A full day of Rethinking Rooftops includes a workshop or excursion, for an in-depth look at a subject related to rooftop use. Please check out the different workshops and excursions below. After you register for the programme you can select your favourite.
Take a trip to another location for some roofspiration.
Themes Biodiversity | Green roofs
Rooftops can increase biodiversity in the city. Flora on the roof are a good start. But which insects, animals or butterflies can we find on top of our roofs? During this excursion with Ecologist Rens van den Boer, you will go on an adventure to find out what exactly is living on our roofs and how we can create a better environment for them.
The rooftop is a luscious green rooftop of Floor van Ditzhuyzen, also known as the public space detective.
Themes Landscape design | Innovation
Groene Kaap is a rooftop park connecting four buildings in Katendrecht. The park was designed by LOLA as a nature inclusive space. Founding partner and landscape architect at LOLA Eric-Jan will tell us more about the development of the park and the design choices they made. At the Groene Kaap, Bioto is using their device to measure nitrogen, soil quality, moisture and weather factors in order to determine the ideal plant combination. Rene, co-founder at Bioto, will tell us what they are doing, how their instruments work and how we can use data-driven design to create biodiverse gardens.
Themes Policy | Green roofs
The municipality of Rotterdam has big ambitions for this rooftop on one of the city’s biggest concert halls: in 2022 construction was completed on a green roof of 2581 m2 with 300 m3 of rain water retention. During this excursion you will hear everything about the process while exploring the rooftop.
Themes Innovation | Policy
The municipality of Rotterdam has created a space where various companies can test their setups for a greener roof. Together with they University of Applied Sciences in Rotterdam they monitor weather conditions and have various setups that haven’t been tested on a rooftop yet.
Rob Luyk is a professional who has been involved with the DakAkker and the smartroof (www.dakakker.nl). Now he is an independent advisor who will tell us all about the possibilities and impossibilities for roofs, what system to use, which materials and which plants. The advantages of a green roof will be discussed, not just for biodiversity and water retention but also for the rooftop owners themselves. The location is the rooftop of the Schieblock, at one of the most inspiring examples of an intensive green roof. You won’t just hear everything about this type of roof, you will get started on your own roof as well.
The workshops will take place on the rooftop of Las Palmas.
Themes Biodiversity | Green roofs
How can we design a rooftop in order to meet the needs of bees? Pollinators are essential to our survival, but in the city there aren’t enough places for them to find rest or food. During this workshop you will find out what bees need and how we can create an urban environment for them to thrive.
Themes Water | Policy
When we talk about water and rooftops, we want to collect or channel it towards the sewers and hide it from view. But why do we shy away from water? Our bodies exist of 70% of water, and in many cultures water has an important role. It can be holy, and used to cleanse us and can even be a place of pilgrimage. During this workshop we will try to rethink our relationship with water and explore what value water has.
Themes Policy | Research
Maxime Cunin & Thomas Krall (Superworld) investigate collective governance of rooftops. They are joined in their discussion by PhD researcher Marida Borello, who is looking for new ways to legitimise sensible quality of space and citizens’ engagement in academic discourse and institutional practice. During this conversation about the social and emotional potential of rooftops as ‘Third Spaces’ , they explore how we can foster these unique spaces, take care of them collectively and what new kind of public space they can bring to the city. Should just anyone be able to use a rooftop, and how do we define the monetary, social and public value?
Themes Design | Urban planning
What does topping-up mean for the city and how do we manage this rooftop potential? When we add new housing in the city to existing areas, it can put additional pressure on existing facilities. What does this mean for urban planners? When a house is topped-up, this offers immediate opportunities to provide the new (topped up) roof with a green/water retaining/biodiverse/energy generating roof, which would contribute more to the neighbourhood. How does the increase in amenities compare to the increase in climate adaptivity or energy generating capacity of the new roofs?
Themes Financing | Policy
Currently financing multifunctional roofs is achieved through a diverse set of subsidies and financial stimulation by local governments, combined with investment by roof owners. National Daken Plan (Dutch Partnership for Rooftop Development) researches possibilities and attitudes towards financing multifunctional roofs, as they positively contribute to the city climate. In this workshop they will share their initial findings, with a deep dive into financing for home owner’s associations.
Themes Policy | Financing | Innovation
From European policy to local strategies
Eveline Bronsdijk, lead policy making for NDP (Dutch Partnership for Rooftop Development) and 3 policy makers (City of Rotterdam) will host an interactive dialogue about combining rooftop functions in European legislation.
Sometimes combining yellow and green roofs is easier said than done, but the combination is extra valuable. So let’s have a creative dialogue about how to combine yellow and green.