EDAR doctoral program EPFL Distinction

Over the course of history, the interactions between cities and their rivers have shown cycles of bonding and distancing. Today, the uncertain nature of these relationships raises questions about their potential for renewal: within river cities, inward densification of urban territories combines with the challenges of resilience, as in the case of flood risk management strategies. As a result, rarther depreciated sites, such as brownfields and disused industrial estates, represent a major opportunity for the creation of new sustainable neighborhoods

The Rhone area bears witness to the territorial, regional and local issues raised by past and future development of the river. Many issues - environmental, climate-related, landscape-related, urban planning, architectural, technical, economical and socio-cultural - characterize the transformation of urban sites along the Rhone. In addition to defining the “Rhodanie urbaine” and developing knowledge of its plural nature, the thesis presents three major contributions

A conceptual contribution: the notion of a new city-river balance, which imagines dynamic relationships between cities and the Rhone, aiming for resilient fluvio-urban territories

A methodological contribution: the research by design approach, with the selection of study sites and the development of project-based visions exploring the spatial dialectic between river and city.

An operational contribution: two concrete, complementary tools, the analysis framework and the balance figures, which assess and represent the new city-river balance. Synthesizing global issues and contextualized action strategies, they contribute to the design, management and decision-making processes specific to rhodanian neighborhoods in transition.