The topic of the “city of tomorrow” concerns everyone: whether you are a municipal planner in Berlin, a landscape architect in Hamburg or a representative of the real estate industry in Munich. Everyone is equally interested in the future of our cities. Last week, 120 municipal planners and landscape architects and six expert speakers took a joint look at the future of urban development.
The topic “The city of tomorrow” concerns everyone: whether Berlin municipal planners, Hamburg landscape architects or Munich representatives from the real estate industry. Everyone is equally interested in the future of our cities. But how do we meet the climate challenges of tomorrow? What does sustainable urban development look like in the 21st century?
Last week,120 municipal planners and landscape architects and six expert speakers took a joint look at the future of urban development. The focus of the one-day congress “Zukunft Stadt@GRÜNBAU BERLIN” was on providing information and networking. Inclusion – what does that actually mean? Making space for water! But how? What positive impact does light have on its surroundings? – Questions like these were the subject of lively discussion.
Ute Eckardt, Office for Urban Greenery and Waste Management, Dresden, kicked things off by presenting the inclusive playground as a place of encounter, communication and togetherness. “Every playground and every exercise program promotes inclusion,” said Eckardt. The most important principle is barrier-free accessibility of the open space. In addition to accessibility, she formulated five other key aspects for the planning of an inclusive playground: the participation of all potential users, the variety of offers, the consideration of the entire neighborhood, the planner’s change of perspective and the promotion of togetherness.
Martina Hoff, Landschaftsarchitekturbüro Hoff, Essen, then presented best practice examples from her everyday work as a planner, such as the Park der Generationen in Witten-Annen and the Lutherpark playground in Witten. Her three basic rules of inclusion: the wheel-feet rule (obstacle-free accessibility), the two-channel principle (always appeal to two senses) and KISS (Keep It Short and Simple).
Green, greener, “DIE GRÜNE STADT” foundation
Peter Menke, “DIE GRÜNE STADT” Foundation, spoke on the topic of “Green and open spaces in the city of the future”. He began with the quote “The success of the city is essentially determined by the quality of the spaces in between” (Martin Haas, Studio 2050) and explained the importance and value of green and blue elements in the city. “Green promotes health, ensures social functions and greatly enhances the quality of the location,” said Menke.
Giving water space
Dieter Grau, Ramboll Studio Dreiseitl, dealt with the functional and aesthetic networking of rainwater management in his presentation. He spoke about the consequences of climate change, such as periods of heat and drought, extreme rainfall events and flooding. He emphasized that these challenges will have to be taken into account in urban planning in the future. In addition to his projects, Zollhallenplatz in Freiburg and Potsdamer Platz in Berlin, he presented research projects from the metropolitan regions of Hamburg and Copenhagen, two cities whose infrastructures are at their limits as a result of climate change.
Luminosity and the city as a stage
“Artistic illuminations contribute to the culture of public spaces, create character and, thanks to their modern lighting technology, contribute to greater aesthetics and energy efficiency.” This guiding principle is the starting point for the funding projects of the “Lebendige Stadt” foundation, which Gerhard Fuchs reported on at the Forum for Urban Development.
Martin Rein-Cano, Topotek 1, spoke about the city as a stage in the concluding presentation. He presented colorful street furniture and unusual projects. The starting point for their planning was not only function, but above all attractiveness, so that the urban space in question is accepted by the people. For the 2009 Federal Garden Show in Schwerin, the landscape architects from Topotek 1 designed a picnic area half in the water, for the campus of the Martin Luther University in Halle in 2002 a multi-purpose concrete bench and for Chemnitz Central Station in 2016 a neon-colored waiting area with various seating elements.
