10 projects designed for green walking

With these designs, architecture addresses one of the fundamental activities of human experience: walking. And it does so in the wild as well as in the city.

Walking in nature is a primordial activity for humans, reminiscent of the archetypal contact between man and planet, which in today's narrative we consider lost and to be recovered, and at the same time it is the function that marked the evolutionary transition to Homus Erectus, the ancestor of Sapiens. Architecture, too, confronts walking and this atavistic need we have to do it in the midst of nature. In this selection, we see how it does it basically in two ways: by designing walkways in the middle of the woods that can change our perspective on nature. Or by integrating excerpts of flora into urban segments, a popular artifice that has found in New York's High Line a design archetype. A perspective that stretches all the way to the proposed indoor nature walking and biking street in Dubai. Whether you are in the middle of Manhattan or in the woods of Norway, there is a walkway waiting for you. We have put ten different projects, completed, under construction or simply proposed, up against each other.

Hamaren Activity Park Walkway, Norway

In Hamaren Activity Park in Fyresda, Norway, architecture firm EFFEKT recently completed the construction of a tree walkway. The structure, raised to a height of 15 meters, guides visitors from the pine forest floor, past a lake and up through the treetops to the top of the Klokkarhamaren hill, for a total length of one kilometer. Read more 

Leach Botanical Garden, Portland

In 2015, the firm Land Morphology began work on a 16-acre park in Portland, Oregon, undertaking the development of a new strategic master plan for the project. The botanical garden was established nearly a century ago by a local couple, John and Lilla Leach, who once lived on the property. Now, after years of work, the area finally opens to the public with an event pavilion, designed in collaboration with Olson Kundig Architects, and an aerial walkway through the trees. Read more 

Camden Highline, London

The linear park will transform unused railway tracks into green space, but the British capital aims to avoid criticism of its Manhattan predecessor. Read more 

Castlefield Viaduct, Manchester

In collaboration with the National Trust charity, London-based Twelve Architects has recently converted a Victorian cast iron and steel railway structure that characterises the Manchester skyline. The Castlefield Viaduct, this is its name, was once used to transport goods to and from the English city, but has remained inactive since the closure of the city’s central station in 1969. Read more 

The Loop, Dubai

In Dubai, international firm URB is presenting The Loop project, a 93-kilometer-long highway that aims to encourage the metropolis’ residents a healthy and sustainable mode of transportation. Created in line with the “20-minute city” agenda, the project aims to reduce car dependence by providing opportunities for walking and cycling and integrating essential services into its design. Read more 

Pedestrian Bridge, Sofia

Designed by Boele Architects and Buro Happold, the bridge will connect the National Palace of Culture to the most naturalistic area of the Bulgarian capital with a curvilinear gait and an essential design. Read more 

Paiva Walkways, Portugal

In the breathtaking lansdcape along the Paiva river in Portugal, engineering studio Trimétrica designed a walkway in dialogue with nature, morphology and panoramic views. Read more.

Battery Park City, New York

Occupied by some of the most valuable real estate in NYC, the coastal area is the subject of one of the most ambitious urban resilience projects in the United States. But also among the most expensive. Read more

Cuyahoga Riverfront, Cleveland

Sir David Adjaye, supported by the real estate company Bedrock, has unveiled his master plan for the Cuyahoga Riverfront, for an estimated investment of $3.5 billion and with a construction period of 15-20 years. Read more

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