Main challenge

“How can we integrate and accelerate public health and sustainability innovations to fundamentally improve the well-being of present and future generations in the City of The Hague?”

About the research

A sustainable and green environment supports our physical and mental health. It creates more attractive neighborhoods, with clean air, more social cohesion, and an active lifestyle. The Hague has a large diversity of neighborhoods; each associated with different levels of health, wellbeing and life expectancy. Health inequalities are increasing and not everyone has equal opportunities to live a healthy life. Housing developments, climate adaptation, and the energy transition rapidly change the physical living environment.

In this Thesis Lab, students will develop multidisciplinary insights for a nature-powered health transition in The Hague, to improve the well-being of citizens by strengthening environmental conditions, social cohesion, and circular innovations in The Hague. Students can come up with their own thesis question related to the main challenge.

Themes

• Water & Health: e.g. How can nature be deployed to absorb excess water in the city while simultaneously providing cooling on hot days?
• Mobility & Health: e.g. How can innovative mobility solutions be introduced and scaled up more rapidly, with attention to the social domain?
• Energy & Health: e.g. What technical and organisational innovations are needed to achieve more sustainable energy and heat supply, with attention to public health?
• Biodiversity & Health: e.g. What is the effect of biodiverse greenery (with high species variety) on CO₂ storage and temperature in urban areas?
  Governance, Society: e.g. Which forms of citizen participation work best for sustainable innovation and health promotion?
• Business models & Innovations: e.g. How can digital tools — such as digital twins, AI and sensors — help to develop better policy and more effectively engage both the physical and social domains?
• Culture & Inclusion: e.g. Which cultural values and behaviours influence public support for urban greening?