De Urbanisten: How Rotterdam is learning to live with Water | Building Visions (3/4)

The Dutch are in deep water — quite literally. Many of their cities lie just above sea level, and some even below, like Rotterdam. As climate change causes sea levels to rise, the city is quite literally at risk of going under.

“We need to stop fighting the water. We have to learn to live with it.” That’s the mission of a creative group of architects, landscape planners, and urban designers who are working on both small and large-scale projects in the port city. Known as De Urbanisten, they are showing how crucial it is to bring nature back into the city. One of their key projects is a tidal park on an abandoned harbor site, where ebb and flow are allowed to run freely, reshaping the park’s landscape multiple times a day.

They’re also experimenting with different ground coverings like plants and shells to transform sealed urban surfaces along riverbanks or city squares, so they can better absorb water — and at the same time, make Rotterdam more livable and inviting.

Right in the heart of the city, De Urbanisten built the multifunctional Watersquare, which gained international attention. It's a mix of channels and colorful basins that collect excess rainwater during heavy storms, and on sunny days, it becomes a skatepark for local kids.

For centuries, the Dutch kept water out by building ever-higher dikes. But in "Building Visions", De Urbanisten show that sometimes, the answer is to let nature take its course — and embrace it.

Chapters
▷ 00:00 - Introduction
▷ 01:30 - Rotterdam under Water, Delta Programme
▷ 02:51 - De Urbanisten, Water Square
▷ 13:20 - Sponge Garden
▷ 17:13 - Biodiversity and Flood Defence
▷ 25:10 - Credits

#architecture #urbandesign #climateaction #sustainablecities #rotterdam #netherlands #deurbanisten

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The four-part series BUILDING VISIONS presents architects who are seeking answers to the big questions facing our civilization today. They deal with networking, climate change, rapidly growing cities, the involvement of local communities, education and migration. They are pioneers in decent housing and sustainable building, turning creativity and humanitarian ideas into plans and implementing them together with residents. They resist with their creativity. We accompany architects who go where money is lacking, social grievances prevail and climate change threatens the environment. They face social challenges, go beyond the limits of what is possible and negotiate cultural, political, as well as economic and ecological positions. In BUILDING VISIONS, they talk about the ideas and ideals that drive them.

Original title: Rotterdam - Netherlands | Building Visions (3/4)
A film by Diego Breit Lira

© 2022, Licenced by Autlook

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