Paper published in: In: Built Identity Swiss Res Corporate Architecture.

Basel, Boston, Berlin:

Birkhuser Publisher for Architecture, 2006, 134-137, ISBN 978-3-7643-7982-7

Corporate urbanism and sustainability

Kees Christiaanse and Kerstin Hoeger

To date, the majority of architectural and urban projects deemed exemplary in terms of sustainability have
been rated primarily according to technical criteria. But sustainable urban design implies much more than
this. As architects and urban designers, we use the term sustainability more broadly, mainly to refer to
design discipline design that factors in urban and social sustainability. Several private companies have
done pioneering work in promoting sustainable urban design and deserve special recognition for their
efforts.
Sustainability in architecture and urbanism covers a wide spectrum of technical and non-technical aspects.
At the technical end, we have energy conservation, recycling, environmental management and ecology; at
the non-technical end, we have factors influencing social behaviour and spatial organisation, which are
obviously vital in determining the sustainability of urban concentrations. We define sustainable urban
design using this formula:
sustainable urban design
=
urban and social sustainability
+
technological sustainability

We believe the technological side of sustainability should no longer be merely aspirational or experimental.
It should be standard practice, a self-evident part of project requirements. Once sustainable technology has
established itself as a given, we can focus on the second component in our formula: urban and social
sustainability. This is where corporate urbanism comes in.
In recent years, the shift from advertising to branding lifestyles has not only tied consumer groups more
effectively and durably to brands, it has also prompted a number of companies to intervene consciously in
architecture and public spaces, urban design, and more widely in the environment even on a global scale.
Our main preoccupation is to explore whether these new marketing strategies can genuinely nourish more
sensitive and sustainable behaviour towards the environment, or whether they will remain no more than
commercial exploitations of the urban realm.

The Nike example or going subculture

Nike Inc.s involvement in sustainable urban design is particularly interesting and well documented.
Originally merely a sportswear and accessories producer, Nike expanded its corporate development
parameters to include environmental issues, urban design strategies and a proactive policy on developing
nations. This attitude reflects an ongoing search for new marketing methods and the ethical standards of
Nikes board of directors; but this move was also in no small part a response to negative publicity the
company suffered when sweatshop working conditions in its factories in the developing world were
uncovered by the press.
Today, Nikes worldwide production and distribution centres set a standard for other corporations. Housed
in thoughtfully planned campuses with full amenities and exemplary working conditions, Nikes
developments are comparable to the philanthropic company towns and garden cities of the early 20th
century. In Nikes Shoe-Town in Guangzhou, China, for instance, employees are offered socially-oriented
programmes and given the chance to acquire affordable housing. Nike has also developed numerous other
sustainability policies. Its 3R (reduce, reuse, recycle) strategy, for example, favours production methods
that make more with less, use less (polluting) materials, save energy and recycle shoes and waste
materials. It has also launched a product called Nike Grind a covering material for sports tracks and
field surfaces made from recycled trainers.
Nikes strategy of lifestyle branding, involving highly visible installations that are fully integrated into
the urban context, is especially interesting. These flagship stores, or Nike towns, are designed as meeting
places where promoting a cultural product or lifestyle has priority over profit margin. Physically, though,
these installations remain simple variations of traditional retail architecture. Nikes construction of derelict
sports fields and basketball courts in underprivileged neighbourhoods of Berlin and New York are much
more radical. In Berlin, Nike has even sought to graft itself onto the citys rich subcultural landscape by
sponsoring temporary night clubs and activities on the fringe of legality.
When designing all of these projects, Nike opts for a discreet approach. Its swoosh logo is barely, if at all,
visible. In the Presto Lounge, for instance, a casually placed trainer is the only trace of Nikes involvement.
Through this contribution to subculture, Nike actively promotes low-cost revitalisation of neighbourhoods
while securing a sustainable profit by influencing the lifestyle patterns of clients to include Nike products or
Nike Style.
Nikes strategy of identifying and anticipating subculture trends ultimately allows it to initiate or steer these
trends and feed its products into youth lifestyle worldwide. In this sense, Nike is continuing the symbiotic
relationship between subculture and fashion that has dominated consumer markets since the 1960s.

