Research on the Bicycle

Landscapes are shaped by people; local cultural narratives have an impact on how we see the spaces around us. At the same time, enjoying landscapes is an individual aesthetic experience. I will share my impressions from four months traveling across Europe, using the bicycle for lengthy excursion through the metropolitan regions of Vienna/Austria, Budapest /Hungary, and the Ruhr Region in Germany. Further, I spoke to educators, planning and design professionals, and to members of public administration. Those interview partners explained planning and policy backgrounds, helping me to place my observations into the context of suburban development. The focus of the presentation will be on comparing European landscape narratives with the suburban landscape in the US, exploring the meaning of cultural landscapes in a suburban context. The two very different concepts of cultural landscape and suburbia have an interesting commonality: While we may have an intuitive grasp of these terms, we might find it difficult to provide a precise definition. However, both terms are intertwined with each other. The promise of open and beautiful landscapes supporting a healthy lifestyle was the motivation for many people to leave the city and move to suburbia in the first place. Ironically, these culturally appreciated landscapes were the first casualties of suburban sprawl. The case studies of the metropolitan regions Vienna/Austria, Budapest /Hungary, and the Ruhr Region in Germany along with experiences from New Jersey will be used for suggestions for adaption of environmental planning tools in New Jersey with respect to our home rule traditions. I argue that a cultural landscape perspective on suburban situations can improve quality of life for residents along with positive impacts on long-term resiliency and sustainability.