Marita combines architecture with nature to build sustainably

Planting solutions instead of building them – that's the future path to sustainable construction. For Associate Professor Marita Wallhagen, the interaction between nature, environment and technology has always been a driving force. By combining her interests and areas of knowledge, she wants to pave the way for greener urban development.

As a child, Marita Wallhagen was curious about animals, nature and science, and she was interested in environmental and animal rights issues from an early age. This later led her into the field of sustainable architecture and sustainable urban development.

– It's basically about ethics and justice issues, that natural resources should be used in a fair way so that the environment is not destroyed, which can have consequences for our children and future generations. My interest in architecture comes from the fact that I have always enjoyed creative art forms while finding science and technology fun and interesting.

Teaching sustainability and the environment

She grew up in Linköping and trained as an architect in Lund, including a trip to the US for exchange studies. After graduating, there was a recession in the construction industry and she wanted to move to a medium-sized Swedish city – and the choice fell on Gävle.

While chairing the Swedish Architects' Association's local association in Gävleborg and Dalarna "SAGDA", she got in touch with researcher Mauritz Glaumann at the University of Gävle who needed a part-time PhD student for a project. She accepted the offer at the University and was simultaneously linked to the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) where she then defended her PhD.

– I research and teach in sustainable urban design, environmental assessment of buildings and sustainable architecture. This can include life cycle analyses and ecosystem services, says Marita.

Right now, for example, she is involved in a project on climate-smart renovation of small houses together with Linnaeus University and she is involved in the EU project Cycle4Climate, where the research examines how to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by encouraging cycling.

Mixing theory and practice

Marita also has a foot in practice as she is periodically involved in various construction projects through Arkitektgruppen in Gävle.

– It feels important to have a balance between theory and practice. The goal is for scientific theoretical knowledge to be used in real life in practical contexts in construction and planning projects.

The variety of the work makes her happy and she appreciates meeting students in supervision and teaching while she gets to immerse herself in various issues in research.

– I want to develop what is traditionally called the built environment, which is about man-made buildings, technology and hard materials. I want to bring nature in as a natural part of the built environment, as building blocks that are not as hard. With nature-based solutions, we can create a greener more vibrant sustainable architecture.

She sees the University of Gävle as a pleasant workplace where it is easy to make contacts and create interdisciplinary collaborations. At the same time, she appreciates her committed colleagues from whom she learns a lot.

– It is an advantage that we have an interesting breadth at the University. We are a large organization at the same time as we are a small university because there are short decision-making paths and it is easy to get hold of colleagues with interesting competencies. It's a flexible workplace with a lot of freedom and responsibility.

Text: Anna Sällberg