People | Seinäjoki Urban Laboratory

Ari Hynynen

Professor
arkkitehtuuri- ja kaupunkitutkimus
Faculty of Built Environment
Tampere University
+358408398643
ari.hynynen@tuni.fi

The best way to contact me is to send email.
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3032-2994

About me

I am Professor of Architectural and Urban Research (Alvar Aalto Chair) at Tampere University, Faculty of Built Environment, Unit of Architecture. I have been the director of the Seinäjoki Urban Laboratory since 2009. In my doctoral dissertation from the year 2000, I studied local potential of urban planning from the standpoint of ecological modernisation. My post-doctoral research 2001-2004 dealt with issues of spatial integration of immigrants in urban contexts. 2005-2009 I was the co-founder and leader of the university’s EDGE laboratory, which was specialised in analysing and modelling urban structures and processes by using GIS methods and developing new ones. In my recent work, I have explored topical issues of urban and regional development, and led several projects and consortiums as a principal investigator. My publications cover a wide range of topics from Alvar Aalto’s design approach to the development of railway station areas.

Field of expertise

Urban planning, urban development, architectural theory

Research topics

Circular and bio-economy in urban development

Timber building
Renovation
Food planning

Resilience and adaptability of cities

Cities as innovation environments
Small towns and middle-sized cities

Human centered architecture theory

Organic design and planning theories
Alvar Aalto’s design approach

Research unit

Seinäjoki Urban Laboratory: see links below

Project links

Mission statement

The Alvar Aalto Chair is a chair at the Tampere University, Unit of Architecture, located in the University Consortium of Seinäjoki. The scope of the chair is architectural and urban research: more precisely urban and regional development and renovation of post-war architecture and urban environments.

The chair is part of the Epanet network, which consists of 20 professors from six universities in Western Finland. The aim of the network is to entrench research activity in South Ostrobothnia and have the researchers engaged in interdisciplinary collaboration with each other, and especially with business and industry, educational institutions and local government.

The Alvar Aalto Chair embraces the development of the regional innovation environment of building, design and planning. Important partners include the City of Seinäjoki as well as other cities and municipalities of the region, Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, the other Epanet chairs and companies of the regional construction cluster. Scientific partners include domestic and foreign universities, and naturally other units of Tampere University.

Collaboration in R&D projects increases the know-how of the actors and provides new business opportunities. Many cities already consider their built environment a significant success factor.

In addition to launching and leading projects, the job description of the chair includes supervision of doctoral students and diverse expert tasks. Collaboration with international universities allows the region access to the latest scientific knowledge and the chair also produces new and interesting results for the international scientific community.

Main positions of trust

Selected publications

Own links

Virpi Palomäki

Project Manager
Faculty of Built Environment
Tampere University
+358504487142
virpi.palomaki@tuni.fi

Annuska Rantanen

University Instructor
Faculty of Built Environment
Tampere University
annuska.rantanen@tuni.fi

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6088-4202

More information

Jaana Vanhatalo

Project Manager
Faculty of Built Environment
Tampere University
+358408490426
jaana.vanhatalo@tuni.fi

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5640-2445

More information

About me

I am a project manager in Future senior housing (TULE) project in Knowledge Centre for Real Estate Development (KCRED) and a project researcher in T-winning Spaces 2035 project in Sustainable Housing Design (ASUTUT) research group, both in Faculty of Built Environment.

I am also a doctoral researcher in urban planning in the School of Architecture. My background is in Regional Studies (M.Sc.(Admin)). My dissertation addresses delineation of urban areas. I am interested how well the national urban area definitions function in their task, i.e. defining urban areas.

My research interests include sustainable urban and rural areas, urban planning and its processes and GIS aided planning. With the current projects I have also found senior housing and home as a place work. I have worked in the School of Architecture since 2010 and have been in several projects focusing on urbanization, resource efficiency, planning process and methods, and conducting spatial analyses (GIS) in several research and development projects. I also teach GIS, planning and writing for the architecture students.

2022-23 I was responsible for the faculty of Built Environment’s Tresilienssi 2.0 project, which aimed to enhance the master thesis process and guidance as well as students’ wellbeing.

Field of expertise

Urban planning, regional planning, strategic planning, spatial analyses, spatial data, GIS, urban resource efficiency

Research topics

Urban (+rural) areas, urban dynamics, urban planning processes and tools, urban sustainability, senior housing, home as a place of work.

Research unit

Knowledge Centre for Real Estate Development (KCRED) (Civil Engineering); Sustainable Housing Design (ASUTUT) research group and Urban planning research group (School of Architecture)

Research fields

Urban studies, Senior housing