Liveable Nakskov Studio

As part of my master’s studies at Roskilde University, I took part in LEVEDYGTIGE NAKSKOV (Liveable Nakskov), a collaborative research project connected to the Fehmarn BELT Region Plan & Network initiative. The aim was to understand everyday life in Nakskov, Denmark, from the perspective of residents themselves, and to offer a more nuanced counterpoint to the town’s often negative public narrative as a peripheral community.

Working in a small research group, we used an ethnographic approach: conversations, guided walks, qualitative interviews, and photographic documentation. We then synthesised our material into a photo essay format that combines carefully selected images with short texts and interview quotes to communicate lived experiences rather than planning statistics.   

Our work followed the story of a local resident, Tina, whose everyday routines and reflections highlighted key themes of the project: strong place attachment, the importance of local community spaces and volunteering, changes in town life over time, and the tension between young people leaving and reasons to stay or return. These insights also opened conversations about future expectations tied to the Fehmarn Belt connection and what improved regional links might mean for peripheral towns like Nakskov.   

The project was later shared publicly as an exhibition and documented online as part of the BELT platform catalogue.