Research for Better Quality of Urban Life: the Build4People Project
The Build4People project aims to research and promote the use of sustainable buildings and sustainable urbanization through re-configuring the urban transformation pathway of Phnom Penh. Thereby, it focuses on people’s aspirations and their behaviour. The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Our project promotes sustainable buildings and sustainable urban development from a people-centred perspective. We aim at lowered greenhouse gas, pollutant emissions, a better indoor environment, an increase of urban green, a healthier urban climate. Read more.
The trans-disciplinary Build4People project connects scientific-conceptional and analytical aspects. The superior normative bracket is always the urban quality of life. We align people’s needs and aspirations with tools to benefit their living. Read more.
Cambodia’s traditional architecture took climate conditions into account. Today dynamic economic growth affects the way buildings are built and operated which is not energy-efficient nor tropical climate adapted. Reasons enough for B4P. Read more.
10 partners across continents join forces to implement 7 work packages: from Behaviour Change, Sustainable Buildings and Neighbourhoods, to Urban Green, Urban Climate to Sustainable Urban Transformation and Coordination. Read more.
Project Approach
The Build4People project considers sustainable, people-centred urban development as a crosscutting task. A genuinely people-centred planning system can neither be expected to “evolve by itself” nor is it feasible through legal regulations only. Our diverse team includes Cambodian and German partners which cooperate on a trans-disciplinary basis. Together they will develop innovative concepts aimed at urban sustainability that are based on scientific and regional expertise. The integrating link of our scientific-conceptional, analytical and normative dimension is the urban quality of life, which we consider to be the general foundation for our people-driven approach. The research consortium will carry out field research together with the most renowned local universities. Based on these insights, context-specific interventions will be implemented together with a number of core actors most important of all the Phnom Penh Capital Hall and the developer company Peng Huoth Group. Locally established multipliers such as the European Chamber of Commerce or the Center for Khmer Studies will support the dissemination of our approaches.
A strong partnership to deliver research results
Academic Quality We gathered a team with a proven record of academic excellence, extensive regional expertise and solid project experience.
Transdisciplinary Approach We draw from expertise and methods from Human Geography, Architecture, Urban Planning, Enviromental Psychology, Civil Engineering, Remote Sensing, Geoinformatics and Climate Research.
Cross-border cooperation German Universities and private sector actors collaborate with Cambodia partners from the academic arena, the municial setting and responsible ministrial offices.
The work package teams cooperate together, share their findings and develop joint deliverables as part of action research processes. Tools and products systematically build upon each other. Learning curves and feedback loops are incorporated into the project design.
Build4People is thrilled to announce about the publication of a video clip documenting the recent Build4People Transformation Workshop which took place at the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre (CKCC) at the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP). This event was jointly organised and hosted by the Build4People team and the Royal University of Phnom Penh and brought together Cambodian and international experts.
The primary objective of this workshop was to discuss further steps for the continued development of digital applications to support scientific research and teaching at RUPP.
Particular focus was placed on the newly developed RUPP-B4P Thermal Comfort App. Results from recent field testing were presented, and students developed ideas on how to visualize the current survey results. In addition, participants discussed potential future applications of the RUPP-B4P Citizen Science App as both a teaching and research tool.
Our heartfelt thank-you goes to all speakers and participants, and particularly to the hosts at the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre and the Royal University of Phnom Penh for making this collaborative event possible 😍.
On 13 March 2023, the Presentation Conference of the B4P Transition Manufactory took place at Phnom Penh City Hall.
This event presented the comprehensive results of different working groups from a one week living lab to develop alternative visions of sustainable urban development in the case the 200 ha development Mekong Quay Riverfront City developed by TP Moral Group.
The biggest working group, involving experts and students from the Cambodian Institute of Urban Studies, Eble Messerschmidt Partner, TU Dresden, OMGEVING Ho Chi Minh City, Royal University of Fine Arts, Norton University, Western University, and Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia focused on the application of the B4P guidelines and evaluation criteria meant to consider the design and implementation of a blue-green infrastructure as an essential part of the new neighbourhood.
Based on an analysis of the existing landscape structure in the surrounding area and inspiration from a landscape urbanism project in Bordeaux-France, initial ideas have been developed.
The landscape strategy for the green infrastructure includes green and biodiversity fingers connecting the project area with the landscape structure, as well as passive and active green zones along the riverfront and a wetland park. The water strategy for the blue infrastructure takes stormwater coming from the surrounding areas of the local communities into consideration. A sponge city concept for the project provides stormwater infiltration within the blocks and swales in the green fingers for a controlled discharge to the Mekong River. The urban climate strategy focusses on climate adaptation and takes the prevailing local wind directions with ventilation corridors and bioclimatic parks into account.
Furthermore, the sustainable mobility concept based on transit-oriented development and an integrated urban design strategy with a mixed land use approach shall contribute a multi-layered and comprehensive master plan approach. A quick assessment of the B4P Evaluation Criteria with the internet tool showed the potential for high sustainability performance of an enhanced master plan with regard to integrated urban design, blue-green infrastructure and sustainable urban mobility.
Another working group deliberately selected another visioning approach apart from technical design and presented three short video clips of so-called “Visual Urban Utopias”, based on the works of the German artist Jan Kamensky, with the aim to raise awareness of the opportunities of a more inclusive and gender-sensitive urban development of Phnom Penh.
More on a meta level, a working group led by Niklas Kossow from CityLAB Berlin discussed the Build4People’s Twin Transformation approach and the Role of Digitalisation and AI in Urban Development. In Build4People, digital transformation and sustainable urban transformation influence each other. First, it helps us understand the city through data analysis and simulation. Second, it helps involve people, for example through a citizen science app that collects survey data from residents. Third, it helps us imagine urban futures through digital planning tools and AI-based visualisations. And finally, it inspires ideas for digital tools that could make urban life more sustainable and inclusive. But at the same time, the project’s people-centred sustainability criteria shape what kind of digitalisation is relevant and useful. So digitalisation is not an end in itself — it is directed toward better urban quality of life.
