ENGINE (project proposal)

To capitalize on innovation capacity in NW Europe: Closing cycles between urban and rural areas to enhance economic and environmental strenght

Most people in North-West Europe live in highly urbanised areas or metropolises. This 
daily living environment consists of both built up areas and green 
open spaces. Both landscapes and the built environment play a vital role in the 
daily urban system as a whole. But the link between the two is getting lost.
In the urban regions of NW Europe the pressure on the surrounding landscape is intense. Rural functions must be reconsidered to ensure lasting vitality and urban areas need to find solutions to manage residual flows, such as heat, materials and water.

EENGINE aims to restore the natural link between the city and its rural environment by setting up 'cradle to cradle' processes: residual material from the city will be used as base material in the landscape around the city to enlarge the variety of products. ENGINE will capitalise on existing knowledge to develop new types of agro production. Stakeholders will create cooperative landscape parks and organize pilots to demonstrate and evaluate the possibilities.

A win-win situation is envisioned: This practice of closing the cycles can both enhance the regional economy and at the same time offer a future for the landscape.

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