How to design the ecologically-sensible sustainable city:

Tom Bosschaert, founder and director of Except Integrated Sustainability, is a rare opportunity to explore the intersection of regenerative design, systems innovation, future-proof development, and cross-sector solutions.

Vision & Systems-Level Thinking

• What inspired you to launch Except, and how has your vision evolved since its inception?
• You talk about “integrated sustainability.” How is this different from traditional approaches to sustainability?
• What does it mean to build future-proof cities and organizations—and what are the core ingredients?
• Except’s work spans multiple sectors. What principles guide your ability to work across disciplines and industries?
• In your view, what is the most misunderstood concept in sustainability today?

Regenerative Design & Innovation

• How do you define regenerative development—and what does it take to move from theory to action?
• Can you walk us through a project that best exemplifies “systems design” in action?
• How do you measure success in long-term, systemic projects where outcomes might take years to unfold?
• How can smaller communities and cities start adopting regenerative practices without massive budgets?
• How do aesthetics, architecture, and beauty influence the success of sustainability projects?

Practice, Tools, & Methodologies

• What methodologies or frameworks does Except use to ensure deep, systems-based change?
• How do you integrate social equity, ecology, and circularity into the early stages of design?
• What role does data visualization and storytelling play in persuading stakeholders to embrace complexity?
• You’ve designed models like the “Symbiosis in Development” (SiD) framework—how does it help drive decisions?
• What tools or practices do you use to keep collaboration effective across such diverse teams and cultures?

Future Focus & Civilization Design

• What does a well-designed civilization look like from your perspective in 2035?
• Where do you see the greatest opportunity for systemic change in the next five years?
• Which industries or sectors do you believe are most ripe for transformation but still resisting change?
• What does a post-growth economy look like in action—and how can design help it flourish?
• How can the next generation of designers, architects, and changemakers prepare themselves for this transition?

Personal Reflections & Calls to Action

• What personal experiences shaped your view of planetary and urban futures?
• If you had one message for young people worried about the future, what would it be?
• What gives you hope right now, despite today’s global challenges?
• What project do you dream of building but haven’t yet had the chance to realize?
• How can our audience get involved or apply your work to their own communities and cities?

Sustainability has become the most prevalent challenge in policy and business – the world is looking for answers, and the time is ripe for visions beyond single-issue solutions.

Results that address essential changes in how we live, work, produce, play, and prosper.  To achieve this, the benefits of a multitude of solutions are combined into a single holistic and adaptive model. Orchid City is all about this new way of living.

We will discover this evolutionary concept, designed by Except.eco in The Netherlands:

Orchid City is a blueprint for a fully self-sustaining city where all social, environmental, financial, and material needs are met. It’s climate-adaptive, net-positive, and genuinely regenerative. It’s an open community, full of interaction with the rest of the world and an inspiring place that offers a new perspective to a healthy, exciting, and livable future. Best of all, it is affordable and realistic and can be built right now. While Orchid City functions fundamentally different from anywhere else, Orchid City is a place we can build and realize today.”

Tom Bosschaert, Director, Except.eco