PhD Position: Climate-Adaptive Design for Historic Urban Landscapes

Join TU Delft as a PhD researcher developing design strategies and digital tools for climate-resilient historic cities in the Netherlands and China.

PhD Position: Climate-Adaptive Design for Historic Urban Landscapes

Job description

Historic cities increasingly face climate-related risks such as flooding, heat stress, and environmental degradation. At the same time, climate adaptation measures often conflict with heritage preservation and spatial quality. Addressing these challenges requires integrated approaches that combine landscape urbanism, climate resilience, and heritage conservation.

This PhD position is part of the PAST-FORWARD project (Preserving & Adapting Spatial Transformations toward Future-Oriented Resilient Development), an international research collaboration between universities and planning institutions in the Netherlands and China. The project aims to develop innovative strategies and tools for climate-adaptive Historic Urban Landscapes (HULs).

As a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment at TU Delft, you will investigate how landscape-based design strategies can strengthen the resilience of historic urban areas while maintaining their cultural and socio-ecological value.

Your research will combine design research, spatial analysis, and stakeholder engagement. The project includes case studies and living labs in Delft, Rotterdam, Xi’an and Guangzhou, where strategies will be tested and refined in collaboration with researchers, policymakers, and practitioners.

Key research activities include:

• Analysing climate vulnerabilities and spatial structures in historic urban landscapes.
• Developing climate-adaptive spatial design principles and strategies.
• Integrating nature-based solutions and green-blue infrastructure into historic districts.
• Contributing to digital planning tools and geospatial analysis for adaptive planning.
• Testing and evaluating strategies through case studies and living labs.

You will develop methodologies for climate data collection, spatial mapping, and vulnerability analysis, and contribute to climate modelling and spatial analysis. Through an iterative design-based research approach, you will explore and design climate-adaptive solutions for historic urban areas.

The research includes building and managing a GIS database containing spatial and descriptive data, performing spatial analyses and visualisations, and translating results into scientific publications and a PhD dissertation.

You will work in an interdisciplinary and international research team with expertise in urban design, landscape architecture, geospatial analysis, governance, and climate adaptation. The project involves collaboration with academic partners, planning institutes, and municipalities in both the Netherlands and China.

You will also engage with stakeholders such as urban planners, heritage experts, local communities, and municipal officials to ensure the research addresses real-world challenges and contributes to socially inclusive solutions. Research findings will be shared with academic and professional audiences through international conferences, workshops, and collaboration with project partners and municipalities.

The PhD position is for four years and will lead to a doctoral degree from TU Delft. The candidate will publish scientific articles, participate in international workshops and consortium meetings, and contribute modestly to teaching activities within the faculty.

Job requirements

We are looking for a highly motivated candidate with a strong interest in climate-adaptive urban design and historic landscapes.

You have:

• A Master’s degree in landscape architecture, urban design, urban planning, architecture, or a related field.
• A strong interest in climate adaptation, urban resilience and heritage landscapes.
• Experience with spatial analysis, GIS or digital planning tools, or willingness to learn.
• Knowledge of or affinity with climate adaptation strategies, nature-based solutions or water-sensitive urban design.
• Strong analytical and conceptual skills, with an affinity for design-based research.
• Experience with or interest in interdisciplinary collaboration and stakeholder engagement.
• The ability to work independently as well as in an international research team.
• Excellent English communication and writing skills.

TU Delft (Delft University of Technology)

Delft University of Technology is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society.

Faculty Architecture & the Built Environment

Staff and students are working to improve the built environment with the help of a broad set of disciplines, including architectural design, urban planning, building technology, social sciences, process management, and geo-information science. The faculty works closely with other faculties, universities, private parties, and the public sector, and has an extensive network in the Netherlands as well as internationally.

Conditions of employment

Doctoral candidates will be offered a 4-year period of employment in principle, but in the form of 2 employment contracts. An initial 1,5 year contract with an official go/no go progress assessment within 15 months. Followed by an additional contract for the remaining 2,5 years assuming everything goes well and performance requirements are met.