Cultivate branding by cultivating culture

Arguably one of the most important tools of contemporary corporate strategy was born when pop-art
imagery was appropriated by the fashion, music and branding industries in the 1960s and 1970s. Since then,
investors and property developers have also discovered the marketing potential of subculture. Initially
purely commercial, this strategy has developed into a catalyst for high-quality, sustainable urban
development.
Along our cities waterfronts, large-scale, mono-functional, 1970s tabula rasa urbanism is increasingly
being superseded by a mix of renovated warehouses and new structures, housing a combination of low-
budget/high culture and high-budget/low culture. These projects are explicitly branded by the
trendsetting lifestyle of loft culture. Investors and large companies have understood that these mixed-use
developments in historic or semi-historic settings produce sustainable urban centres, a more inspiring
working environment, greater profitability due to the added value of the property and, ultimately, a
respectable corporate image.

Corporate urbanism and sustainability 2

This catalyst effect is entirely dependent on the successful blend of low-budget/high culture and high-
budget/low culture. The "Pakhuizen" project on the Oostelijke Handelskade in Amsterdam is a good
example of this trend. Here, new buildings envelop old warehouses, creating a sequence of discrete spaces.
While their form and texture are inspired by industrial architecture, their functions vary from social housing
and living/working units for artists to luxury penthouses and offices. Ahold, one of the worlds largest food
holdings, now houses its world executive headquarters in this complex. Among other things, it boasts a
Jamie Oliver Restaurant. Unemployed youngsters are trained here to become gourmet chefs while waiting
on the companys top management.
In Berlin, MTV and Universal intentionally located their European headquarters in converted warehouses
along the Spree river between the districts of Prenzlauerberg, Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg. It is in these
very districts that these companies cultural scenes thrive. By placing themselves in a historical urban
context in the middle of their audience and in the midst of the talents and services they employ, MTV and
Universal produce a kind of corporate urbanism. We speak of corporate urbanism because these
companies distinguish themselves not only through their presence as an architectural identity, but also
through their behaviour as urban catalysts. Their presence and their actions generate urban
transformation.

The Volkswagen including context example

On an even larger scale, some companies are even shifting towards spatial interventions that may
sustainably revitalise entire regions. With its ErlebnisWelt (Experience World), for instance, Volkswagen
(VW) committed itself to regenerating the region around its headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany. Some
would say VW was obliged to do this as it was largely responsible for the severe economic crisis this area
suffered in the early 1990s. VW has now made sustainability the focus of its corporate philosophy, and in
1998, it launched its Autovision concept in an attempt to overhaul the citys one-dimensional, VW-
dominated character and wean it off its dependence on the automobile industry. Wolfsburg AG a joint
venture between VW and the city of Wolfsburg was founded in 1999 to realise this vision. Building on
the citys existing strengths in the field of mobility, Wolfsburg AG has stimulated new clusters of activity
recreation, information technology, health and culture to make Wolfsburg more attractive and compensate
for job losses in the car industry. The ErlebnisWelt consisting of seven themed clusters (tradition and
modernity, sport and recreation, Autostadt [automobile city], discovery, shopping experience, fun and
fantasy, and art and culture) shows how positive synergies between diverse fields of activity can be.
Autostadt links the historical Wolfsburg Castle with the city centre, thus symbolically erasing the
city/factory divide.
The ErlebnisWelt concept is explicitly associated with VWs corporate identity. Within Autostadt, this is
evident in the automobile museum, the company forum and the brand pavilions in which VW is presented.
The pavilions showcase the range and global diversification of VW brands like Skoda, Seat, Audi,
Lamborghini and Bentley.
In other parts of ErlebnisWelt, the VW brand is only portrayed indirectly. The core values of the
company are translated into a Lebensgefhl or lifestyle (power, movement, endurance and comfort).
The close relationship between VW and the population of Wolfsburg is thematically addressed in the cluster

Corporate urbanism and sustainability 3

Tradition and Modernity, which revolves around the old Wolfsburg Castle and the new museum of the
citys controversial history. High-profile architecture is the principal attribute of the Discovery and
Entertainment cluster, featuring the Phaeno Science Centre designed by architect Zaha Hadid. Here, new
urban spaces are developed that integrate various functions such as hotels, restaurants, cinemas and a
designer outlet. These lead into the section called Art and Culture by way of the citys pedestrian
shopping zone. In this cluster, existing signature buildings, such as Alvar Aaltos Arts Centre, the theatre
designed by Hans Scharoun and the citys main Art Museum, are enriched with new cultural and
commercial amenities.
The revitalisation of the city of Wolfsburg demonstrates how private capital and resources can help reverse
the decline of an urban city centre and stimulate economic growth. The changes initiated by VW have
effectively re-established Wolfsburg as a vital urban centre and helped to boost the citys self-image.
Volkwagens decision to diversify its own production strategy encouraged sub-contracting companies and
also had a sustainable effect on VW itself, improving cooperation between production and development.
Unemployment, which had reached more than 15%, was reduced by half through the creation of 6 500 new
jobs. According to statistics, Wolfsburg is currently the most dynamic city in Germany (cf. Prognos AG
2004).

