Aisling O’Carroll (*1986), currently Doctoral Student and Lecturer at University College London, United Kingdom, as Tenure Track Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture and Geohistorical Practice in the Department of Architecture. Aisling O’Carroll takes a fundamental approach to her research, which concerns the theory and methods of landscape architecture Continua
The Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich invites applications for the position mentioned above. The new professor will engage with contemporary urban challenges such as climate change, resource scarcity, and social inequality through concrete urban design projects. Drawing on extensive practical experience, she/he will play a vital role Continua
In February 2025, over 40 practitioners, researchers, and educators came together at ETH Zürich for this colloquium, to discuss the evolving relationship between the design and maintenance of living systems. In response to accelerating climate uncertainty, shrinking municipal budgets, and precarious labour conditions, the colloquium posed a simple Continua
Switzerland’s cultural landscapes – green pastures and flowering hay meadows – have been deeply shaped by resources (forests, pastures, and irrigation water) governed as commons (Allmende). In spite of radical changes to their institutional and infrastructural framework, the irrigation systems of Canton Valais remain grounded in an enduring Continua
Abraumhalden sind ein charakteristisches Landschaftselement ehemaliger Kohlebergbaugebiete. In Flandern und im französischen Norden werden sie Terrils genannt. Lange Zeit galten sie als Randzonen, wurden häufig abgetragen und als Erholungsflächen umgenutzt oder in Grün-Blau-Netzwerke integriert. In Einzelfällen bleiben sie als Zeugnisse des industriellen Erbes erhalten.
As urban environments evolve with increasing complexity, urban planning must adapt by often responding to unsolicited demands rather than to commissioned, structured work. This paper explores the integration of digital tools – including Digital Twins – into the architectural curriculum at ETH Zurich, aiming to bridge the gap Continua
Die Landschaftsarchitektur sieht sich im Kontext des Klimawandels mit vielfältigen Herausforderungen konfrontiert. Beim Umgang mit Wasserlandschaften treffen zunehmend intensivere hydrologische Dynamiken auf überwiegend statisch gestaltete Landschaften. Diese Entwicklung bedingt ein Umdenken und ein dynamischeres Verständnis der Wechselwirkungen zwischen Wasser und Land. Um zukunftsfähige und robuste Landschaften gestalten zu Continua
Urban farming and agrarian struggles are reshaping cities and urbanising landscapes. In Zurich and beyond, agroecological initiatives, political food movements, and global urbanisation projects reveal how urban and agrarian worlds are entangled and enmeshed – offering new ways to rethink planning, property, urban ecology, and the future of Continua
New Orleans is a landscape paradox – a city largely below sea level, which continues to sink as the sea rises outside the levee walls that protect it. Despite its capacity to produce a tremendous amount of biomass and ecological diversity, the city’s urban forest has been in Continua
At this year’s International Cooperation Forum, the Urban Transformation Project Sarajevo – including the first Urban Digital Twin for the Canton of Sarajevo was presented. The presentation took place during Session 4: Swiss Solutions for Smart Cities, in the presence of Swiss Federal Councilors Ignazio Cassis and Guy Continua
There is a consensus among scholars and policy makers that durable peace after violent conflicts is contingent upon addressing affected communities’ livelihood needs and, in particular, housing. Post-conflict reconstruction is challenging, but at the same time an opportunity to address pre-existing housing deficits. In this Update, we present Continua
Housing cooperatives are being reconsidered in many countries worldwide as potentially relevant actors in the provision of affordable housing. This is also the case in Latin America, characterised by neo-liberal housing policies that have led to an increasing financialization of housing and marginalisation of the poor. Uruguay is Continua
Wohnungsknappheit in Städten ist in ganz Europa zu einem akuten Problem geworden. Dies ist auf das Bevölkerungswachstum und die anhaltende Attraktivität von Städten als wirtschaftliche, kulturelle und soziale Zentren zurückzuführen. Das Angebot an Wohnraum in urbanen Gebieten konnte mit der Nachfrage nicht Schritt halten. Dieses Forschungsprojekt untersucht daher Continua
New highway corridors are being implanted at various scales – local, metropolitan, regional, and interregional – often bypassing existing routes and opening new speculative frontiers for urban land markets. This article periodises the different stages of highway construction in India during the neo-liberal era.
