SONIAN FOREST: Forest & Water Urbanisms (2018-ongoing)

SONIAN FOREST: Forest & Water Urbanisms (2018-ongoing)

Location: Brussels, Belgium
Designers: RUA/OSA-led workshop (Bruno De Meulder, OSA, KU Leuven Kelly Shannon) with MetroLab, UCL (Roselyne de Lestrange) and Horizon+ (Jo Decoster) withMarlies Aerts, Rayan Al Ghareeb, Marija Beg, Jolein Bergers, Francesco Bortolato, Nicolo Croce, Giulia Crotti, Matteo J. da Lisca, Marine Declève, Ernesto Diez, Meryem Canan Durak, Goran Erfani, Andrea Fantin, Thao Huynh, Kobe Kiekens, Peter Loewi, Xuan Ha Vu Luu, Melinda Martinus, Dieu Nguyen T. Minh, Alvise Moretti, Minh Quang Nguyen, Rui Olivera, Hongxia Pu, Bindi Raditya, Raquel Santos, Daniel Siemsgluss, Teodor Ioan Staicu, Hanna Stynen, Yuying Sun, Maria Tsatira, Giulia Vergassola, Minh Phuoc Vu, Xinyu Xiao, Mariia Zakharova, Alberto Zaragoza

Commissioned by: Horizon+

Period of design: September 2018

BELGIUM

Design Workshop in the Sonian Forest

OSA co-led (with Metro Lab, UCL, and Horizon +) an intensive design workshop in the Groenendaal Castel, centrally located in the Sonian Forest. The forest is simultaneously an essential ecological reserve and the main park of the Brussels Metropolitan Region.

Vision for the Brussels Metropolitan Region

Design propositions were made for a vision of the territory (spanning the Brussels, Walloon, and Flemish regions), which focused on new eye-opening propositions through the lenses of ecology, mobility, and settlement. Fundamental restructuring of each and of their interplays is an urgent necessity.

Fieldwork and Planning Outcomes

In addition to the territorial vision for the region where forest and settlement are inherently intertwined, 35 participants from 16 countries completed fieldwork and developed 4 zoom-in plans and a catalogue of ‘forest and water urbanisms’ tools for transformation.

Multi-Scale and Multi-Stakeholder Approach

The workshop initiated a process that works across scales, stakeholders, and agencies. This multi-scale strategy aims to create actionable plans that align with the broader vision for the Sonian Forest and the Brussels Metropolitan Region, ensuring that development initiatives are both ecologically sensitive and socially inclusive.