In view of the threat of resource scarcity and the increasingly evident impact of climate change, sustainable urban and regional development is a hot topic. The Department of Building, Energy and Society is designing forward-looking projects which combine social and ecological topics as a continuation of the ÖKOTOPIA project. This requires transdisciplinary cooperation between the engineering, social and creative sciences.
They ask the following key questions:
- How can we design urban and regional development to ensure it is socially acceptable?
- What does the (strong) population drain from the regions to the cities mean for the quality of life?
- What must be done to secure the key basics of life – air, water, recreation, activity and pleasure – in these changing areas?
- How can we best organise living, working, mobility and intergenerational support?
- What role can structural, social-communicative and energy technology measures play in achieving these goals?
The research focus of socioecological urban and regional development combines empirical and normative results.
The aim is to:
- understand the structure and dynamics of socioecological urban and regional systems,
- understand the methods and concepts for targeted change, and
- understand the desired social conditions.