During 2021 and 2022 the studio Daylight & Architecture at KTH, led by Per Fransson and Rodrigo Muro, held a course with a focus of developing sustainable architecture on the west coast of Sweden. A collaboration with the marine research institute, Kristineberg Center, allowed students to learn about research and to help envision the future of the center.  Through lectures and a site visit to Kristineberg, the students were inspired to create projects that could develop the center in new ways. Having studied the UN’s Sustainable Developments Goals the aim was to create architecture that was circled around blue materials and blue food, two subjects that researchers of Kristineberg know very well. 

The competition Blue Architecture Kristineberg allows for students to submit their proposals for the sustainable development of Kristineberg. This year the competition is closed to students that participated in the course, however the aim is to have an annual open competition that will contribute to the future development of Kristineberg Center. The jury is composed of representatives from Kristineberg Center, Akademiska Hus, KTH and other notable architects.

The final date to edit and submit proposals is the 11th of August, 2022. Winning proposals will be displayed as a part of an exhibition in the Kristineberg Center, the winner will also get the opportunity to attend a marine science conference in France.

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Kristineberg's zoological sea station was inaugurated in 1877 at the initiative of Sven Lovén, and is one of the world's oldest marine stations for research and education.

During the 20th century, the name was changed to first Kristinebergs marine biological station and then Kristinebergs marine research station. Until 2007 it was run by The Royal Academy of Sciences in close cooperation with the University of Gothenburg. In the years 2008-2016 the station was part of the Sven Lovén Center for Marine Sciences, and in 2016-2017 part of the Sven Lovén Center for Marine Infrastructure. Since 2018, the station has been part of the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Gothenburg.

Kristineberg is located at the mouth of the Gullmarsfjord, which makes it easy to quickly reach both coastal environments and the open sea.

The Gullmarsfjord is 30 km long with a maximum depth of 118 metres. The key features that make the fjord an important marine environment include the excellent water quality with three rather distinctive bodies of water; the surface water with varying salinity, caused by the mixture of local runoff, Baltic Sea water and surface water from the Kattegatt/Skagerrak. The middle layer is dominated by surface water from the Skagerrak, while the bottom water is characterized by high salinity from the greater depths of the North Sea.

A large number of different habitats - including steep cliffs, deep-bottom sediments, sand and mud beaches, eelgrass meadows, as well as open and sheltered coasts - provide a very rich flora and fauna. Scientific studies have taken place in Gullmarsfjorden since the 1830s, which means that the fjord is well documented. Gullmarn has been a nature reserve since 1983 and an EU BIOMARE reference area.