The Netherlands
Rotterdam-Delft-The Hague
General description
The Rotterdam-Delft-The Hague region in the Western part of the Netherlands is the largest urbanised and industrial area in the Netherlands and includes the major cities of Rotterdam, Delft and The Hague. The region has a population of just over 2.5 million and is one of the world’s most densely populated areas. The region is also part of the Rhine-Meuse delta and has strong coastal and river protection. There are major sustainability problems including large carbon emissions , decreased biodiversity, climate change impacts, and other environmental impacts. It has also been hit considerably by the current financial and economic crisis and faces major social issues like limited social cohesion, deprived areas, unemployment and withdrawal of the welfare state.
Sustainability initiatives in the Rotterdam-Delft-The Hague region
Sustainability initiatives in areas such as energy, re-use and lifetime extension of manufactured products, transition towns, urban agriculture, car-sharing, and sustainable retrofitting and construction are increasing in the region. In particular, activities in the fields of local renewable energy co-operatives, Repair Cafés and urban agriculture are expanding in the region. In addition, initiatives in peer-to-peer car sharing and local exchange systems are emerging, and groups of citizens are taking over activities such as swimming pools, community centres and libraries when municipalities are withdrawing.
In March and April 2015 researchers of Delft University of Technology have started collaborations with several bottom-up initiatives in the region: Repair Cafés (http://repaircafe.org/) in Schiedam, Delft, and The Hague, and the energy cooperative Vogelwijk Energiek (www.vogelwijkenergiek.nl) in the Hague. A smaller scale collaboration has also been established with two urban gardening initiatives in the City of Rotterdam (Peace Garden and Ghandi Garden). Activities carried out in collaboration with the initiatives include (i) network analyses, (ii) in-depth interviews, (iii) focus group discussions, and (iv) a survey.
Repair Cafe
In March 2015 a collaboration with the three Repair Café’s in the region was started, after a student group had explored the topic in a successful way. Repair Cafés are freely accessible meeting places where people gather to fix broken objects, share knowledge and experience on repairing, and simply have a good time with other people. One of the main aims of Repair Cafés is to reduce the amount of waste that our society produces by extending the lifetime of objects, while also teaching people that broken items can often be repaired. In addition, the Repair Cafés have proven to fulfil an important social function, by offering a pleasant environment for people to meet and build up or strengthen social contacts. Repair Cafés also provide low-cost repair to people that cannot afford to go regular repair venues. The first Repair Café was started in Amsterdam by the journalist Martine Postma. Based on the success of the first Repair Café, many Repair Cafés have been set up within and outside the Netherlands since 2009. Currently, there are over 700 Repair Cafés in 18 different countries. The initiator is still actively involved in the national Repair Café Foundation and currently works on the diffusion of Repair Cafés around the world.
Local Energy Initative Vogelwijk Energie(k)
Early April, another collaboration started with the energy cooperative Vogelwijk Energiek in the Vogelwijk of the Hague, which describes itself as an association of 250 enthusiastic people in the Vogelwijk district in The Hague who aim for more sustainability in everyday life. The long-term goal of the initiative is to make the Vogelwijk district free of emissions (carbon neutral) by 2040. The initiative started in February 2009 with a project to recommission an obsolete wind turbine owned by the energy company Eneco. In collaboration with the energy company the wind turbine was put into use again to generate electricity for people in the Vogelwijk district. Mid 2013 the energy company decided that the maintenance costs of the wind turbine were too high, and it was decided to demolish the wind turbine, despite attempts by representatives of the Vogelwijk Energie(k) to prevent this. However, over the years the board of the Vogelwijk Energie(k) had also started several other projects, including projects on improving insulation of houses, smart energy meters, the development of solar roofs, reuse of rain water, and a pilot on the shared use of an electrical car. The initiative also provides information to residents of the district about energy-related improvements that they can implement at home, and where they can find subsidies to support such activities.
Urban Gardening initiatives Rotterdam
In early April 2015 a collaboration was started with two urban gardening initiatives in the City of Rotterdam that were both started by Rutger Henneman, a well-known urban gardener in Rotterdam. The gardens are called the Ghandi Garden (http://gandhituin.org/) and the Peace Garden (http://vredestuin.org/). A group of students of the master program of Industrial Ecology explored the link between the urban agriculture initiatives and green lifestyles. During their project, the students performed interviews, a network analysis, and a participatory backcasting workshop in which stakeholders in the urban agriculture movement of Rotterdam explored pathways to more sustainable food supply and consumption in Rotterdam.
contact persons for the case study:
Wouter Spekkink ()
Jaco Quist ()
