We cannot live without streets, squares, parks and landscapes. Here we meet, we move and relax, we develop ideas and we argue about who may use these spaces and how. These open spaces are ecological, social and political spaces, open-air stages and mirrors of society. At the Institute for Open Space Planning and Design, we address the demands of a changing society on its open spaces and shape their future. We work at the intersection of design and planning, political and natural sciences, concretely and also fundamentally.

The Department of Designing Urban Landscapes deals - inter- and transdisciplinary - with the design of open spaces against the background of current transformation challenges such as urbanization, climate crisis or loss of biodiversity.

The Department of ‘Participation and Co-Creation in Open Space Planning’ deals with cooperative development processes. The focus is on needs, conflicts and various interests in dealing with the scarce resource of space, as well as strengthening democratic participation.