Effects of climate change, urbanization and global homogenization are resulted in the degradation of land and losses of natural habitats. Ecological design integrates nature into urban environment by respecting natural ecological principles and processes and creating resilient urban biotopes which also can be used by local urban communities. The aim of the thesis is to answer the research questions: How ecological design principles can be applied for re-design of Toledo Riverfront (with requirements of the design competition)? and What is the ecological design in landscape architecture? I participated in the USA design competition with the aim to create a vision and redesign of Toledo Riverfront in Ohio State, USA. The site is located in the south point of Lake Erie. As a result of a long industrial activity, riverfront of Toledo had been transformed into inaccessible and abandoned brownfields. In my proposal I applied ecological design principles on three scales: the city of Toledo by reinforcing of ecological connection and creating green corridors along the river; the intermediate scale by suggesting public parks along the river front and on the fine level by proposing detailed design including remediation of the site and use of dredged material.

The design of buildings is today considered to be crucial for obtaining sustainable development. Research concerning sustainable building is considered to be a Swedish area of strength and development projects as Hammarby Sjöstad and Bo01 are often pointed out as Swedish prime examples of sustainable building. Some still argue though, that that these projects should not be presented as sustainable, due to its incompetence to meet their objectives. This contradiction has attracted my curiosity. By doing this study I hope to gain understanding about the difficulties Bo01 and Hammarby Sjöstad are surrounded with and its significance for sustainable development.

Kommunikation och tillgänglighet som målMitt program består av fem hus,630 kv var,studentsbostäder 541 kv och ett kontors komplex,komplexet är i samma byggnad som t-bana hus. Alla hus är på parken, på grund av ljusförhållande,eftersom programmet är orienterad mot söder.För att komma till bostäder går man genom trappor,det finns fem nya trappor från gatan till bostäderna som har som funktion,förutom att nå bostäder,att göra möjligt till alla grannar att gå till parken från gatan själv.Programmet har också för mål att skapa ett mera dynamiskt urban liv med sitt multifunktionella grannskap,väl dimensionerad hus och anslutna ytor,varierande boende av alla åldrar,och utveckla ett mera aktiv förhållande till parken och med de nya bosättare.

Swedish agriculture faces future challenges regarding food production and land use. Increased competition for agricultural land creates complex situations, where conflicts may arise when productive crop land is in demand not only for food production but also energy- and fodder production. On top of that there is an obvious conflict of goals between agricultural production and non-agricultural exploitation of agricultural land. In several emerging economic regions it is noticeable how agricultural land is being expropriated for development of urban settlement and infrastructure, carrying potentially significant long-term effects. During the last decade the exploitation of agricultural land in activities other than food production has increased in Sweden and is expected to continue in the same manor. Approximately 700 hectare of land in Sweden is diverted from food production, annually, and in 2013, the Uppsala Municipality showed the greatest change in land use of all municipalities (SCB, 2013).

Trees in urban environment are exposed to extreme conditions, foremost the ones that grow in the hard packed soil along our streets. They are also exposed to damaging insects and fungal diseases both local and new ones spreading from South Europe. The global warming with warmer temperatures provides a longer growing season, making it easier for insects and fungus to establish a habitat. Based on these facts new tree species need to be available for future urban plantings.To determine what these trees would be an interview study began. Six people were selected who have experience in the field of urban environment planting.

Insufficient intake of vegetables is a reason for micronutrient deficiencies and malnutrition in developing countries. With urbanization, globalization and a growing world population it is of major importance to secure sufficient food supply for the world?s population. Part of the solution to increased food security among the world?s poor could be the introduction of vegetable home gardens, plots for small scale vegetable production which can provide households with sufficient vegetables as well as serve as an extra income source. The study Improving peri-urban home gardens aims at examining the existence of vegetable home gardens in the peri-urban areas of Hyderabad, India.

Previous studies of stress and coping regarding urban bus drivers describe an unhealthy occupation in areas of psychological and physiological factors. In the present study a social constructionist approach was used to investigate Swedish urban bus drivers' constructs of stress and coping regarding passengers. Semi-structered interviews were performed with ten bus drivers, nine males and one female. The data was transcribed verbatim and analysed with the program QSR NUD*IST.Three main themes where found; passanger related context, coping strategies and promoting circumstances. The bus drivers' constructs describe passanger relations as part of a stressful work environment where successful coping is problematic..

This thesis aim to investigate the living conditions among marginalized habitants of suburbs in the Swedish welfare state. To approach an understanding of the complexity of marginalized urban areas, this thesis focus on studying the Stockholm suburb Husby in a context of the May riots 2013.The research method used is qualitative interviews with seven informants, who have a connection to the Husby area.The theories applied to the empirical material is Gösta Esping-Andersens theory on welfare state regimes and Loïc Wacquants theory on advanced marginality, also known as ?The new urban poverty?.By observing the complexity of the Husby riots in a contextual aspect of the Swedish welfare state and the living situation in Husby, the analysis has shown that the Swedish welfare model is going through a changing process. This process means a shift from a social democratic welfare model towards a more liberal regime, with an increased privatization of public welfare and a focus on individual responsibility regarding the citizens own living conditions. Husby as an area is characterized by a low socioeconomic status, a high level of unemployment and poor school results.

