Month: November 2021

As cities grow in scale, dimensions, and amplitude, taking in 60% of the world population, the United Nations has designated the 31st of October as “World Cities Day”, an opportunity to talk furthermore about global urbanization, addressing challenges, encouraging opportunities across borders and highlighting responses. Focusing this edition on the theme of “Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience”, this day, part of Urban October, seeks to raise awareness about the climate crisis and its repercussions on the built environment.

MVRDV’s Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, the world’s first fully accessible art depot, has opened its doors to the public in September 2021. Located at Museumpark in the center of Rotterdam, the reflective structure features exhibition halls, a rooftop garden, and a restaurant, and offers a behind-the-scenes look into the world of museums, making art collections accessible to the public.

Context. The deep-rooted origins of the Domaine de Bayssan still remain a mystery, but its toponymy plunges us into the Gallo-Roman period which contributed strongly to the city of Béziers identity, its economic expansion and emergence in the history.

The European Union intends to be climate neutral by 2050. This will require decarbonization at all levels of the economy, and the construction sector will have a particularly key role to play. The sector accounts for around 40% of CO2 emissions globally, and steel and concrete, in particular, require enormous amounts of energy to produce. There needs to be a paradigm shift to replace these building materials and their associated environmental impact. Natural and renewable building materials play a crucial role in this.

MVRDV and Hyde Park BV have unveiled their design proposal of Hoofddorp’s Station Quarter, a project that aims to transform the area around the existing station into an ecofriendly and affordable urban district. The masterplan will offer 8,500 housing units and renovated train, bus, and metro stations, providing a solution to the housing shortage and access to public transportation without compromising the quality of living.

A couple of hours outside of Mexico City, the rural lake town of Valle de Bravo sits in a valley between mountains, offering perennially agreeable weather and panoramic nature views. Within it, the site for Casa Aguacates — a residential project meant to function as a weekend retreat, and designed by architect Francisco Pardo — is a peculiar one, in which an avocado field slopes down into a dense forest and glen.