08. June 2020

It was raining slightly, and I was on the way to my first meetings with team members of the EU Urban Innovative Action project GreenQuays in Breda, The Netherlands, that I am happy to support as external expert. Actually, I should be writing about the inspiring project on the nature-inclusive quays and I definitely will!!! However, as for this morning, other urban green caught my attention: How often have I heard already that green in narrow and historical streets is difficult to establish or...

08. June 2020

Finding innovative solutions goes beyond business as usual approaches, though the driving partner might lack the specific skills and expertise required. A way forward is to team up with other partners and search jointly for Solutions. Hence, many UIA projects engage with a wide range of Partners, but how can they collaborate effectively? In the case of IGNITION, which aims to develop innovative financing models for delivering nature-based solutions for climate-resilience, 12 partners ......

22. November 2019

My arrival in Manila (Philippines) on a Monday evening to join the project team as part of my adaptation contract with the Asian Development Bank became more challenging than previously thought. After a long flight, I just had to catch a taxi for the last 10km from the airport to my hotel. It is the usual way of transport as public transport isn’t properly developed there. But … it took me more than 1.5 hours to get there. I could probably have walked there, if high air pollution and...

03. August 2019

What could be better to show the urgency for action than holding the annual European Urban Resilience Forum at 38 degrees Celsius in Bonn on 25 June 2019. Despite the heat (or because of the heat?), we have had many inspiring discussions between cities on how to implement climate change adaptation action. Also, I was excited that we could bring smaller municipalities more into focus. Usually, we see action in middle-sized and big cities, but smaller ones need to adapt as well. In a specific...

03. August 2019

I can’t say it often enough. They are so delightful. I have just enjoyed their usefulness in the heat in Barcelona while on holiday. I am always impressed by the city’s focus on trees. So many trees and indeed you can feel the difference in temperature. The city’s administration and citizens have understood how trees can help them to reduce heat loads. Other cities follow the example, like Milan, which has announced to plant 3 million trees until 2030.

06. April 2019

What a nice sunny Sunday morning in spring time! We had our first breakfast this year on the balcony. Everyone seems to be eager to get a piece of sunshine these days. But there are also sad things going on. My neighbours have taken down a big tree, the second within the two years that I have lived here. Now they sit on their fully tiled courtyard to enjoy the spring time sun. At the same time, some of my neighbours at the site where we are building our new house, asked me when we will take...

19. January 2019

A new year has started and quite a lot of us have taken the chance to commit to some kind of personal change, whether it is a healthier lifestyle, spending more time with the family or making changes in your career. While the first few days work out fine, at some point we will face resistance, and far too often, return to old patterns. We might have underestimated the work that change needs, or have wanted too much in too short a time, so we start to play down the need for change and find...

09. December 2018

Ok. Actually, today I‘m talking about Germany. Especially, after a hot summer like the last one and a seemingly endless drought in many parts of the country, it seems clear to me that we all have to do something for climate change mitigation and climate change adaptation. Only then, we can maintain the quality of life and economic power in our cities, towns and regions. Climate change mitigation and adaptation are the foundations of general public services which the state and municipalities...

26. October 2018

One could assume this and I am delighted that, together with the adelphi team, we have reached an important milestone in our project "Successfully connected in Europe – shaping cities and regions together" on behalf of the German ministry responsible for urban development. The borough of Lörrach and Weil am Rhein, the Geopark Vulkaneifel, the cities of Gudensberg and Munich have just been selected as the winners of the competition, which is an important part of this project. Congratulations!...

21. October 2018

Last month, I attended the Congress for National Urban Development Policy in Germany where urban densification was one of the topics. Many cities - in Germany and elsewhere - have become more attractive again, not only as a place for businesses but also to live in. They are experiencing high migration rates and intensive construction activity. The topic of densification is more relevant than ever. In terms of sustainability, this is much appreciated - with multi-storey apartment buildings, we...