Public libraries are too often overlooked within the planning field. They reflect the cities in which they are situated and reveal the complex societal processes that take place there. Neoliberalism directly impacts the function of the public library and, as a result of leaving urban dwellers with fewer and fewer public alternatives, multiplies and modifies the demands made of it. Through semi structured interviews with professionals within the Stockholm library system, this research contributes to the planning field’s understanding of the public library as a public space and explores the way it is perceived as social, inclusive, and democratic. The interviews are analysed through a conceptual framework that combines literature from the field of urban planning with that of the library and information sciences, drawing additionally on variegated concepts of neoliberalism. The results suggest that the public library is considered by those professionally involved to be an inclusive and multicultural meeting place, which, with the support of librarians, promotes democratic principles through the largely expectation-free welcoming of patrons. Further analysis reveals neoliberal processes to be considered a threat to these characteristics and that this, alongside issues of equality and inclusivity, charges the library as a political space. The research posits the public library an indicator of wider societal processes and encourages planners, as well as other civic practitioners, to better exploit its underutilised informative and practical potential.

The project stems from a will to understand how I, as both a citizen and architect can partake in the creation and activation of the public water environment of Stockholm, a public sphere that I argue is largely in a state of hibernation. The main proposal is a multifunctional boat storage located at Pålsundet on Långholmen. With it I try to re-imagine the 25 hectares of centrally located plots designated to the winter storage of boats. The building strives to be an example of how to create a win-win solution where these plots could again become prime public space and year round meeting places whilst enhancing the cultural and social aspects of boat culture to more people.

Mitt examensarbete syftar till att undersöka skolarkitektur med fokus på skolans mellanrum - det som ofta går under benämningen "kommunikationsyta" eller "sociala ytor" i en skolmiljö.  Skolan är en komplex sammansättning av prioriteringar, intentioner och föreställningar om lärande. I Sverige har vi något som kallas skolplikt, vilket innebär att barn som omfattas av den, måste gå i skolan och delta i den verksamhet som anordnas där. Med andra ord är skolan en plats där den huvudsakliga brukargruppen, dvs. eleverna inte alltid valt sin omgivning. En stor utredning visar också  att 84% av all mobbing sker utanför klassrummet. Beroende på ålder sker det oftare i utomhusmiljön där gömda utrymmen finns eller just i korridorer och uppehållsytor där eleverna är när de inte har lektion. Detta säger också något om hur vi behöver ägna mer uppmärksamhet åt Skolans mellanrum.  Ambitionen har därför varit skapa en en sammanhängande F-9 skola som främjar rörelse, nyfikenhet och gåtfullhet i ett kommunikationsstråk genom skolan samt trygghet genom vuxennärvaro och överblickbarhet. Skolan passas in i naturtomt i södra Stockholm och platsens karaktär tas hand om i både skolhusets placering och gestaltning. / My thesis project aims to investigate school architecture and specifically the spaces in between the learning environment which usually goes by the terms "circulation area" or "social areas" in a school. The school is a complex composition of priorities, intentions, and ideas about learning. In Sweden, we have something called compulsory schooling, which means that children covered by it must go to school and participate in the activities that are organized there. In other words, a school is a place where the main user group - the students don't always get to choose their environment. Studies also show that bullying is more common in spaces outside the classroom, i.e. in the schoolyard, in the corridors, or the social spaces where the students are when they're not in class. This says something about the priority these spaces are given in the planning process. The ambition has been to design a cohesive school that promotes movement, curiosity, and social interaction in the circulation spaces by having clear nodes for integration. The teacher and staff spaces are placed strategically along the main circulation space to promote a sense of security through the presence of adults. The project is situated in the southern part of Stockholm and has great qualities in terms of access to nature. The character of the location has inspired both the placement of the school as well as the exterior and interior design and organization.

