Paraná Delta: New scenarios to link delta dynamics with a sustainable development of the Lower Paraná Delta

The Paraná Delta, a vital component of the La Plata river basin, is facing severe environmental degradation due to human activities and external pressures. This thesis explores the adaptive capacity of the deltaic system and stakeholders in the ‘Los Pájaros y sus Pueblos Libres’ reserve (LPPL), aiming to propose a strategy for sustainable...

Accepting the current(s): A porous approach for the revitalization of a former port area in the Rhine-Meuse Delta

The constant manipulation of the Dutch delta system and the resulting creation of hard borders between the natural river landscape, the harbor and the city has led to a destabilized delta system(Hein, 2021; Meyer et al., 2015). The spatial and ecological challenges resulting from population growth and the resulting urban growth, as well as...

A framework for climate change adaptation strategies acknowledging transboundary governance complexity: A case study in the Geul basin

On the 13th and 14th of July 2021 a cold pit caused extreme precipitation along with record discharges in tributaries of the Meuse. These discharges caused floods in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.<br/><br/>Extreme precipitation occurrence and its intensity are expected to increase in the area due to climate change, increasing flood risk....

Improving organisational resilience to disaster events: an FM perspective

Background and aim - Improving the resilience of business organisations and critical infrastructure providers to disaster events is a major challenge facing many European organisations. Recent floods in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands and earthquakes in Iceland, Italy, Romania and Greece have demonstrated the need for organisations to adopt...

The climate adaptive behaviour of smallholder farmers in the Gumera sub-basin, Ethiopia: A socio-hydrological approach

In Ethiopia, rainfall variability and changes in rainfall patterns, induced by climate change, could increase the frequency and occurrence of floods and droughts. Due to smallholder farmers in the Gumera sub-basin, Ethiopia, mostly relying on rainfed agriculture, climatic changes highly influence the agricultural production with corresponding...

Boundary spanning and adaptive capacity in Pearl River Delta megacities

The cities of the Pearl River Delta (PRD) have been experiencing an unprecedented urban expansion for the past four decades, leading to emergence of one of the most populous and dynamic urban regions. However, these rapidly expanding cities located in a low-lying delta area also face increasing flood risk due to a combination of anthropogenic...

Adaptive Resilience of Complex Safety-Critical Sociotechnical Systems: Toward a Unified Conceptual Framework and Its Formalization

Resilience is commonly understood as the capacity for a system to maintain a desirable state while undergoing adversity or to return to a desirable state as quickly as possible after being impacted. In this paper, we focus on resilience for complex sociotechnical systems (STS), specifically those where safety is an important aspect. Two main...

Adaptive capacity of the Pearl River Delta cities in the face of the growing flood risk: Institutions, ideas and interests

Although the cities in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) in China are amongst the world’s cities most exposed to flooding due to climate change, surprisingly little is done to address this problem. This article explores the barriers to the emergence of policies adapting to the growing flood risk in two PRD cities, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, underlining...

Upscaling of coastal flood assessments for reef-fronted small island developing states and investigating the adaptive capacity to coastal flooding in the context of São Tomé

Around the world, there are 58 Small Island Developing States (SIDS). What these SIDS generally have in common is that they are very susceptible to different natural hazards, among which coastal flooding. In order to address this issue, adaptation measures are needed. In order to prioritize adaptation efforts when considering these islands at a...

Waterproof Gouda: The creation of new spatial pathways to connect climate sustainability with monumental preservation

Gouda is one of several cities in the west of the Netherlands which still have a traditional medieval core, built on the long stretches of subsiding peat ground. The effects of subsidence, combined with the removal of surface water in the last century, are now further exacerbated by the increasing threat of climate change, which results in a...

Relocating Rotterdam: The task of spatial planning and urban design throughout scales in the context of extreme flood risk scenarios in the Netherlands

The current notion of risk used in the Netherlands has a strong focus on reducing the probability that flooding occurs. It leaves little attention for reducing exposure and vulnerability, as the other components when defining risk. Socio-economic trends show that the areas below sea level will be only more densely inhabited with people and will...

Understanding Adaptive Capacity in Real Estate and the Built Environment: Climate Change and Extreme Weather in New York City

With climate change well underway, cities worldwide are struggling to develop and apply knowledge that will help advance social, environmental and economic adaptation to extreme weather and changing ecologies. Nowhere is this need more pressing than in the design, development and management of the built environment in New York City. In...

To adapt or not to adapt: A study into the adaptability of the urban environment

The climate and the urban systems are changing, leading to new challenges and opportunities in the urban environment. Adaptation to these challenges is needed, using the vulnerability assessment areas that are vulnerable can be identified. Vulnerability is the likelihood a system experiences harm and is the combination of both risks and...

FLEX 3.0: An instrument to formulate the demand for and assessing the supply of the adaptive capacity of buildings

Market developments show increased demands for flexibility and sustainability by users and owners of buildings. A direct connection can be made between adaptive building and sustainability. The longer a building can keep its functional life cycle instead of becoming vacant or being demolished, the more sustainable a building will be. One way of...

FLEX 4.0: A Practical Instrument to Assess the Adaptive Capacity of Buildings

Adaptive buildings are green buildings. But the question is: how to measure green? A direct connection can be made between adaptive building and sustainability. Market developments show increased demands for flexibility and sustainability by users and owners as well as a growing understanding of the importance of a circular economy. Since 2014 a...

Towards a more resilient built environment

Over time, humankind’s lifestyle became increasingly dependent on finite resources. It follows that such a system is unable to sustain itself indefinitely. Several studies show that in the near future the climate may radically change and oil production will peak. Changes in the natural environment will possibly be so overwhelming that man has to...

Towards a more resilient built environment

Over time, humankind’s lifestyle became increasingly dependent on finite resources. It follows that such a system is unable to sustain itself indefinitely. Several studies show that in the near future the climate may radically change and oil production will peak. Changes in the natural environment will possibly be so overwhelming that man has to...