On initiative of Dr. Gabriela Debrunner, the GoverDENSE team participate in a workshop on densification organized by the Spatial Development and Urban Policy research group (SPUR) at ETH Zurich. The workshop gathered researchers from three different ongoing research projects on densification: our own project, “Densifying Switzerland” (ETH), and SubDense (TU Dortmund).

The day started with a guest lecture by Prof. Thomas Hartmann on “the new land question”. In the afternoon, we enjoyed lively discussions on a large range of topics, including the link between densification and spatial patterns of displacement, the potential of active land policy, the differences between Dutch, German, and Swiss planning systems, and the potential implications of our research findings for public policy.

We thank Dr. Debrunner and the SPUR team for the organization of the workshop!