have been involved in the planning of the port and city of Naples. National and local authorities—namely central government, the Region, the Municipality of Naples, and the Port Authority—act upon the port at different scales, according to diverging interest and by using different planning tools. Each entity has different spatial claims and contrastive views on what port city integration can be. Their diverse goals have led port and city to develop into separate entities, ...

How must design studies be structured in order to not only keep pace with the changes in the economy and society but also to shape them? How much artificial intelligence and coding must be conveyed during studies? This book documents five years of international research on these questions, which 250 designers participated in worldwide. Text in English and German.

More than a decade in the making, this is a textbook of architecture rich with design techniques and useful for every architect whether a first-year students or experienced practicing architects. The book teaches the reader how to design by adapting to human needs and sensibilities, yet independently of any particular style. It explains much of what people instinctively know about architecture, and puts that knowledge for the first time in a concise, understandable form. There has not been su...

Re-Framing the Politics of Design is a research, exhibition and book project exploring the role of designers in collaboratively giving shape to future changes addressing complex challenges such as climate change, mobility and migration. By looking at concrete, situated case studies, this book explores the current need for designers to re-frame their political agency, engaging with the deep relationality connecting us all, humans (and not only those who already have a voice in society and are...