Denna studie undersöker hur ’känsla av plats’, betraktat som menings- och anknytningsskapande till plats, påverkar individuellt och allmänt mentalt välbefinnande. Genom appliceringen av förkroppsligad autoetnografi syftar den till att skildra ett personligt narrativ om egna upplevelser från att gå på gatorna i Stockholms innerstad. Forskningsfrågan är: V ad kan ett autoetnografiskt och förkroppsligat tillvägagångssätt bidra till framväxande teorier och metoder som berör sambandet mellan känsla av plats och mentalt välbefinnande? Från det explorativa tillvägagångssättet presenteras några påståenden framåt slutet baserat på resultaten. För det första är det viktigt för utövare, teoretiker och medborgare att utforska platsbetydelser som en del av och i platsen, för att utveckla förståelse och ifrågasätta sociokulturella konstruktioner av att veta och leva. För det andra är det ett etiskt imperativ att vara uppmärksam på affekter och känslor i relation till plats, där ett ökat intresse från de som jobbar med offentliga miljöer behövs. För det tredje består meningsfulla platser av invecklade nätverk av jaget, andra och miljöer, vilket belyser hur miljön sällan har företräde i sig själv. Slutligen visar det autoetnografiska och förkroppsligade tillvägagångssättet på potential för förändring bortom fantasin, där känslighet kan öppna länge stängda dörrar och välkomna något nytt. Resultaten och reflektionerna antyder gemensamt att den inneboende komplexiteten i förhållandet måste bemötas med flexibilitet och öppenhet, snarare än att reduceras och separeras i fraktioner. / This study explores how sense of place, viewed as the attribution of meaning and emotional attachment to place, influences individual and public mental wellbeing. It is performed through a practice of embodied autoethnography, which seeks to portray a vulnerable narrative of the researcher herself in relation to walking the streets of inner-city Stockholm. The research question is: What can an autoethnographic and embodied approach contribute to emerging theories and practices concerned with the relationship between sense of place and mental wellbeing? From the explorative approach applied, some tentative prompts and claims are made towards the finishing chapters. First, it is vital for practitioners, theorists, and citizens to explore place meanings first-hand, to further understand and question socio-cultural constructions of knowing and living. Second, it is an ethical imperative to pay attention to affects, feelings, and emotions in place, in which heightened acknowledgement is needed for all concerned with ordering public spheres. Third, meanings of place consist of intricate networks of self, others, and environments, highlighting how the environment rarely takes precedence in or for itself. Finally, the autoethnographic and embodied approach to study recognizes the potential for change beyond imagination, in which vulnerability can open long-shut doors and welcome the becoming of something new. The findings and reflections jointly suggest the complexities must be met plurally rather than reduced and separated into fractions.

Traffic infrastructure has always been considered as a single function typology. It is a solution to a programmatic need but not an answer to urban living. Could it be a co-living area with nature creating a new combination of infrastructure and natural elements such as light, wind, and rain?With more electrical and clean energy are used in the traffic systems, loud noise, polluting gases will not be as bad as they are now, and living around infrastructure may even become a reality in the future.First, I propose a new typology of a vertical community facing the dilemma of contemporary suburban infrastructure. Then, I deal with a specific site on the joint ring-road of E18 and E4 highway, and the idea is to use it as a bridge connecting with the secondary roads around the site and provide new access for pedestrians and bicycles. The system of kolonistugan and allotment gives possibilities when the condition of inhabiting with infrastructure is not ideal.The modules could be changed into different functions from workshop, allotment to even summerhouse or apartment as the time goes by. And this could give a possibility to make a more positive use of highway structure as the urban expands and rethinking of the co-living with nature and even including infrastructure.

Lövholmen är ett stadsutvecklingsprojekt där Stockholms sista centrala industriområde omvandlas till en ny, tät stadsdel. Detta examensprojekt redogör (i) en kritisk analys av den aktuella strukturplanen, (ii) och min alternativa illustrationsplan för Lövholmen; “Färgholmen – Ny Stadsform”. Med arkitektonisk nyfikenhet och ett kritiskt perspektiv undersöker jag hur en tät stadsdel kan tillgodose essentiella värden såsom, grönytor,dagsljusförhållanden, publika och offentliga rum. Jag invänder mig mot stadens tillvägagångssätt att maximera lönsamhet med hög exploatering. Genom att frigöra mig från de låsningar och positioner som uppstår med nuvarande fastighetsgränser, kan jag gestalta Ny Stadsform som ger utrymme för essentiella värden och en genhet i staden. Projektets målsättning är att skapa en levande stadsdel i symbios med sig själv och Stockholm; en destination för konst och kultur, ett avtryck i historien som speglar vår samtid. Mitt förslag uppnår 90% byggnadsyta jämfört med stadens förslag, men ger mer utrymme för publika och offentliga rum samt grönområden, i.e. en centraliserad grön park och generösa bostadsgårdar. Låg bebyggelse som gradvis ökar i höjd utifrån kajstråket, skapar varierad skala och typologi vilket även förbättrar mikroklimat och dagsljusförhållanden längs med vattnet. Detta examensprojekt visar en ny stadsform som lyfter de essentiella värdena och samtidigt uppnår en tät, levande stad. / Lövholmen, Stockolm´s last central industrial area, is to be transformed into a high-density residential area. This thesis presents (i) a critical analysis of the proposal from the City of Stockholm, (ii) and my alternative proposal for Lövholmen; “Färgholmen - New Urban Form”. I have approached this thesis project through an architect’s curiosity and a questioning perspective, aiming to understand how to promote essential values such as green areas, daylight conditions, civic space, and varied typologies that include mixed housing and achieve high exploitation. I challenge the City´s profit driven developments that lack the aforementioned essential values. I challenge the boundaries between different property owners. I aim to holistically create a neighbourhood that is connected within itself and with Stockholm City; a destination for art, culture and community, an imprint in history that reflects our contemporary time. My proposal achieves 90% of the developed built space, compared to Stockholm’s proposal, whilst increasing green area and shared space, i.e. in form of a centralised green park. Low rise buildings along the coastline gradually increase in height, creating diverse typology and scale whilst reducing wind tunnels and shadows. This thesis shows a new urban form, promoting essential values whilst achieving a dense living city.

