January 19, 2024

Water: A Dutch Cultural History

Translated by Nancy Forest-Flier To order a paper copy of this book, please follow this link: https://www.boekenbestellen.nl/boek/water Floods are a fundamental part of Dutch history. Indeed, having ‘tamed’ the threats associated with living below sea level is part of Dutch national identity. In the cultural depictions of these devastating events, however, national pride at a certain collective resilience goes hand-in-hand with the collective trauma of exposed vulnerability. All too often, the Dutch were the losers in these battles against the elements. In a time of rising global sea levels, cultural scholar Lotte Jensen dives into the stories and images of the past to unpack this paradox for today. Over the centuries, large parts of the Netherlands have been progressively reclaimed from its river delta home. Throughout that process, the country suffered countless floods, a number of which were truly catastrophic, such as the Saint Elizabeth’s Flood of 1421 or the North Sea Flood of 1953. Jensen describes how the Dutch have dealt with these disasters, in practice but also in the imagination. It is the story of babies in floating cradles, fatherly monarchs, community fundraisers, and the boy who stuck his finger in the dike. Centuries before the nation-building associated with the 1800s, the Dutch created a unifying ‘us’ – the image of the Dutch lion – against a ‘them’ – the ‘waterwolf’, the major threat which water embodied. This national feeling and narrative were crafted with a set repertoire of images; role models (heroes and monarchs); charity (national and international solidarity); and a culture of remembrance. Jensen gives particular attention to the at times funny poems, books and songs, later criticized as clichéd or melodramatic, which these collective traumas inspired. She also demonstrates through monuments and works of art how this narrative has multiplied and acquired variations with time right up to the present. Though once cast in a more religious light – the flood as punishment for a general lack of religious devotion – the waterwolf has become, for example, a collective responsibility for the environment that begins with lifestyle choices. Today the Netherlands lives with water more than it battles it, some thinkers even envisioning an ‘amphibian’ future for the country. The stories and images of the past, however, reveal that precisely vulnerability can be fertile ground for solidarity and togetherness. With rising sea levels representing a growing threat, this well-researched and highly readable cultural history shows how over time a culture’s imagination can gain new relevance beyond its borders. Acknowledging and building from a place of collective vulnerability might now be more important than ever.

March 5, 2020

Climate change and the development of resilient societies

Using recent IPCC reports an update is given on latest climate science developments. Extreme weather events like sea-level rise and droughts become more important. Measures to be taken are introduced: what needs to be done to build climate-resilient societies. A key element of such resilient societies is sustainability. Examples are given.

October 5, 2020

Tsunamis in Tokyo

This study is a research focused on the impact of the tsunami on multiple subsystems of Tokyo city such as transportation, buildings, sanitation, ecosystem, etc. In this report, solution strategies of the shock and stress including reinforcing technologies, coastal forests, forecasting, and reconstruction are also discussed. Ethical implications and monitoring needs are included as well.

October 5, 2020

Tropical cyclones in Maputo

Maputo, a city in Africa has borne the brunt of tropical cyclones due to its geographical location and the effects of climate change. The report covers the probable consequences of cyclones and its effects on the social, technical and environmental aspects of Maputo. It also details possible solutions, keeping in mind the social and economic constraints and the ethical consequences of probable solutions.

August 1, 2021

Amsterdam: Integrated solutions and inclusive governance in a smart city

HOW TO NAVIGATE THIS CASE STUDY: First, please refer to the Teacher's Guide using the yellow "View Materials" button on the left pane. The teacher's guide outlines the purpose, contents, approach, case structure, and technical information of this case study. This case study was curated from other independently published open educational resources and from existing materials on this platform. These resources are also organized by domain. At the bottom of each resource's page, you can see both the city case study and SURF Resilience domain to which it belongs. Click on the case study or the domain name to navigate to the case study homepage or SURF Resilience collection, respectively. OVERVIEW: This case study contains a teaching guide, seven thematic foci, and a gaming simulation. In the first thematic focus, you will discover the dynamics of co-creation across multiple sectors such as air, smart grids, energy, mobility, green spaces, and water. In 'Amsterdam's Air Quality,' you will visit NGOs like the Waag Society where citizens use art, science, and technology to help address air pollution. Then, you will see how big data and the use of ICT may make aspects of life in Amsterdam more sustainable in 'Smart & Livable Cities.' You will learn how citizens help guard against the disappearance of green spaces, traveling to a buttercup farm where you will see how conflicting visions by different stakeholders are integrated to develop urban spaces. Finally, you will discover how a low-lying city like Amsterdam copes with intensifying rainfall in the 'Water Management & Climate Change' theme and learn about agent-based modelling for resilience. To experience this interdependence of different sectors, play the urban resilience game at the end of this set. You will see how disasters impact the urban system and experience the consequences of your choices on how to protect the city.

