Sustainable Energy Landscapes ─ Designing, Planning, and Development

In the near future the appearance and spatial organization of urban and rural landscapes will be strongly influenced by the generation of renewable energy. One of the critical tasks will be the re-integration of these sustainable energy landscapes into the existing environment—which people value and want to preserve—in a socially fair, environmentally sound, and economically feasible manner. Accordingly, Sustainable Energy Landscapes: Designing, Planning, and Development focuses on the municipal and regional scale, where energy-conscious interventions are effective, and stakeholders can participate actively in the transition process.

This book presents state-of-the-art knowledge in the exciting new field of sustainable energy landscapes. It bridges the gap between theory and fundamental research on the one hand, and practice and education on the other. The chapters—written by experts in their fields—present a selection of interdisciplinary, cutting-edge projects from across the world, illustrating the inspiring challenge of developing sustainable energy landscapes. They include unique case studies from Germany, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, Austria, Italy, and the United States.

The editors and team of contributing authors aim to inspire readers, providing a comprehensive overview of sustainable energy landscapes, including principles, concepts, theories, and examples. The book describes various methods, such as energy potential mapping and heat mapping, multicriteria decision analysis, energy landscape visualization, and employing exergy and carbon models. It addresses how to quantify the impact of energy transition both on landscape quality and energy economy, issues of growing importance. The text infuses readers with enthusiasm to promote further research and action toward the important goal of building energy landscapes for a sustainable future.

Sven Stremke, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of landscape architecture at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. His research commenced with a particular focus on the mitigation of climate change (sustainable energy landscapes) and has been expanded to include adaptation to climate change (climate-robust landscapes). His research and design has been published in scientific journals, and he has presented his work around the world. Each year, Dr. Stremke and his colleagues conduct commissioned projects on sustainable energy landscapes. He is a member of the scientific advisory board to the New Development of Methods and Tools for Estimation of Sustainability research project in Denmark. Recently, he initiated the launch of an online platform that provides information on projects, publications, teaching, and other activities with regard to energy landscapes (www.NRGlab.net).

Andy van den Dobbelsteen, Ph.D., is a full professor of climate design and sustainability at the Faculty of Architecture of the Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. He is the coordinator of the Green Building Innovation research program and the built environment theme leader for the Delft Energy Initiative. Dr. Dobbelsteen lectures and leads research projects in various areas of sustainability in the built environment, most notably on sustainable energy systems for neighborhoods, cities, and regions. He has authored many publications, both scientific and popular, and is one of the expert authors for the Dutch national website on sustainable building (www.duurzaamgebouwd.nl). Dr. Dobbelsteen has chaired various national and international events, and he is the joint coordinator of the CIB Working Commission 116 (Smart and Sustainable Built Environments) and a member of several juries, including the Gulden Feniks, the Dutch national renovation prize.