Research in the NSL

Das NSL erforscht die Transformation von Städten, Landschaften, Infrastrukturen und Mobilitätssystemen in einem inter- und transdisziplinären Rahmen. Verschiedene Ansätze werden verknüpft, um nachhaltige, resiliente und sozial gerechte Lösungen zu entwickeln. Im Fokus stehen Infrastruktur- und Verkehrsmanagement, urbane und territoriale Entwicklung, Landschaftsplanung sowie die gesellschaftlichen Dimensionen des Bauens und Wohnens.
Unten können Sie in unseren aktuellen Projekten stöbern.

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The Production of Cloud: Territorial and Architectural Strategies for AI’s Socio-Environmental Footprint

Published on: 13. September 2026

Chair: Prof. Milica Topalovic | Architektur und Territorialplanung

How can planet-spanning and resource-hungry cloud infrastructure be designed, planned, and governed in more equitable and sustainable ways? The explosive growth of AI and its…

Ersatzneubau ist in der Schweizer Baupraxis der Normalfall, nicht die Ausnahme. Foto: Sophie Hauller, 2019

Policy4Rebuild – Reduktion von grauen Treibhausgasemissionen in der Gebäudeerstellung

Published on: 7. September 2026

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Raumentwicklung und Stadtpolitik

Bauen im Bestand ist ein grosser Hebel zur Reduktion von grauen Treibhausgasemissionen (THGE). Trotz Netto-Null Zielen wird jedoch oft der Ersatzneubau einem Umbau vorgezogen. Es…

MOSAIC – Innovative and effective policies for sustainable land-use

Published on: 7. September 2026

Chair: Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey | Planung von Landschaft und Urbanen Systemen

MOSAIC is an EU-funded project that is working to understand and influence how land across Europe can be managed more sustainably. The project aims to…

NewUrbES – Co-creating new urban living space for biodiversity and ecosystem services

Published on: 18. June 2026

Chair: Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey | Landscape Planning and Urban Systems

The transdisciplinary research project «NewUrbES – Co-creating new urban leaving space for biodiversity and ecosystem services» propose a paradigm shift in urban design and planning…

Savannah landscape with trees, pickups, and Massai and tourists in the background

Going to the Wild? Extended Urbanisation and the Production of a ‘Wilderness’ Frontier in the Mara-Serengeti

Published on: 12. June 2026

Chair: Prof. Milica Topalovic | Architektur und Territorialplanung

In this research, I seek to question and upset the dominant narrative in the planetary thesis of urbanisation. I seek to challenge the colonial roots…

Hydrological Landscapes of Empire in Morocco

Published on: 7. May 2026

Chair: Geschichte und Theorie des Städtebaus | Prof. Dr. Tom Avermaete

The Making of Colonial Meknès (1845-1956) This dissertation examines the material and spatial control of water in colonial Morocco, revealing how hydraulic infrastructure was not…

CoCoNet – Co-creative Cohabitation Network

Published on: 3. March 2026

Chair: Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey | Landscape Planning and Urban Systems

Urban open space urgently needs transformation to meet the global urban challenges coming along with climate change and environmental degradation. Merging two integrated co-creative processes…

A World Map and Tools. Urban design tools from lectures and student workshops. Source: Chair of Architecture and Urban Design.

Urban Design Toolbox Catalog (UDTC) Platform: An E-learning Space For Exchanging Design Strategies

Published on: 26. February 2026

Chair: Prof. Hubert Klumpner | Architecture and Urban Design

Cities consume more than two thirds of global energy, produce over 70% of CO₂ emissions, and are primary sites of inequality. Yet, due to their…

Symbol image: three green Bolt scooters in a city, ready to be used.

Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab (SUT Lab) – Pilot Phase

Published on: 4. December 2025

Chair: Prof. Dr. Bryan T. Adey | Infrastructure Management

The Sustainable Urban Transitions Lab is a collaborative initiative between Bolt and ETH Zürich, designed to foster sustainable urban mobility planning in line with Bolt’s…

Unfinished building inhabited by Syrian refugees in Beirut © ETH Zürich, Authors

Housing in Urban Humanitarian Crises

Published on: 4. December 2025

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy

Urban humanitarian housing is one of the most significant challenges for today’s humanitarian actors, who are seeking new ways of providing adequate housing for displaced…

Reframing the Winterslag Terril

Published on: 26. September 2025

Chair: Prof. Freek Persyn | NEWROPE Chair of Architecture and Urban Transformation

Philippe Vandenbroeck’s research focuses on the intersection of imagination, urban transformation, and contested landscapes, centered on an exploratory case study of a historical mining site…

To Open up a Box and Find a Whole New World

Published on: 25. September 2025

Chair: Prof. Freek Persyn | NEWROPE Chair of Architecture and Urban Transformation

The PhD Thesis «To open up a box and find a whole new world: action research on the relationship between production and place in Kuklen,…

Urban Spaces for More-than-human Communities: Collaborative Processes, Design Attitudes and Hybrid Practices

Published on: 8. September 2025

Chair: Prof. Freek Persyn | NEWROPE Chair of Architecture and Urban Transformation

The presence of biodiversity in cities is associated with multiple benefits, from climate adaptation to social well-being. These aspects have been widely studied, but in…

REGaitVR. Restorative Landscape Environments for Gait Therapy with VR

Published on: 2. September 2025

Chair: Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey | Landscape Planning and Urban Systems

Background Therapies to improve gait security in the context of rehabilitation should be designed as close to everyday life as possible so that patients can…

Revolutionize how urban mobility systems respond to disruptions

Published on: 15. August 2025

Chair: Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas | Traffic Engineering and Control

AntifragiCity is a groundbreaking European research initiative aiming to revolutionize how urban mobility systems respond to disruptions. Rather than merely resisting shocks, AntifragiCity envisions cities…

Model Suite for Mass Cycling as a Service Simulation

Published on: 15. August 2025

Chair: Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas | Traffic Engineering and Control

The average trip length in Swiss cities is under 14km, with around 60% of trips below 6km. Despite the potential for healthier, more sustainable alternatives,…

FEDORA Horizon Europe project

Published on: 5. August 2025

Chair: Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas | Traffic Engineering and Control

Federation of network optimisation services, simulation foresights, and data alchemy for adaptable, agile, secure, and resilient multimodal traffic management. Lack of orchestration, structured and standardized…

© Orthophoto ZH 2014-2021, Canton of Zurich.

RESH – Regional effects of housing shortage in urban areas (ESPON Project)

Published on: 14. March 2025

Chair: Dr. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein | ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE

Housing shortages in urban areas have become a pressing issue across Europe, driven by growing population numbers and the continued attractiveness of cities as economic,…

Mutual aid housing cooperative under construction by ex-combatants in Tierragrata, Colombia, 2021. Photo: Daniela Sanjinés

Negotiating Space for Cooperative Housing in Latin America. The Case of Post-Conflict Colombia and El Salvador

Published on: 10. March 2025

Chair: Dr. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein | ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE

Housing cooperatives emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Europe and played a key role in peacebuilding, reconciliation, and reconstruction in the aftermath of World War…

FRESH: The FREight-SHopping nexus in urban outskirts and beyond

Published on: 10. March 2025

Chair: Prof. Dr. Eva Heinen | Transportation and Mobility Planning

FRESH is a research project funded by DUT (Driving Urban Transition Partnership) and national funders which is focussing on shopping-related mobility behaviour and urban logistics…

Schwarzweissbild von Kindern auf einem Spielplatz. www.sinergiafamy.ch

FamyCH (SNSF SINERGIA Project). Family Custody Arrangements and Child Well-Being in Switzerland

Published on: 10. March 2025

Chair: Dr. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein | ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE

The four-year SNSF Sinergia project “Family Custody Arrangements and Child Well-Being in Switzerland” (FamyCH) examines custody regulations following parental separation and their effects on children.…

Urban Transformation Project Sarajevo (UTPS)

Published on: 14. May 2024

Chair: Prof. Hubert Klumpner | Architecture and Urban Design

The Urban Transformation Project Sarajevo (UTPS) aims to support the modernization of the integrated urban-planning system in Sarajevo Canton, and the creation of better conditions for a sustainable,…

