Isolated Islands?

Abstract

In 2014, Urban Design assignments at the Department of Urban Planning and Design of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics were organised around the topic of the River Danube. Working on its own subject matter, each student study group analysed the situation, relationships and visions for the islands situated in Budapest, later focusing on Népsziget, determining their urban context and possibilities for development. The workshop resulted in several findings related to the subject area. The most significant of these is the realization that, in spite of the special role and position the islands have in Budapest, not only is this uniqueness hard to grasp, but also how difficult it is to put forward as a bold vision for the future. This realization inspired the paper, which, in addition to the summary of the islands unique situation, introduces several international examples, and finally presents the main differences in the approaches of the student’s plans.