#blue infrastructure

✅ Making cities resilient to floods

About 44% of all disaster events around the world are flood-related.

In our new explainer episode, we show how ‘sponging’ cities can help them overcome the challenge of flooding while strengthening the local ecology, and boosting the economic and social well-being of residents.

In this episode, you will learn:

🟡 What a sponge city is (and how it works)

🟡 The benefits of ‘sponging’ cities (beyond flood-resilience)

🟡 Projects that demonstrate the principles and benefits of a sponge city at various scales (and what we can learn from them)

🟡 Why developers should be in favour of sponge city initiatives (they can save millions in costs)

And much more!

💚 If you gain value from this conversation, we hope you will subscribe to the channel 💚

Thank you to Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction for supporting season 5 of Ecogradia.

How can we work with water, rather than against it, to prevent flooding? Professor Kongjian Yu of Peking University, a pioneer of the “sponge city” concept, dives into holistic, nature-based solutions that can be used in water management. He describes how water is like a beast when it’s backed into a corner: it always wins. But if we can adapt and mitigate, we can work with water to solve the problem both locally and globally. Drawing on the story of how he almost drowned as a child during monsoon season, he advocates for naturalized waterways, which can capture carbon as well as act as a sponge to absorb excess water. He envisions a world where everyone can participate in the sponge cities concept! 

Thanks to the James and Cathleen D. Stone Foundation for organizing Professor Yu's visit and for supporting this collaboration with the Stone Living Lab.

Earthshot:    • Earthshot  

Among the world's largest science centers, the Museum of Science engages millions of people each year to the wonders of science and technology through interactive exhibitions, digital programs, giant screen productions, and preK – 12 EiE® STEM curricula through the William and Charlotte Bloomberg Science Education Center. Established in 1830, the Museum is home to such iconic experiences as the Theater of Electricity, the Charles Hayden Planetarium, and the Mugar Omni Theater. Around the world, the Museum is known for digital experiences such as Mission: Mars on Roblox, and traveling exhibitions such as the Science Behind Pixar. Learn more at https://www.mos.org/

This side event will discuss opportunities and strategies to enhance investments in quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including regional and transborder infrastructure in the context of the most vulnerable countries such as the LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS.

It will contextualize the current state of play in increasing the resilience of hard, soft and natural infrastructure across different infrastructure systems, including water and transportation. Good practices related to gray and green/blue infrastructure, including nature-based solutions, will be presented. Panellists will also discuss next steps to implement the infrastructure-related calls for action in the GA Resolutions 77/282 and 77/289.

This event is being organized by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and is co-sponsored by the Co-Chairs of the Group of Friends of Disaster Risk Reduction (Permanent Missions of Australia, Indonesia, Norway and Peru), as well as the Permanent Mission of India, the Permanent Mission of Poland and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.

Detroit gets its feet wet with “blue infrastructure”

Downtown Detroit, as seen from the Detroit Riverwalk in 2012. (Kevin Chang via Flickr)

Detroit‘s Water & Sewerage Department hopes an experiment in so-called blue infrastructure will help the cash-strapped city stop flushing money down the drain.

Continue reading after the jump.