GROUP A organizes the fourth edition of the Carbon Stories debate series on Thursday June 22nd, together with CITYFÖRSTER. This evening will zoom in on the theme of sustainable urbanization. Speakers from different disciplines in the building sector will share their views and discuss what changes are necessary.

How do we make the transition at the level of urban planning? How do we formulate principles and regulations towards a truly sustainable urbanization of the Netherlands? What is needed now to achieve the target of the Paris Agreement of 2030?

Although the development towards a circular and CO2-neutral building economy pays much attention to materials, products and buildings, there are remarkably few studies on the effects of site selection. While before individual buildings are designed, a whole series of decisions about those buildings (form, typology, density, mobility) have first been made on an urban planning scale. Decisions that can be decisive in the carbon footprint of these developments. How can we reduce CO2 at the urban planning scale?

Co-curator Martin Sobota of CITYFÖRSTER initiated a research group on this topic and opened the evening with a call. Jurriaan van Stigt of LEVS architects will talk about a study on the CO2 footprint for the municipality of Amsterdam. Wouter Streefkerk will explain the role of CO2 budgets in urban development on behalf of the municipality of Rotterdam. David van Keulen will speak about the role of CO2 in mobility models for Gemeente Den Haag, and Tobias Tonch of Synchroon will explain the role of developers in providing climate-positive urbanism.

The Carbon Stories series catalyzes the conversation about the (im)possibilities of a climate-positive built environment. The perspectives of the financier, developer, designer, builder, consultant and material supplier are addressed. In a series of thematic meetings, we will explore the CO2 issue in depth across the building sector. Carbon Stories is an initiative of GROUP A’s think tank Carbonlab, the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR) and the KeileCollective.

The debate will be moderated by science journalist Geert Maarse. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. and the language of discussion is Dutch.

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