October 1, 2025

An analysis of the current developments and scenarios for the transition to a fossil-free energy society this century

This century, greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrogen oxides must be significantly reduced. Greenhouse gases absorb and emit infrared radiation that contributes to global warming, which can lead to irreversible negative consequences for humans and the environment. Greenhouse gases are caused by the burning of fossil fuels such as crude oil, coal, and natural gas, but livestock farming and agriculture are also to blame. In addition, deforestation contributes to more greenhouse gases. Of the natural greenhouse gases, water vapor is the main cause of the greenhouse effect, accounting for 90%. The remaining 10% is caused from high to low by carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides, chlorofluorocarbons, and ozone. In addition, there are industrial greenhouse gases such as fluorinated hydrocarbons, sulphur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride that contribute to the greenhouse effect too. Greenhouse gases are a major cause of climate change, with far-reaching consequences for the welfare of humans and animals. In some regions, extreme weather events like rainfall are more common, while others are associated with more extreme heat waves and droughts. Sea level rise caused by melting ice and an increase in forest fires are undesirable effects of climate change. Countries in low-lying areas fear that sea level rise will force their populations to move to the higher-lying areas. Climate change is affecting the entire world. An estimated 30-40% o f the carbon dioxide released by the combustion of fossil fuels dissolves into the surface water, resulting in an increased concentration of hydrogen ions. This causes the seawater to become more acidic, resulting in a decreasing of carbonate ions. Carbonate ions are an important building block for forming and maintaining calcium carbonate structures of organisms such as oysters, mussels, sea urchins, shallow water corals, deep sea corals, and calcareous plankton.

May 15, 2025

TRAILS

As sea levels rise and climate change intensifies, how can we keep our feet dry? This video explores how the Netherlands defends its low-lying coast—not just with dikes and dams, but with nature-based solutions like sand nourishment and healthy dunes.Join experts from TU Delft, Wageningen University, and NIOZ as they explain how advanced computer models, luminescence dating, and ecological research help predict the movement of sand grains and assess the environmental impact of coastal nourishment projects. Learn how every grain of sand plays a role in shaping sustainable strategies to protect the Dutch coastline for generations to come.

October 5, 2020

Land subsidence in Jakarta

The most threatening stress of Jakarta is the land subsidence following the rise in sea levels and river/coastal flooding. There is increased risk of flooding and land stresses in the densely populated areas of Jakarta, which lead to increased land subsidence and due to the improved standards of living and earning of their people, ultimately leading to over-population in the coastal and in the entire city area of Jakarta, respectively. There is a need of proper waste management system, also to diminish the risk of agriculture/crop failures. The main solution responsibility lies in the hands of the Government while implementing their policies by proper cooperation and coordination with the various stakeholders as well keeping the residents of Jakarta aware and informed. Proper drainage systems, proper placements of Dykes in necessary areas, and encouraging the residents to construct local water storage bodies in their homes targeting rainwater harvesting would be some of the main solution strategies. There will be an increase in the demand for meeting the GDP caused due to the rehabilitation costs or costs related to relocation of the people to less-stressed areas. Strict monitoring of the areas undergoing land subsidence, environmental checks in the industries, making the migration procedures much more rigid and strict, putting checks in people who completely depend on groundwater and encouraging them to use alternative methods for collecting drinking water should be the main target for the settlement of such stresses.

October 5, 2020

Poverty and Informal Housing in Manila

The Philippines, due to its geographical location in the Ring of Fire and the Typhoon belt, gets affected by a variety of natural hazards every year such as typhoons, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions. Additional stresses like droughts and sea level rise (caused by climate change), and land subsidence due to excess groundwater extraction, contribute to lowering Manila’s resilience even further. Informal housing, however, is one of the main factors that contribute to lowering the resilience of the city to the multiple natural resources that it is prone to. The urban poor of Manila usually live in informal settlements due to the lack of availability of affordable housing and the increase of unplanned urban migration. This sector of society is therefore the most affected by disasters. Due to the lack of availability of resources before, during and after the occurrence of a natural event, dwellers of informal settlements are significantly more vulnerable to the effects of shocks. For this same reason, they have a lower ability to recover afterwards, which consequently increases their vulnerability to the next natural disaster due to the high recurrence of such events in the region. Furthermore, low to non-existent government intervention in these communities leads to malfunctioning drainage and sanitation systems, which end up affect the city as a whole as they contribute to pump station blockage and surface water pollution in cases of flooding. On the other hand, government interventions involving resettlement plans tend to fail due to lack of popular consultation and community involvement in the decision-making process. Successful relocation plans could significantly reduce the vulnerability of these communities to natural disaster since they would reduce population density in Metro Manila, move the communities to lower risk and more geologically stable areas, and reduce surface water pollution in the city due to better waste management. Proper relocation plans by the government could therefore have a great impact in improving the overall resilience of Manila, but community participation and consultation is primordial for the efforts to be successful. Additional proposed solutions, as well as supplementary resources are provided including reference literature and understanding/discussion questions related to the topics discussed in the report. Answers to the understanding questions are provided separately for lecturers.

November 28, 2016

Societal Aspects of the Biobased economy