XL L M S

Hasibe Şimal Keskin — Mapping the Urban-Rural Continuum through Critical Cartography and Urban Morphology in Sweden

This project explores the spatial and ecological relations that define the urban–rural continuum in Sweden, focusing on how hidden connections and power structures between ecological systems and human activities shape the fragility of in-between spaces. Rather than treating cities and rural areas as separate entities, the research approaches them as interdependent networks of flows of materials, energy, human and non-human species. Through a series of 3–4 exploratory maps, the study will visualise how these relations operate across scales and territories within the next twelve months. Each map will try to combine ecological data with social and spatial indicators. By mapping with hand-drawn sketches and narrative diagrams, the project seeks to develop a critical language that exposes hidden relations often overlooked in conventional urban or rural planning. The process will be both conceptual and experimental; maps will serve not only as representations but also as research tools to think through spatial dependencies and tensions. Drawing inspiration from spatial and ecological theories, including space syntax, habitat network models, and ecological urbanism, the work will trace how environmental, economic, and social processes intersect in peri-urban regions around Stockholm (?). These first maps will lay the groundwork for the thesis’s broader theoretical and methodological framework, contributing to new ways of understanding and designing urban–rural linkages that support both ecological resilience and spatial justice.

Ann-Kristin Kaplan Wikström: The concept of ´trevnad´

While working on my report Arkitektur och lagstiftning – historik och samband under 700 år[1] I noted that the Planning and Building Act was altered by two, unconnected processes both concerning architecture in the 1990s. One process excluded ´trevnad´ since the legislator considered it partly covered by the requirements for hygiene, work environment, indoor climate and accessibility, and otherwise wasn´t of such significant public interest that it required legislation.[2] The other process introduced ´estetiskt tilltalande´ described by the legislator in terms of the exterior of buildings and outdoor spatialities.[3] The first process generated the new Act on Technical Requirements for Construction works, the second gave Sweden's first architecture policy Framtidsformer.

Boverket (The Swedish National Board of Housing, Building and Planning) decided on new mandatory provisions[4],[5] in 2024. They excluded the explicit provision for windows in every room, the requirement for sunlight was excluded, and a minimum daylight level in every room is no longer compulsory.

There are strong indications that the loss of the concept of ´trevnad´ in legislation is intertwined with a limited perspective of, and language for, aesthetic values, and thereby has had a decisive impact on how building regulations have been reduced to two-dimensional metrics without recognising their influence on spacial and perceptual architectural values.

The aim of my licentiate thesis is to unveil a deeper understanding of ´trevnad´ as an architectural concept. I will research the concept of ´trevnad´ from three different perspectives: in the common language (part I), its history in legislation and politics (part II) and though the lens of architects (part III).

Bios

Hasibe Şimal Keskin is an architect, urban designer and researcher in urban studies and spatial analysis. She is pursuing a PhD in Critical Cartography and Spatial Analysis in the Division of Architecture and Urban Design. She holds a Master of Science in Architecture and Urban Design from Politecnico di Milano, where her thesis explored the integration of circular agriculture, community collaboration, and green, grey, and blue infrastructure strategies in peri-urban industrial contexts. As an intern in the UN-Habitat Planning, Finance and Economy section, she contributed to the assessment of the Nampula, Mozambique, Strategic Plan and to the development of the urban design guideline "My Neighbourhood Framework – Coastal and Delta Cities Edition." She also contributed to research activities on urban transformation and sustainable development in EU-funded projects, providing mapping and spatial analysis support through her affiliation with Politecnico di Milano. Her current work explores the role of critical cartography in advancing spatial justice, resilience, and sustainable territorial development.

Ann-Kristin Kaplan Wikström resumed her doctoral studies in Urban Planning in the spring of 2025. She was accepted as an industrial doctoral student in 2014 with the project Arkitektur och regler(Architecture and Regulations) and have had a long time-out for private reasons. Part of the original project was realized in 2024 when she published the report Arkitektur och lagstiftning – historik och samband under 700 år. She has fourteen years of practical experience of planning and building regulations from three municipalities. For six years, she worked at the Government Offices, including a position as one of the secretaries of the Building Permit Inquiry and co-author of Ett nytt regelverk för bygglov (A New Regulatory Framework for Building Permits). She now combines her doctoral studies with part-time work at the Association of Architects Sweden.

[1] Kaplan Wikström, Ann-Kristin, 2024. Arkitektur och lagstiftning – historik och samband under 700 år. (Architecture and Legislation – History and Connectivity over 700 Years). Arkus.

[2] Prop. 1994/94:178, 1994. Ändringar i plan- och bygglagen, mm. Regeringen.

[3] Prop. 1997/98:117, 1998. Framtidsformer – Handlingsprogram för arkitektur, formgivning och design. Regeringen.

[4] BFS 2024:8, 2024. Boverkets föreskrifter om skydd med hänsyn till hygien, hälsa och miljö samt hushållning med vatten och avfall. Boverket.

[5] Boverket, 2024. Konsekvensutredning BFS 2024:8 - Boverkets föreskrifter om skydd med hänsyn till hygien, hälsa och miljö samt hushållning med vatten och avfall. Boverket