Nature inclusive Agriculture: Re-activating the fringes in the province of South Holland

The province of South Holland is one of the biggest drivers of the Dutcheconomy with almost a quarter of the gross national product earned in thisregion. The agrifood sector is the largest contributor with an annual turnover ofabout € 5.5 billion. About half of the surface of the province is dedicated to thissector, entailing many jobs and steering innovation worldwide. In line with theambitious target of the Dutch government the province aims to be fully circularin 2050. This means the agrifood sector is facing an enormous transition.However, the sector faces several major socio-spatial and environmentalchallenges. The current monoculture food landscapes contribute to 20% ofGHG emissions, consumes 67% of fresh water, and results in subsidence,salination and lack of biodiversity. Additionally, with the challenge to build230.000 houses and the space needed for energy transition and nature,the pressure on space increases. The distribution of these negativeexternalities results in socio-spatial inequality, placing a burden on mainlylower income communities, including a lower socio-economic positionfor farmers. Nature-inclusive agriculture has the potential to tackle theseissues as an overarching framework. How can the agrifood sector in theProvince of South Holland transition to a nature inclusive circular system?This project aims to have a 100% nature-inclusive agrifood sector in 2050.To reach this goal, this project starts by further investigating the currentlinear system and its environmental social and spatial issues. It can beconcluded that the socio-spatial challenges are most present in the fringeswithin the province. Hence, a regional vision and strategy are proposedthat transform the linear-manufacture-waste model into a circular andnature-inclusive agrifood sector, through re-activation of the fringes inthe province. The fringes offer a high potential for implementation of avariety of nature-inclusive and circular functions, that can be establishedthrough sta
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AR2U088 R&D Methodology for Urbanism
Architecture, Urbanism and Building Sciences | Urbanism