An example of a specific application of people’s involvement was presented by a working group led by Bunleng Se from Royal University of Phnom Penh. He showed that by the combination of objective data and of subjective data, the latter measured by means of the RUPP-B4P Thermal Comfort App, a detailed analysis of the local micro climate can be done, the results of which can be generalized in the case of the new neighbourhood development of Mekong Quay Riverfront City.
After the presentation of the four working groups, a Letter of Intent was handed over between the Build4People representative and the CEO of TP Moral Group.
This was followed by a hand-over of the B4P sustainability criteria as well as B4P Planning and Design guidelines to TP Moral Group and to Phnom Penh Capital Hall.
Also, the participating students received official Certificates of Appreciation to honour their dedicated and engaged work.
Closing words were held by H.E. Vannak Seng, Vice-Governor of Phnom Penh, and by Christof Weigelmeier, Vice-Head of Mission of the German Embassy.
The Build4People team would like to express its deep gratitude to all participants of this exciting and inspiring collective endeavour.
The outputs shown during the Presentation Conference will get further refined in the course of the next weeks and months until the 2nd B4P Transition Manufactury due to November / December 2026.
On 10 March 2026, the Build4People Transformation Workshop took place at the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre (CKCC) at the Royal University of Phnom Penh (RUPP). This event was jointly organised and hosted by the Build4People team and the Royal University of Phnom Penh and brought together Cambodian and international experts.
The primary objective of this workshop was to discuss further steps for the continued development of digital applications to support scientific research and teaching at RUPP.
Particular focus was placed on the newly developed RUPP-B4P Thermal Comfort App. Results from recent field testing were presented, and students developed ideas on how to visualize the current survey results. In addition, participants discussed potential future applications of the RUPP-B4P Citizen Science App as both a teaching and research tool.
The RUPP-B4P Thermal Comfort App facilitates the collection of subjective thermal comfort data linked to participants locations and the parallel measurement of objective data like air temperature and humidity. This allows for the analysis of relationships between different datasets.
In general, the implementation of citizen science approaches enables citizens of Phnom Penh to actively participate in urban planning and transformation processes, while also providing researchers with a robust analytical tool with which to explore subjective perceptions.
Following opening remarks from Dr Michael Waibel (Build4People Consortium Representative), the workshop began with a presentation by Dr Anke Blöbaum on the potential of the RUPP-B4P Citizen Science App as a tool for science and participation.
Afterwards, Var Sovanndara (RUPP-IT) presented the current status of the app development and demonstrated the already operational data dashboard. Dr Michael Waibel then introduced the concept of the B4P Transition Manufactories as a collaborative format for integrated urban planning during the Implementation Phase of the B4P project. During the subsequent discussion session, participants reflected on the potential role of the RUPP team in supporting the upcoming Transition Manufactories and explored opportunities for further collaboration. The discussion was facilitated by Assistant Prof Dr Bunleng Se.
After a short break, Bunleng Se shared results from recent field testing in the Borey Peng Huoth residential area located in Chbar Ambov district. The empirical study combines objective measurements of local climate conditions with subjective assessments of thermal comfort and highlights the potential of nature-based solutions to improve the local microclimate and urban livability.
Following this presentation, students worked on developing ideas for possible output products to visualize survey results on urban climate in preparation for the B4P Transition Manufactory 2026. After presenting their ideas, a discussion took place on further applications of the RUPP-B4P Citizen Science App for both teaching and research, facilitated by Dr Anke Blöbaum.
Dr Michael Waibel’s forward-looking closing remarks brought the workshop to a close. The event concluded with a joint vegetarian lunch at CKCC, providing a great opportunity for participants to continue their discussions and to exchange perspectives.
Our heartfelt thank-you goes to all speakers and participants, and particularly to the hosts at the Cambodia-Korea Cooperation Centre and the Royal University of Phnom Penh for making this collaborative event possible 😍.
It has been a great honour for the whole Build4People team to get invited for a lunch meeting at the residence of the German Ambassador, H.E. Stefan Messerer, in Phnom Penh, on 9 March 2026.
The main purpose of this was to provide the Build4People project with the opportunity to meet H.E. Say Samal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Cambodian Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction (MLMUPC) and his delegation, among them several state secretaries.
During the exchange we explained about our B4P Transformation Toolbox evaluation criteria for sustainable neighbourhood development and its related comprehensive planning & design guidelines. Our B4P Evaluation Criteria are for developing sustainability qualities on the neighbourhood level with a focus on new urban areas, addressing Phnom Penh, but also other cities in Cambodia, integrating developer companies, ministries and local city administrations for achieving future proof projects.
Thereby the key procedure would be the evaluation by means of sustainability indicators with minimum requirements that every project should meet to target values defining a pathway to the future, as well as step by step advancements in-between. Our idea is that a basic digital tool for this will be provided by Build4People, but a more comprehensive administration tool for digital submission, commenting and approval of results must be developed with additional funding support, e.g. from the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
The ultimate goal would be the development of a mandatory reviewing process for defining, negotiating and fixing sustainability qualities for neighbourhood developments in urban Cambodia.
Our innovative ideas meet considerable interest and consequently we got invited to a technical meeting to explain more about our approaches at the seat of the MLMUPC in Phnom Penh.
Finally, we would like to express our deep gratitude to H.E. Stefan Messerer and his whole team for making this meaningful pitching event possible.
