Sustainable Urban Development in Gällivare (SUD course, 2017)

The focus of this year course in Sustainable Urban Development is Gällivare which is located in the resource-rich region of Norrbotten. The region is at once heavily industrialized (steel, bio fuels, paper, extraction industry, large energy infrastructures) and one of the least densely populated area of Europe.

The project demonstrates the use of multifunctional ecological corridors for urban regeneration, where a specific focus is placed on the regeneration of mining areas and their connection with the rest of the town.

The aim of the project is to explore the challenges and opportunities in integrating urban planning and design considerations with mining sites. This move should contribute to: on the one hand, the sustainable (and economically feasible) rehabilitation of mining sites during and after operations have ceased; and, on the other hand, to diversify the local economy towards additional economic ventures (e.g., tourisms, sport, etc.).

A vision for Kalix (Climate, Landscape and Built Up Areas course, 2016)

Students from the Master Programme in Climate Sensitive Urban Planning and Building has developed urban design proposals for the future of Kalix. A greener and denser city more suited for pedestrians than motorists.

The project team was composed of 12 students with various fields of expertise: five urban planning students and six engineering students (civil, electrical and project management). Each group tried to add value to this urban planning project within their field of expertise.

The aim was to develop pedestrian traffic in relation to car traffic in a way that would lead to pedestrians getting preference in most traffic situations in the center area. It was most necessary to improve the connections between all the quarters in the center, where there was a wish to simultaneously improve the connection between the center and the green area towards the Kalix river. Generally, the proposal aims to create environments with significantly improved conditions for pedestrian traffic.

Planning Ecological Infrastructures for Sustainable Urban Development ​ (SUD course, 2016)

In recent years, Sparsely Populated Areas (SPARs) in Northern Scandinavia have been affected by important spatial, economic, and social transformation processes that are redesigning the identity of this once forgotten corner of Europe. Thanks to the natural resources boom of the last decade and a more recent drive to attract ICT and R&D businesses and institutions, economic growth in regions such as Norrbotten in Sweden has boomed.

However, this growth has brought new challenges for local policy makers:
- from a situation of general depopulation and housing vacancy typical of the 1980s and 1990s, today the largest coastal cities are suffering from a severe housing shortage while the rural areas are characterized by shrinkage and economic decline;
- just like in other parts of Europe, the changing climate has contributed to the vulnerability of towns and cities to prolonged rainfall and more humid winters while the extreme natural daylight and temperature excursions remain a “hot” topic for delivering an attractive urban environment;
- urban and regional infrastructures (e.g., transport) on this side of Sweden have naturally been weak while today there is the need for a general re-hauling of existing and planning of new infrastructures to support sustainable forms of mobility and more compact development.

A new, more strategic and spatially-oriented approach to area-wide territorial planning in SPARs of Scandinavia is badly needed to enable the long-term sustainability of the ongoing urban and economic growth. Supervised by a team of international researchers and practitioners, LTU master students will work in teams to develop a city-scale, spatial plan that focuses on Ecological Infrastructures as the strategic infrastructures to manage growth, regenerate both urban-cores, industrial, and sprawling peri-urban areas, promote climate-sensitive urban planning and design, enhance the ecological and landscape qualities, and deliver greater choice for mobility in the region. The focus area will be Luleå inner core including the nearby centres of Sunderbyn, Gammelstaden, Kallax, Gäddvik, and Rutvik.