In the context of the prevailing global rightward and populist shift, there exists a largely unexplored yet profound nexus between authoritarian neoliberalism and infrastructure-led extended urbanisation beyond the city. Drawing on insights from extensive ethnographic fieldwork conducted along India’s highway corridors, this paper examines the authoritarianism and social Continua
Kigali, Rwanda, has emerged as a pioneer in urban and digital transformation. Kigali sets a new inversed model of city development that expands from its hilltops downwards to the vital wetlands. The Kigali Unplanned Neighbourhood Upgrading Tool (KUNUT) provides a research platform that integrates digital technology with ecological Continua
For a century, highways have shaped cities, economies, and national identities. But in November 2024, Swiss voters rejected a CHF 5 billion highway expansion, signaling a shift away from infrastructure-led urbanisation. As nations worldwide double down on highway-driven growth, Switzerland’s moratorium invites us to rethink mobility, territorial organisation, Continua
Can housing cooperatives contribute to reintegrating former combatants into civil society? Can they evolve into a broader housing strategy for marginalised communities? What conditions are necessary for their sustainable growth within national housing systems? This research project examines the emergence of bottom-up housing cooperative initiatives by former combatants Continua
Durch die anhaltende Attraktivität von Städten als wirtschaftliche, kulturelle und soziale Zentren ist Wohnungsknappheit in Metropolitanräumen in ganz Europa zu einem akuten Problem geworden. Das Angebot an Wohnraum in Kernstädten konnte mit der Nachfrage nicht Schritt halten, weshalb dieses Forschungsprojekt die Auswirkungen der Wohnungsknappheit auf die umliegenden Regionen Continua
Während sich Familienstrukturen in der Schweiz rasant verändern, hält der Wohnungsmarkt weitestgehend an traditionellen Modellen fest. Das ETH Forum Wohnungsbau «ARCHITEKTUREN DER FAMILIE» beleuchtet aktuelle Dynamiken des Zusammenlebens und innovative Wohnformen. Expert:innen aus Forschung, Architektur und Immobilienwirtschaft diskutieren Lösungen für die Herausforderungen des sozialen Wandels.
Wohnbaugenossenschaften entstanden Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts in Europa und spielten eine Schlüsselrolle bei der Friedensförderung, der Versöhnung und dem Wiederaufbau nach dem Ersten und Zweiten Weltkrieg. In den letzten Jahren – nach der globalen Finanzkrise, dem Rückzug der Regierungen aus dem Wohnungssektor und der Unfähigkeit des Privatsektors, die Continua
Das vierjährige SNF Sinergia Projekt «Sorgerechtsarrangements und Kindeswohl in der Schweiz» (FamyCH) nimmt Sorgerechtsregelungen nach der Trennung der Eltern und deren Auswirkungen auf die Kinder in den Blick. Interdisziplinär angelegt, hat das Projekt zum Ziel, Risiko- und Resilienzfaktoren für das Wohlergehen der Kinder zu identifizieren. Das ETH Wohnforum Continua
During the doctoral awards ceremony on 24 January 2025, Matthew Critchley, Rune Frandsen and Kam-Ming Mark Tam received a Silver Medal for outstanding doctoral theses. Rune Frandsen, who is currently working as Scientific Collaborator at Bundesamt für Kultur BAK, receives an ETH Medal for his doctorate, that he Continua
The Institute of Landscape and Urban Studies is young and evolving. While it builds on a rich research history across various chairs, its identity still continues to take shape through its doctoral community, lecture series, and biannual research colloquia. In this context, it is particularly noteworthy that the Continua