Earth Laboratory.  Exploring the poetic and scientific sides of landscape architecture.

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Rituals of Henriëttewaard (2024)
Design Challenge by Kunstloc Brabant

Exhibition Dutch Design Week 2024

Community
Resilient landscapes
Living with water

Rituals of Henriëttewaard envisions a community-centered approach in adapting to the shifting dynamics of climate change, water, and floods in the Dutch river landscape. Drawing inspiration from speculative narratives of the Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction, the project fosters collective rituals that reframe human relationships with the land and water in ‘s Hertogenbosch. Through workshops, events, and spatial interventions, it explores how storytelling, communal practices, and site-specific rituals can create resilience and a deeper connection to the landscape’s evolving rhythms over time.



Nieuwveense pracht (2023—)
Comissioned work (private client)

Renaturation
Recreational wetland
Paludiculture
NIeuwveense pracht is a natural transformation project of a polder landscape. Situated in the historic Nieuwkoopse plassen region, the design reimagines the site's rich water structures and past landscapes while integrating recreation and sustainable food production. Inspired by traditional Dutch polder landscapes, native vegetation, and innovative water management strategies, the interventions feature a food forest, natural wetland restoration, and soft pathways that harmonise with the site's history. Nieuwveense Pracht fosters biodiversity, enhances climate resilience, and reconnects the future inhabitant with the layered history of the land.



Palimpsest of Peatlands (2022)
Thesis project

Speculative mapping
Transitional landscapes
Morphological adaptation
Palimpsest of Peatlands examines the transitional landscapes of peatlands on the outskirts of St. Petersburg, Russia, connecting the city's edge to the broader network of nature reserves beyond its boundaries. A speculative black-and-white map anchors the project, revealing the layered histories of human intervention and ecological transformation. The map charts the flux of water, land, and vegetation, reflecting the interplay between urban expansion and the fragile peat ecosystems. By focusing on the adaptive morphology of these landscapes, the project highlights their role as vital ecological infrastructure, mediating between the city and its surrounding natural systems.

Liminality (2023)
Design competition

Ecosystem adaptation
Human-nature interaction
Resilient landscapes

Liminality explores the concept of inhabiting transitional spaces where natural and human elements interact. It emphasises the design of adaptive environments that evolve over time to accommodate dynamic water systems, ecosystems, and visitor experiences. Central to the project is the extension and development of a nature reserve featuring a series of constructed habitats that balance ecological processes with human engagement. The design includes observation platforms, raised walkways, and marsh environments, all thoughtfully integrated into the landscape to enhance the coexistence of wildlife and people while promoting environmental awareness and stewardship

Earth Laboratory© 2025 Elena Dobretsova