Urban operations is one of the most difficult challenges a modern army can be tasked with. These challenges have been studied in history and present with various perspectives, but rarely from a combat engineering point of view. The purpose of this thesis has been to study the urban capabilities of a Swedish combat engineer company by examining if it can perform similar combat engineering fieldwork that supported the basic capabilities mobility, defence and effect in Operation AL FAJR, Fallujah Iraq 2004. These are the capabilities a Swedish engineer company are primarily designed to support in urban operations.For example, the study of Operation AL FAJR has shown that fieldwork supported mobility with breaching minefields, obstacles, walls and doors. Defence by creating defensive positions and obstacles.

Uppsatsen behandlar temat urbana tillväxtstrategier i svensk planering. Studien syftar till att undersöka hur översiktsplaner har påverkats av entrepreneurial city, platsmarknadsföring och kreativa klassen som alla är olika teorier om urban tillväxt. Undersökningen utgår ifrån fem kommuner med en översiktsplan från tidigt 90-tal och en aktuell plan antagen omkring 2010. Översiktsplanerna studeras utifrån de valda teorierna (entrepreneurial city, platsmarknadsföring och kreativa klassen) om urban tillväxt för att ge förståelse för hur strategierna i kommunernas översiktsplaner har påverkats av teorierna. Den genomförda undersökningen visar på en förändring över tid som pekar mot mer tillväxtorienterad planering..

By exploring different forms of urban cultivation and looking into future gains of sustainability, I want to focus on unconventional and perhaps necessary ways of building, living and making a living. This will be made through study of literature on the topic.Urban cultivation could be anything from a pot of basil in the kitchen window to a city farm. The core of the concept is that the food is produced where it is eaten, in or in direct vicinity to the city and that it is produced ecologically. There will be many benefits, ecological, economical and social.The world is at a turning point right now where consumption patterns and the industry processed food are questioned and it is important that the things we consume are genuineand authentic. We want food that is locally and ecologically produced; food that we can trust.

As the contemporary discourse surrounding urbanism is almost exclusively focusing on aspects of density and traditional urban qualities, it entrenches notions of what constitutes a proper city and countryside. But beyond this urban-rural dichotomy is another highly contemporary landscape. A territory usually mentioned as sprawl, peri-urban, wasteland, edge city, etc. Although its existence is due to mobilization, telecommunications, globalization and other phenomena of modern life, it is a landscape without an own name or place in public awareness.This thesis provides a case study of how to map and intervene in such a landscape, specifically along the border between Malmö and Burlöv municipalities in southern Sweden. Its structure is composed of a sequence of three parts:1 Spatial Conditions:Divided up in the sections Network, Fringe and Void.

Sustainable development is a concept that has been interpreted in a multitude of ways in different contexts. This essay argues that the discourse of "ecological modernization" has strongly influenced the way in which the concept of ?sustainability? has been constructed in Swedish environmental policy. This interpretation of the concept of sustainability offers the possibility of combining economic growth with ecological sustainability which stands in contrast to the assumptions of Deep Ecology and Green Theory. The aim of this essay is to explore how the concept of sustainability is being formulated in environmental policy both on a national level and in the city of Malmö.Considering these issues in a specific context, this essay focuses on city planning that is as an important instrument to promote urban sustainability both on national and local levels.

Previous research confirms that there is a major decline of pollinators worldwide. Investigations have mainly focused on pollination services in the agricultural landscapes and therefore, there is a lack of knowledge on the effects pollinators may have in urban environment. This paper examines the presence of honey bees in central parts of Stockholm, Sweden. The study presents what conditions, possibilities and motives there are behind the phenomenon of urban bee keeping. I found ten locations with beehives and a total of 18 hives within the delimited area. Nothing seems to indicate that conditions may limit the presence of honey bees.

Idag är många städer belägna längs kusten och när städerna växer innebär det att stora ytor våtmark försvinner. Våtmarker i urban miljö kan genom rätt utformning erbjuda varierade miljöer med ett antal värdefulla ekosystemtjänster. Exempel på sådana ekosystemtjänster är vattenrening, omhändertagande av stormvatten, kvarhållande av näringsämnen i marken och möjlighet till rekreation i grönskande miljöer.1 Att anlägga våtmarker i en urban miljö kan innebära ett värdefullt utbyte mellan människa och natur. Dock kan det finnas utmaningar kring att kombinera en rik biologisk miljö och en urban miljö med människans förväntningar på tilltalande estetik och möjlighet för rekreation. För att urbana våtmarker lågsiktigt ska restaureras och anläggas i stadsmiljö krävs det att de accepteras av stadens befolkning.