January 2, 2021 – Peter van Barneveld | Reading Time: 5 minutes
It is a sunny Sunday morning in June in the year 2030. I am sitting in my roof garden, drinking a nice cup of tea with honey. I feel such a proud feeling when I look around. From here, I have this amazing view over the city center of Utrecht, and nowadays the view is all covered by green! So many garden roofs and walls, with the most beautiful plants and exotic flowers, makes me feel I am living in a forest. Of course, it is not the same as being in a real forest, but I remember going there was necessary for me to feel happy. Since I live in the middle of a green urban environment, I am almost not going anymore.
Utrecht’s Green Building Policy
As many other cities in the world, Utrecht decided in the 20s to have a green building policy, what means that every owner of a house, apartment, or commercial building, needs to have roof garden, or a vertical garden wall. The positive effects of the “green” buildings, and especially related to the health of the citizens, made cities decide to implement green policies.
Luckily, Utrecht decided to give priority on helping each other in realizing the green buildings, instead of giving fines for those who could not. In other cities the effect of giving fines was that citizens were moving out, because they could not afford the realization of this projects. Utrecht encouraged people to help each other. Based on the results of it, the helpers were discounted on their energy tax.
Utrecht uses very smart technology and processes, to avoid the abuse of the discount system. Citizens can inform the local government of a realized green roof or wall, and proof their given help, by using a simple app on their phones. The city confirms the realization by scanning the houses or buildings with drones, to compare the scan with the known “green” state. Before they implemented the green policy, drones were used to create blueprint scan, so the city knows the green state of all the properties.
The helpers prove their help by uploading invoices regarding to the products and equipment needed. If owners and/or helpers are getting caught on an abuse, they get a very high fine. So far, there is no single notice of abuse.
Vertical forest buildings
Another amazing view in the city is the look of the vertical garden towers. Since the realization of the Greenwoods project, multiple new vertical forest building projects are realized. Besides the amazing look of the buildings, I love the fact that measuring devices in the forest buildings, are powered with energy coming from the plants.
What started as an invention from Plant-e, is now evolved into a successful measuring system powered by plants. They are part of the automated climate and ecological systems of the buildings, to auto adjust the temperature and humidity inside. The system also provides water to the plants, where rainwater is the primary source of water, and if there is not enough, tap water will be used.
Bees
While I am daydreaming and thinking about these great developments in the city, a bee is checking my honey tea. They are so cute! It is incredible that we humans work together with the bees. To realize the green buildings, we choose the plants and exotic flowers they like the most. Also, the architects of the vertical forest buildings have a great eye for the ecological wishes of the bees in their designs, such as protecting them for the wind.
The effect of this all is that the population of bees has grown to an outstanding number and their ecological habitat is flourishing. In return, they help us by pollinating, what is needed for plants to reproduce. Another nice advantage is their honey. The number of people who have a small beehive increases, what is perfect to create a small amount of homemade honey. The one I have in my tea is a nice gift from the neighbors.
The honey is not only good for consumption. Instead of using al kind of fancy tech to measure pollution, Utrecht uses the honey from the bees to measure the pollution in the city. Fortunately, the results shows us that nowadays there is almost no pollution anymore. What is good for us, and for the total ecosystem, including the bees. Almost unbelievable that we are in an upward spiral. The amazing progress of the green urban forest makes me believe that Utrecht will be one of the first climate neutral cities in the world!
Afterword
Even though the story is fiction, it is all based on future signals. So maybe this future is closer then you think.
Please let me know what you think about living in this future. Or if you are curious how this future will help you, or your organization. You can contact me by using the contact form, or send me a message by LinkedIn or Instagram.
Thanks for taking the time to read my future story!
Peter van Barneveld
Future Signal Sources
Project Greenwoods
https://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/en/project/wonderwoods/
Special thanks to Stefano Boeri Architetti and Francesca Raimondi for providing the beautiful images of the GreenWoods project.
Living Light
https://livinglight.info/
Special thanks to Ermi van Oers for providing the beautiful images of the Living Light.
Plant-e
https://www.plant-e.com/en/
Honey bees can help monitor pollution in cities
https://phys.org/news/2019-03-honey-bees-pollution-cities.html
Bees in the city
https://theconversation.com/bees-in-the-city-designing-green-roofs-for-pollinators-84688
Green Roof Policies
https://earth911.com/home-garden/green-roof-policies-are-a-growing-trend/
