Talk
Aarhus ECOS, Centre for NBS opening
Justine Bell was invited to give a lecture at the opening of Aarhus University’s officially new Centre for Nature-Based Solutions. The program featured insights from leading researchers and practitioners across disciplines, highlighting the role of nature-based solutions (NBS) in addressing environmental challenges.
The event opened with a welcome from Dean Eskild Holm Nielsen (Technical Sciences, AU) and an introduction by Professor and Centre Director Nikolai Friberg (AU)
- Synergies on water – Prof. Barth Smets, AU
- Agroecological perspectives on NBS – Prof. Tommy Dalgaard, AU
- Ålandet Skjern – A grounded vision for nature-based solutions – Peter Andreas Christensen, University of Oslo & Centre for Environmental Humanities, AU
- A holistic perspective on NBS – Architect Justine Bell, Djernes & Bell, Copenhagen
- A cross-cutting approach to NBS – Dr. Benjamin Kupilas, Ecologic Institute, Germany
- Challenges and opportunities for future NBS development – Dr. Leonard Sandin, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research
- The water@leeds integrated catchment solutions programme – Prof. Lee Brown, University of Leeds, UK
The event concluded with a plenary discussion moderated by Prof. Mikkel Tamstorf, Head of Department at Ecoscience. Attendees engaged in a dialogue on the future of NBS, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration and real-world applications.
The opening marks an important step in advancing research and implementation of nature-based solutions in Denmark and beyond.
Extract from lecture:
Building The Symbiocene: A Shift Toward Nature as the Lead Designer
Sustainable development, by definition, demands collaboration across disciplines. We believe that future landscapes and cities should not be shaped by human control and extraction, but by natural processes themselves. Nature, with its inherent wisdom, should lead the way.
In the past, vernacular buildings emerged from a deep understanding of the landscape and climate. People knew where their materials came from and respected the processes required to transform those materials into homes. But let’s not romanticize history—it was, after all, pre-industrial humans who deforested Europe and drained marshlands for farming.
Instead, let’s look forward, to how we can work with nature as our guide, armed with a greater understanding of ecological systems than ever before.
Through practices like syntropic farming, natural water treatment, and flood mitigation, we can begin to reshape our landscapes—not to control them, but to celebrate the diversity and richness of life. These new "natural" atmospheres will reweave human existence, too, fostering communities that care for and regenerate the world, rather than merely consuming it.
How Will These Landscapes and Buildings Look and Feel?
Buildings and landscapes shaped by nature-based solutions will feel different—more alive, more unpredictable, more dynamic. Repair and maintenance will be visible. Low-maintenance materials and landscapes will fade away, and what will emerge are spaces that tell the stories of their bioregions, of the land and the communities that shaped them.
We will see more diversity, more craftsmanship, more interaction between biologists, farmers, craftspeople, and communities. The process-based approach will replace the consultant-led, behind-closed-doors methodology of today’s urban planning. This will be a shift towards collective knowledge, towards materials that reflect local climates and ecosystems.
