About

ecologies of care — multispecies design and circular
community economies in peri-urban settings

Urban areas across Europe face interconnected ecological and social challenges: rapid biodiversity loss, fragmented planning regimes, and development models that consistently prioritise human needs over the life-worlds shared with non-human species. Siloed approaches to urban design neglect the ecological landscapes that sustain socio-ecological resilience, while circular economy models rarely account for the interdependence between human communities and broader ecosystems.

Ecologies of Care responds to these challenges by bringing together researchers, designers, ecologists and communities to co-create nature-inclusive urban spaces. Grounded in more-than-human relational ontologies, community economies and feminist care ethics, the project proposes a paradigm shift in how we plan, design and inhabit peri-urban neighbourhoods, recognising cities as dynamic environments co-created by humans and non-human beings.

Through living labs in the Netherlands, Romania, Sweden and France, the project develops and tests commons-based ecological stewardship models, multispecies design methodologies and transformative pedagogies. Activities focus on regenerative civic management of urban green areas, agro-ecological practices and urban food production in socio-economically marginalised settings, and ecological building and renovation techniques. Local knowledge and commons structures are integral to all implemented models.

Ecologies of Care also catalyses transnational communities of practice connecting academics, design professionals, environmentalists, public officials and activists. Through newsletters, podcasts, work visits, policy roundtables and an open-access case library, the project fosters ongoing knowledge exchange across disciplines and national contexts.

Funded under the DUT 2024 Call (Circular Urban Economy Transition Pathway), the project runs from January 2026 to December 2028. It is coordinated by TU Eindhoven and involves
8 partner institutions across 5 European countries, with the participation of local municipalities, civic organisations and cooperation partners.

Consortium

Financed