Benettons Political Agenda

Similar strategies of corporate urbanism have been pursued for years by the Italian company Benetton,
generating impressive developments on a regional scale. As early as the 1980s, Benetton attracted
widespread attention by adopting a heavy socio-cultural slant in its corporate identity strategy. Through the
work of controversial photographer Oliviero Toscani, the company exploited its advertising campaigns to
bring serious social and political problems to the attention of the public. Initially, these campaigns depicted
harmonious groups of multi-ethnic, multi-racial people, breaking radically with traditional fashion imagery
of the great white west. This image of diversity came to symbolise the companys catchy logo United
Colours of Benetton. At the beginning of the 1990s, the campaign was extended to include more
controversial themes like environmental pollution, aids, homosexuality and war. Benetton was consciously
exploiting its status as an internationally prominent brand to broadcast a distinct political agenda. United
Colours eventually evolved into an even more overtly political logo: United People.
In keeping with Italian fashion companies long tradition of investing in building design, Benettons
headquarters are also of significant architectural interest. Located in Ponza in the Villa Minelle, they occupy
a 16th century agricultural domain renovated by the Scarpa brothers. Benetton has also built a strong
relationship with local communities and businesses at its Veneto headquarters north of Venice. Benettons
network of over 200 subcontractors and its numerous investments in local industries such as agriculture,
health foods and multimedia enriched the specialised production base of a region already known for its
luxury goods industry. This concentrated network of knowledge- and production-based industries created an
economic and cultural support system for the Veneto area and strengthened its ability to operate on a global
scale. Benettons corporate philosophy of reconciling the local and the global is one of the keys to its
success.

Corporate urbanism and sustainability 4

The Benetton Foundation has extended its corporate philosophy into researching natural heritage and
cultural landscapes. It is currently a contributing partner to REKULA, an EU project for economic, social,
cultural and territorial development, that aims to redesign and rehabilitate cultural landscapes (such as
disused industrial sites) that have undergone significant change or disturbance. In particular, the project
seeks to devise planning tools communications solutions, regulatory bodies and landscape development
models as well as technical solutions for managing these vulnerable areas over the long term.

Conclusion
What can we learn from all this? Can we infer that increased consumer sensibility influences the behaviour
of large companies and their sustainable development strategies? Indeed, are companies moving towards
sustainable corporate behaviour at all? Our answer is affirmative, but cautiously so. Given current market
sensibilities, the incentives to invest in sustainable activities are compelling: necessity, research and
development and, last but not least, profit.
Companies shift from pure advertising into more sophisticated forms of branding for obvious reasons.
Firstly, costs are enormous, and over-saturation, reduced attention spans and lower retention among
consumers mean its effectiveness is diminishing. And while advertising may still be effective in stimulating
consumers to buy, it does not generate added value or capital in the long run. A strategy of corporate
branding based on sustainability, on the other hand, may generate (free) publicity as well as added value
(goodwill) for the company. Given the huge costs of international advertising campaigns and the
intelligence and creativity required to give brands a stable position in the market, it is far more
advantageous to invest in strategies that simultaneously promote the company and provide it with a
reputation of social engagement or sustainability.
Notwithstanding this, it is questionable whether the growing presence of global corporations in all spheres
of life genuinely increases public well-being. The trend is indicative of a significant shift of responsibilities
from the government to the private sector. The massive injections of capital into corporate branding
strategies have become an indirect substitute for public funds for everything from events and infrastructures
to entire neighbourhoods and cities, and even schools and universities. Ultimately, this leads back to the
current political debate over liberal economic models in the EU. We believe it is crucial to learn from these
(largely privately funded) revitalisation and sustainable development projects while at the same time
adapting political strategies within the appropriate governing bodies to preserve the model of public space
and collective responsibility upon which post-war Europe was founded.

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References

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Rotterdam: NAi Publisher, 2005

Fondazione Benetton (November 2005), Restructuring Cultural Landscapes, EU Project REKULA,

http://www.fbsr.it/eng/pagine.php?s=&pg=190

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