News

In het Friese dorp Koudum hebben de plannen voor de verplaatsing van de Poeisz supermarkt van de huidige centrumlocatie naar een locatie aan de rand van het dorp veel losgemaakt. De ondernemersvereniging, dorpsbelangen en inwoners vrezen dat de levensvatbaarheid van de dorpskern van Koudum onder druk komt te staan als de supermarkt uit het centrum verdwijnt. Uit onderzoek van Tialda Haartsen en Kees Weening van de Faculteit Ruimtelijke Wetenschappen, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, blijkt dat deze zorgen terecht zijn.

Mobility hubs are becoming increasingly important for accessibility in neighbourhoods and villages across the Province of Groningen. New research into these hubs, where people can switch between modes of transport such as bicycle and bus or bus and train, shows that residents prefer hubs that combine a variety of mobility services with everyday amenities. According to residents of the Province of Groningen, mobility hubs can therefore strengthen liveability while encouraging sustainable travel.

The Netherlands urgently needs new homes, while climate change calls for more space for water. Scientists are therefore investigating how building on water can evolve from an innovative niche into a serious addition to housing construction.

How can public space be designed in such a way that it is safe, accessible, and inviting for everyone? Geographer Gerd Weitkamp studies how people move through their living environment, but also how they experience it. In particular, he examines what this means for their health, well-being, and social participation. ‘If you make an environment safe, for example for an eight-year-old child, or accessible for older adults, then it becomes safer and more accessible for everyone.’

UG researcher Soran Mansournia (Faculty of Spatial Sciences) will be able to conduct research at Yale University for two years thanks to the Rubicon programme organized by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The NWO Rubicon programme enables talented, young researchers to acquire international research experience to help kick-start their academic careers.

How can millions of people who are a fan of a nature area contribute to its management? And how can we better shape this, within the Netherlands and together with partners in nearly 800 nature areas in 140 countries? That is the subject of the new UNESCO Chair in Sustainable Landscape Governance, Education and Citizen Science; the first UNESCO Chair at the University of Groningen.