Inventing Greenland—Designing an Arctic Nation

“Inventing Greenland offers a timely contribution to the growing literature on Arctic studies in design as well as an important chapter in the description of planetary urbanization.” —Charles Waldheim (Harvard GSD)

Through the lens of urbanization, Inventing Greenland (Actar Publishers, 2022) provides a broad understanding of a unique island undergoing intense transformation while drawing attention to its historical and current challenges and emerging opportunities. Written by Bert De Jonghe, Belgian landscape architect, founder of Transpolar Studio and a Doctor of Design candidate at Harvard University, this book is specifically geared towards a readership of architects, landscape architects and urban planners. Inventing Greenland examines the local cultural, social, and environmental realities with a distinct spatial sensitivity, recognizing the diverse array of relationships that the built environment both supports and produces. By exploring Greenland as a complex and interconnected cultural and geographical space, De Jonghe reveals and anticipates transitional moments in the region’s highly intertwined urbanized, militarized, and touristic landscapes.

Ricardo Devesa, Editor in Chief of Actar Publishers, had much to say about the book: “Bert de Jonghe’s shares a genealogy of research on the ways in which architecture, landscape and urban planning have operated in the face of extreme weather conditions in Inventing Greenland. This in-depth analysis about the world around us is a growing trend seen in many of our recent publications such as Many Norths, Monsoon as Method, or Landscapes as Territories. In these investigations, solutions and responses rooted in the cultures of such territories are analyzed in depth, from the use of advanced analysis tools, to the redrawing of design strategies and explanatory texts. It is therefore with pride that I, as the Editor-in-Chief of Actar, am able to present this new title, joining our array of books focussing on where remote and extreme conditions offer a rich repertoire that can be exported to other environments that, due to the climate crisis, may occur in nearby areas.”

About the author
Bert De Jonghe earned his Master in Design Studies degree at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design after completing a Master of Landscape Architecture at the Oslo School of Architecture and Design and a Bachelor of Landscape and Garden Architecture at the School of Arts in Ghent. Previously, he worked as a research assistant at Harvard GSD’s Office for Urbanization and with landscape architecture offices in Belgium, South Africa, and Norway. During his studies and work, he developed a critical approach to the emerging challenges generated by climate change, geopolitical forces, increased industrialization, and migration in Arctic and Sub-Arctic landscapes. This approach continues to influence his current doctoral research at the Harvard GSD, which is focused on polar urbanization. This research is supported by generous grants from the Penny White Project Fund, the Doctor of Design Grant, the Harvard University International Grant, and the MDes Research & Development Award. His recent publications include Inventing Greenland—Designing an Arctic Nation (Actar Publishers, 2022) and “The Opening of the Transpolar Sea Route: Logistical, Geopolitical, Environmental, and Socioeconomic Impacts” (Marine Policy Journal, 2020).

Inventing Greenland is available for sale online at Actar Publishers and selected bookstores worldwide.