The Voice of the Landscape
What if the landscape dictated where, how, and how much we build?
In this film, we meet a nine-year-old girl who, from her bedroom in the year 2050, invites us into the reality she inhabits. Through the child’s unprejudiced gaze, we experience a changed Denmark, where we live in harmony with nature in a completely new way. With respect for the landscape, homes have only been built where nature grants us space – we think carefully and place our homes wisely. Energy comes from the nearby stream, and the landscape has become the common space where adults and children meet. It may sound like a dream to us today, but for the little girl, this is just what everyday life looks like.
The future scenario is created by Karin Munch of Birthe Urup DETBLÅ. Drone footage by Claus Moestrup.
About the Architects’ Future Scenario
DETBLÅ’s film presents a vision of housing designed to protect the landscape while offering a high quality of life. In the future, it will be about adapting to nature’s conditions: using the Earth’s resources responsibly and building away from flood-prone areas.
By learning to place our cities and homes where nature allows, we can achieve a balance that enhances both our quality of life and the environment. It is not just about living sustainably—it is about creating places where people and nature can thrive side by side.
DETBLÅ
DETBLÅ was founded in 2020 by Birthe Urup and Karin Munch. DETBLÅ develops architecture, landscapes, and cities. The architecture firm is founded on the belief that everything can and should be considered as part of a whole with respect for the site’s qualities – balancing cultural heritage and traditions with practical, logical solutions. Follow DETBLÅ’s work here.
Explore the three other architecture firms’ visions for the future: How will we live in 2050?
About the National Architecture Policy
With their future scenarios, the four architecture firms have provided inspiration to The Expert Group for National Architecture Policy. The expert group was set up to develop a white paper with recommendations for a new national architecture policy. The wording matters when formulating Denmark’s new national architecture policy. The architecture policy sets the direction for the built environment across Denmark. Drawing on the national architecture policy, the government and municipalities can create actual legislation that, for example, may dictate façade design, set CO2 emission limits for construction, or determine whether it should remain acceptable to build 200-square-meter single-family homes. The policy can thus have a huge and direct impact on the way we all live.
Helle Søholt, CEO of Gehl Architects and spokesperson for the expert group, says:
“The four future scenarios are an important inspiration for our work in the expert group. They challenge us to radically rethink our urban environments and show how the architecture of the future can be a catalyst for sustainable change. This rethinking will be an important part of how we devise our recommendations for the new national architecture policy. We hope the films can contribute to an open, active, and inclusive dialog about the recommendations in municipalities across Denmark. “
Read more about the about the national architecture policy here.
About the Expert Group for National Architecture Policy
The Expert Group for National Architecture Policy was appointed by the Minister for Culture Jakob Engel-Schmidt to draw up a number of recommendations for what a new national architecture policy should contain. The expert group consists of leading experts in Denmark within architecture and urban planning, including Pil Høyer Thielst, partner at Lundgaard & Tranberg Architects; Lene Dammand Lund, rector at the Royal Danish Academy; and Lars Autrup, CEO of the Danish Association of Architects.
Find out more at the Danish Ministry of Culture’s website.