…she needed to prata av sig (vent). I understand that this is not just a walk and a coffee break. It is a meeting space. A venue for community and socialising.

— Matilda Haglund, Extraction from project diary, after a collective walk in Nittorp (January 2025)

I return to my home village Nittorp to understand contemporary as well as historical purposes of rural meeting places— particularly those situated in nature. Aiming to explore how the local community can inspire new ideas for this archetype and to understand how local social structures contribute to everyday community-making and how design can respond to these often-overlooked typologies.

Through a research-based phase as well as a design-driven exploration, the project maps Nittorp’s social venues, investigates their peculiarities, and consider the voices of Nittorp. It becomes clear how structures in nature—often assumed to be places of solitude—are here frequently used for social purposes, particularly cooking and gathering with others. Considering methodologies of learning from the existing, meaning the project grows from a close reading of place—its people, spatial traditions, climate, and materials a design concept including three design interventions are proposed.

The concept mirrors the name of this thesis called; Ängen – The Community Meadow, a proposal for Rölidsängen, appearing like a glade between the forest, stream, and fields about a 20 minutes walk from the village. The vision is to create a common outdoor space—like a public patio. The three design interventions are sprung from and inspired through in depth studies of the site’s microclimate, seasonal rhythms, and existing patterns of use. They could be describes as follows:

Långbordet, A space for cooking, eating, community, hosting midsummer celebrations and coffee breaks - even on rainy days.

Aktiviteten, A space for unspecified activities. For yoga in nature or for dancing during bright summer nights.

Morgonsolen, A space for breakfast and the sunshine warming your face during morning walks. For greeting the cranes arriving with spring.

The project challenges the urban norm that dominates discourse on public space and suggests rural civic or non-profit spaces to be recognised as essential public realms in Sweden.