ABSTRACT
Since the introduction of the concept of sustainable development in 1987, there has been a wide range of different proposals, programs, and projects calling for a close relationship between the city and nature. This chapter aims to constitute a genealogy of theoretical positions and concrete projects that have considered urban form with natural spaces as an essential element. It synthetizes some of the results of research on greenspaces in the urban design theories of the modern era, particularly in France. The chapter is organized in three parts: first, nature considered as an urban system that is superimposed on the existing town and anticipates its development; second, natural space considered as a substratum for modernist urban forms and as a framework for urban planning; and, finally, natural spaces as ecological systems for redesigning urban areas and as a preparation for the future transformation of urban territories.
