Building Together: Redefining Baukultur through Children’s and Youths’ Perspectives by Developing a Gamified Toolbox, a Research-Based Handbook, and an Educational BauKulturLabor

Sustainable Baukultur, as advocated by NRP81, requires Built Environment Education (BEE) to ensure active engagement of all, including children and youths, in Baukultur matters. However, the specifics of sustainability-focused BEE (sBEE) are, aside from individual efforts understanding BEE as a sustainable concept in itself, remain insufficiently researched. Therefore, this project aims to research the sBEE content and methods and promote its implementation. As the title 'Building Together' states, the aim is to integrate children’ and youths’ views on building culture systematically into BEE's practice and research. This is a research desideratum, particularly considering that children and youths, as current users and future creators of Baukultur, should have a say in its development and require competences to express their ideas on Baukultur effectively. Based on these aims, the present research proposal’s overarching questions are: What are children and youths’ perspectives on local Baukultur? Which formats effectively voice and showcase their perspectives? What are the key objectives, content, and methods of sustainable, participatory BEE for primary and secondary schools? How can BEE processes be designed as inclusive spaces for action and negotiation involving all stakeholders, such as experts from planning, construction and cultural heritage, teachers, and the children themselves?The project will intertwine Baukultur, sustainability, and participation by developing a comprehensive research setting. With a multidimensional approach, the research team will employ various methods–such as scoping reviews, documentary analysis, and field research with BEE providers and users–alongside a gamified toolbox and a children’s advisory board to engage with children's perspectives. Furthermore, a local living lab (BauKulturLabor) will be established to create art-informed settings, test and implement the research findings in practice, and define and structure the BEE field from participation and sustainability perspectives.The project’s overall output will be the sBEE Handbook, featuring a gamified Toolbox to capture children and youths' perspectives on Baukultur while providing them with foundational knowledge in the field, as well as the BauKulturLabor taking place. The project seeks to empower children and youths to participate actively in Baukultur discourse, thereby deepening their comprehension of local Baukultur and encouraging proactive involvement in shaping the built environment, i.e. with them–not about them. This project gathers a multidisciplinary team of experts in BEE research, subject-specific education, architecture, art education, artistic practice and critical geography. Together, we aim to address BEE's target audience: children and youths.