This project investigates the possibilities of building on water as a way to add valuable land to dense cities. By utilizing floating structures, I have made a proposal for a new city district on the water outside of Fisksätra, a suburb located 30 minutes east of Stockholm. My ambition was to create a diverse and lively area with business and dwellings that cater to people in all stages of life. The proposal stretches along the western coast of Fisksätra creating a connection between the center of the suburb and a neighboring town as well as making that stretch of the coast accessible for the public. Increasing the access to the water and the coastline has been one of the main goals of the project and the proposal has been made with the ambition to open up the water for both the inhabitants of the new district and the rest of Fisksätra.

Fågelbärsträdet 12 is a property on John Ericssonsgatan on the area of Kungsholmen in Stockholm. It has been emptied since 2018 and undergoing the application process for demolition due to erroneous use of aluminate cement during its construction in the 1930’s, making the structure weak and at risk of falling down.  In this project, the site is reused and reinforced to accommodate a collective housing for single mothers with their children, and elderly. By reusing an existing building, the question regarding the life cycle of building was touched. Most often, proprietors decide upon demolition for economic gain which mean throwing away energy and resources used to build the building, and only to build a new one.  Furthermore, the proximity of the site to the iconic Markelius Kollektivhus (which is just next door), gave an opportunity to revitalize the concept of collective living to modern day society. Using collective living as a tool, social and economic sustainability was also taken into consideration. Through a collective, a community within the building can easily flourish and become a support system both for all the residents.  The result of the project is the reinforcement of the existing load-bearing walls, a new entrance from the courtyard, and new co-living spaces on the upper floors. There are social spaces accessible to the public on the ground floor (restaurant and youth recreation space), and collective activity rooms on the upper floors for the residents to use.

This design thesis is situated in Stockholm’s northernmost suburbs of the Järva area. The area was mainly developed during the era of the Million Homes Programme (1965-1974) and is today commonly considered as one of the city’s socially most challenged areas. The idea of Moments of Transitions addresses possible transitions in three aspects: generational, social and spatial. The key protagonists of this project are local youths who – by growing up and into their urban environments – have a strong stake in the future of the Järva area. As of today, they are a social group with limited influence on decision-making processes and whose needs are rarely taken into account in urban development projects. Challenging the status quo, this thesis aims to present potentials for social change in the favour of youths. This project first presents an analysis of the historic development of Järva, ongoing planning projects and local contexts. Subsequently, a framework for Moments of Transition is established and developed in three instances. Each of those centers around one decisive theme for local youths: re_mediation, motion and imaginations. Together, they shall help in building a suburb where youths want to continue to live in.

Stockholm is a unique city intertwined by water and green spaces,  which is also surrounded by rich open nature resources. However, from the lately researches, it shows that coronavirus highlights the need for open green spaces in cities. Also our access to important functions in society is reduced. Both of the roles of green areas and the city are challenged. The corona situation highlights our urban problem and people's demands that Stockholm is not accessible and resilient enough.   In my projects, I study the potentials and design the city about how to bring nature to the inner city and how to transit urban activities to the nature nearby in order to have a more adaptable, resilient, flexible city. Streets and the transferring area between city and nature are important intermediates to integrate green areas and urban activities, which are focused on research and design in this project.  The whole green-space system structure is also re-organised to make it better connected and more accessible.