Scheveningen, city in the dunes

Growing resilience through nature, by restoring the connection between people, dunes and sea.

The proposed concept introduces a gradual transition from hard to nature-based coastal protection. In the short term, vulnerable locations are safeguarded through targeted infrastructure measures, while the development of a new dune landscape begins simultaneously. Over time, this dune system gradually adapts to rising sea levels and eventually takes over the role of the primary flood defence. Rather than creating a physical barrier, it establishes a resilient coastal landscape that reconnects the city, dunes, beach and sea. Carefully designed pathways, public spaces and sightlines strengthen the relationship between people and the coastline, transforming the dune into an accessible transition zone instead of a dividing edge.

This approach delivers far more than flood protection alone. The new dune landscape provides shelter from wind and salt spray, creating favourable conditions for a greener and more comfortable public realm. New trees, dune vegetation and green streets improve the local microclimate, reduce urban heat stress, enhance biodiversity and increase the city’s resilience to extreme rainfall. By establishing a coherent coastal ecosystem, space is created for characteristic dune flora and fauna, reinforcing Scheveningen’s identity as a “city in the dunes.” At the same time, new recreational routes, viewpoints and public spaces reconnect residents and visitors with the coastal landscape, strengthening both its ecological value and its recreational appeal.

This approach offers far more than flood protection alone. The new dune landscape provides shelter from wind and salt spray, creating favourable conditions for a greener and more resilient public realm. New trees, dune vegetation and green streets improve the local microclimate, reduce urban heat stress, enhance biodiversity and increase the city’s resilience to extreme rainfall. By establishing a coherent coastal ecosystem, space is created for characteristic dune flora and fauna, reinforcing Scheveningen’s identity as a “city in the dunes.” In addition, new recreational routes, viewpoints and public spaces reconnect residents and visitors with the coastal landscape.

The new landscape also serves as a catalyst for a more sustainable mobility system. By prioritising public transport, cycling and walking, car dependency can gradually be reduced, freeing up valuable public space currently used for parking. This space can be transformed into generous green streets, attractive pedestrian routes and high-quality cycling connections linking The Hague, Scheveningen and the beach. At the same time, the new dune landscape functions as both a recreational corridor and an integral part of the wider Dutch coastal landscape, where nature, accessibility and recreation reinforce one another.

The research demonstrates that a strategy relying solely on hard coastal defences will ultimately result in an increasingly disconnected coastline, rising societal costs and a loss of spatial quality. By contrast, an adaptive approach that combines flood protection with the gradual development of a resilient dune landscape offers the opportunity to address multiple challenges simultaneously. Integrating flood protection, urban greening, mobility, recreation and ecology into a single spatial strategy creates a future-proof Scheveningen where the relationship between the city and the sea is not severed, but instead strengthened. In this way, Scheveningen can evolve into a climate-resilient coastal district where safety, quality of life and landscape identity go hand in hand.