Green transistion measures such as urban densificaiton are leading to the demoliton of affordable housing and to the displacement of lower-income people. © ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE / Jennifer Duyne Barenstein

ReHousIn: Contextualized Pathways to Reduce Housing Inequalities in the Green and Digital Transition (EU Horizon Project)

Published on: 26. April 2024

Chair: Dr. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein | ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE

This EU Horizon project focuses on the impact of policies to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 on the access to adequate and affordable housing. Climate…

Til-Til, Chile: Marking of Roots Space around the Trees, Chair of Being Alive, 2023

Garden of the XXI Century in Til-Til, Chile

Published on: 22. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard | Chair of Being Alive

The garden located in Huertos Familiares, Tiltil, Chile, investigates how soil modification through changes in land-management practices can establish an ecological and social capacity in…

New Orleans, USA: Drawing of Forest Planting, Chair of Being Alive, 2024

Garden of the XXI Century in New Orleans, USA

Published on: 22. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard | Chair of Being Alive

The garden is located in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans, a neighbourhood which suffered from extensive damage in 2005 during the city’s most…

Zürich, Switzerland: Briza media in the Grassland Vegetation, Chair of Being Alive, 2023

Garden of the XXI Century in Zurich, Switzerland

Published on: 22. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard | Chair of Being Alive

The garden of the XXI century in Zurich is located at the north-facing edge of Campus Hönggerberg, directly next to the HIT building. It is…

Senan, Spain: Grazing horses in the forest, Chair of Being Alive, 2023

Garden of the XXI Century in Senan, Spain

Published on: 22. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard | Chair of Being Alive

As part of the Garden of the XXI Century research, the project in Senan, Spain, investigates how a simple practice of modifying the soil through…

Baldomar, Spain: Burned Oak Trees after the Fire, Chair of Being Alive, 2022

Published on: 22. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard | Chair of Being Alive

On June 15, 2022, a fire burned 2,683 hectares of forest and agricultural land around the villages of La Clua de Maià and Alos de…

Public Participation in Urban Planning

Published on: 21. March 2024

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy

Public participation has become a widely used concept in the rhetoric and practice of planning, and an accepted approach in the formulation and implementation of…

Muhkjar refugee camp in the Central African Republic, Source: Albert Gonzalez Farran UNAMID

Humanitarian Planning Hub

Published on: 5. January 2024

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy

The Humanitarian Planning Hub is a research and policy hub for co-creating knowledge between academia and practice to serve the housing needs of displaced populations…

Codes and Conventions for Future Zurich: A Propositional Planning Approach to Qualitative Densification

Published on: 29. November 2023

Chair: Geschichte und Theorie des Städtebaus | Prof. Dr. Tom Avermaete

This 4-year project uniquely combines historical and design-led research to explore urban strategies for housing the anticipated 25% population increase that Zurich is facing in…

Painting: Antigone und Ödipus (CC0 1.0 / Wikimedia Commons / C.W. Eckersberg)

Designing anti-fragile large-scale traffic frameworks

Published on: 27. November 2023

Chair: Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas | Traffic Engineering and Control

Traffic optimisation Goals

Empty hall at the main station Zurich, Switzerland

The COVID-19 Pandemic and its Implications for Urban Essential Workers

Published on: 19. September 2023

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has been unequal depending on the resources and opportunities people have to cope with the pandemic. Intersectional burdens have…

Alpine landscapes profiled: A challenge. Diavolezza, Val Bernina, August 2018. © Rolf Weingartner

Profiling Alpine Landscapes

Published on: 25. June 2023

Chair: Prof. em Dr. h. c. Günther Vogt | Landscape Architecture

Climate change is accelerating the transformation of the Alps. In this process, «new landscapes» with a great deal of potential are emerging, particularly since the…

Daylight in Sustainable Urban Design

Published on: 24. March 2023

Chair: Prof. Hubert Klumpner | Architecture and Urban Design

By 2050, up to six billion people are expected to live in urban areas, accelerating urban growth and increasing densification. The challenges here are the…

ETH RAUM – The New Platform for Spatial Development

Published on: 28. February 2023

Chair: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy

ETH RAUM is the new ETH platform offering a broad range of courses in spatial development. The MAS and the three new CAS programmes focus…