Biodivers/cityAn Urban Design and Landscape Architecture vision by Marco Capitanio and Eleonore Harmel supervisedby Nishat Awan and Katrin Bohn | TU Berlin | SS 2011

PRODUCTIVE URBAN LANDSCAPE AS URBAN JUNGLEFIRST COLLAGES

PRODUCTIVE URBAN LANDSCAPE AS PROCESSFIRST COLLAGES

The first man on earth started building huts in order to escape from nature’s dangers; his constructions devel-oped into houses and cities. Looking back from the XXI Century we ask ourselves: is it possible to design spaces for nature in a man-made environment like a city? Our idea of productive landscape foresees an interaction be-tween men, flora and fauna enhancing local biodiversity.

QUESTION

“In Ehrenfeld wurde in den letzten 10- 15 Jahren soviel an natur-nahen Flächen versiegelt und bebaut, daß hier in absehbarer Zeit von “Natur” nicht mehr viel übrig sein wird.Gerade durch die “Baulückenschließung in der Innenstadt” gingen sehr viele ehemalige Brachflächen verloren. Wo vor einigen Jahren noch Bahndämme mit Wildpflanzen und Schre-bergärten mit alten Obstbäumen standen, finden Sie heute z.B. einen BAHR-Baumarkt. Unzählige ehemals “grüne” Innen- und Hinterhöfe sind mittlerweile bebaut. Durch Abriss oder Renovier-ung ehemaliger kleinerer Fabriken und Werkshallen und die Sanierung von Fassaden und Dächern gingen zahlreiche Quar-tiere für Fledermäuse und Vögel endgültig verloren. Auf Melaten wurden 1985 noch 47 Vogelarten registriert, heute “freut” man sich über 35. Ich empfehle jedem Menschen mit Naturliebe, aus Ehrenfeld schnellstmöglich zu flüchten.”

Claus Walter - NABU Köln und seit 44 Jahren Ehrenfelder

Source: WWF, Living Planet Report 2010

Nachtigall/Nightingale

Bird of the Year 1995brushwood

Mauersegler/Swift

Bird of the Year 2003niches in buildings

Turmfalke/Kestrel

Bird of the Year 2007rocks and trees, open landscape with low vegetation for hunting

Feldlerche/Skylark

Bird of the Year 1998open terrain

Goldammer/Yellowhammer

Bird of the Year 1999fallow fields

Kuckuck/Cuckoo

Bird of the Year 2008landscape with trees, hedges, shrubs

Gartenrotschwanz/Common Redstart

Bird of the Year 2011orchards and gardens

Rotkehlchen/European Robin

Bird of the Year 1992forest with brush wood, hedges

Eisvogel/Common Kingfisher

Bird of the Year 2009natural lakes and creeks with clean water

Kormoran/Cormorant

Bird of the Year 2010lakes and rivers

Köln’s urban form is characterized by two radial green belts around its center on the left Rhine bank, that divide built land from open spaces. Since a fundamental condition for biodiversity is the continuity of green corridors, our strategy focused on the creation of an east-west corridor connecting the inner and the outer ring.

STRATEGY

Even though factories in Ehrenfeld are disappearing, its industrial past is very much visible: as a piece of our strategy we convert a former railway track into a space for wilderness that men can experience but not occupy, where nature is not taken care of.

SITE

ABOVELook down from the elevated pedestrian and cyclists catwalk

BELOWA “flying meadow” will gradually transform todays car park

THROUGHPass-by the urban forest a few centimeters above ground

View towards south

View towards east

TRANSFORM WHAT IS THEREPost-industrial leftovers may transform into a mixed residential area with a linear urban jungle in the future

ENHANCE WHAT IS THERE