Re:Act Alna

The industrial areas around the riverscape of Alna is being developed for urban use, including the largest planned development in Europe. None of these plans highlight the urgency of the ecological problems of the Alna river. We lack a comprehensive plan to safeguard our shared natural environment. How can we use architectural tools for ecosystem restoration in urban areas? Through the project we seek to find system based solutions for a coherent restoration plan for our common nature. How can we as architects perceive the landscape holistically and prioritize ecology in all scales?

Re:Act Alna is a response to the urban development in our cities progressing too slowly and in the wrong direction with regards to nature. The project takes action with cross-disciplinary collaboration, engagement and curiosity to develop regenerative cities and ecosystems for both non-human and human. The project creates a system in three parts supporting the ecosystem of Alna River in three different scales. The architectural interventions become part of an evolving landscape through system-based urban thinking. Re:Act Alna is a system supporting urban ecosystems through circular resource management: 1. Daylighting the tributaries of the Alna river, creating green corridors through urban areas 2. Repurposing industrial sites for management of material coming from the daylighting of the rivers 3. Small interventions called follies in the riverscape supporting different ecosystem services - built on the Terminal of resources using the materials from the daylighting of the tributaries The system addresses ecology, community and use of resources in all scales, where one supports the other. As a result, the project is both a system in itself and the different architectural components are linked to specific situations. Architecture is both shaped by and shaping the landscape simultaneously. The outcome of the project is an alternative proposal for the major plans of development in Oslo, where all the tree components of the system are integrated as a natural part of the city’s new neighbourhood´s and urban ecology is strengthened through active renaturation in all scales. In conclusion Re:Act Alna explores how a regenerative approach to urban rivers ecosystems can shape the future of city development, and how the architects role could evolve with a changing world.