The City Makes Future as a System. A book by Klaus Burmeister and Ben Rodenhäuser about the city as a real laboratory for living and doing business.
On the basis of four main topics (environment/sustainability, technology/networking, urban culture/participation and social issues/inequality) Burmeister/Rodenhäuser Ten fields of actionTheir potentials, but also risks, for the development of urban spaces are explored.
Article by "ProZukunft" from 12.10.2016: www.prozukunft.org/v1/2016/10/stadt-macht-zukunft
Difu study provides recommendations for more effective use of funding in NRW
Staff shortages and high administrative demands are two of the reasons that prevent cities, districts and municipalities in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) from drawing down available urban development funding on time. This is an important finding of a study conducted by the German Institute of Urban Affairs (Difu) on behalf of the then Ministry of Building, Housing, Urban Development and Transport of North Rhine-Westphalia (now: Ministry of Home Affairs, Local Government, Building and Equality).
In the past ten years, about 83 percent of the municipalities in NRW used urban development funds. Due to a very high number of project applications - with a total volume of around 1.45 billion euros - four to five times more funds were applied for than were originally earmarked. This illustrates the high demand of the municipalities and at the same time the fundamental acceptance of the existing funding instruments.
However, more than 80 per cent of the cities and municipalities surveyed criticise the public procurement law, as the resulting administrative burden is a key obstacle for them in making smooth use of urban development funding. In addition, the municipalities surveyed believe that there are generally major staffing bottlenecks. Many municipalities also feel that the cost calculations for funding measures that have to be submitted with the application are too time-consuming and detailed. This is also due to the fact that multi-year forecasts are always subject to uncertainties regarding the actual time allocation by the funding agencies, price developments and possible unforeseeable developments.
Based on the results of its survey of North Rhine-Westphalian municipalities, Difu therefore recommends dispensing with new programmes in favour of merging and/or redesigning the existing federal-state programmes for urban development funding. In addition, the existing procedures should be made more flexible. This applies in particular to the application for and settlement of funding by the municipalities with the state. However, the municipalities must also make their contribution: urban development funding must be a "matter for the boss" and requires sufficient personnel resources and continuous cooperation between all the departments and treasuries involved in the cities and municipalities. However, the municipalities need support from the state to build up sufficient personnel capacities in the technical areas.
The Timber Construction Award 2020 Building with wood in Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg is awarded to buildings that have been constructed predominantly from wood and wood-based materials as well as other renewable raw materials. The primary objective is to promote the use and further development of this resource-saving, environmentally friendly and sustainable building material. The buildings to be submitted should be of high design quality, exemplary in their implementation and comply with the principles of social and ecological sustainability. Ecology, energy efficiency and economic efficiency in operation and maintenance up to recyclability are included in the evaluation.
Deadline is Monday, the 9 December 2019 (date of postmark).
The Wood Construction Prize is awarded by the State Advisory Council for Forestry and the Timber Industry of the State of Schleswig-Holstein and the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg as well as the Ministry for Energy Transition, Agriculture, Environment, Nature and Digitalisation of the State of Schleswig-Holstein in cooperation with numerous partners, including the Chambers of Architects and Engineers and the Informationsverein Holz from Düsseldorf.
Six to ten gigawatts of photovoltaic capacity could be installed on Berlin buildings. More than enough to cover 25 percent of Berlin's electricity supply with solar energy, as envisaged in the plan for Berlin. But the current pace of expansion is decidedly too slow. The Solarcity Berlin master plan envisions producing a quarter of Berlin's electricity consumption with photovoltaics. This goal is to be achieved by 2030. Currently, Berlin's solar systems generate just under half a percent of the energy required in the city. Scientists at the Berlin University of Applied Sciences (HTW Berlin) have now conducted a solar potential study to show for the first time which buildings are suitable for solar installations and what restrictions must be expected.
The discussion about climate change and the growing demand for living space have increasingly brought timber construction into the focus of planners, architects and developers over the past year. After all, sustainable timber construction can make a significant contribution to climate protection and the creation of living space. The increased interest in timber construction is also reflected in the industry figures: the turnover of companies grew by 7 percent in 2019 compared to the previous year, the number of employees increased from around 68,000 to around 70,000 and the timber construction rate continued to grow in both residential (new construction) and non-residential (new construction) construction.
Holzbau Deutschland has published these and other facts, figures and forecasts on the structure of the sector, market and economic trends, the business situation and financing, as well as training and careers in the carpentry and timber construction trades in its "Situation Report Carpenters / Timber Construction 2020" published. It can be downloaded free of charge from the Association's website in the Business Administration section.
Even after Corona: Continue to drive forward climate protection
At the conclusion of the 11th Petersberg Climate Dialogue last week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel appealed that in the period after the Corona crisis, "when we launch economic stimulus packages, we should always keep climate protection firmly in mind and make it clear that we are not cutting back on climate protection, but investing in technologies that are fit for the future."
Timber construction has long been one of the sustainable technologies that can make an essential contribution to achieving climate protection goals. "Ecological, sustainable and resource-saving construction with wood must therefore continue to be the focus in residential construction as well as in redensification and gap filling in existing buildings. In order for timber construction to be recognized as an alternative on an equal footing with other construction methods, the framework conditions must be further improved and the building codes of the federal states must be adapted to the current state of the art," demanded Peter Aicher, Chairman of Holzbau Deutschland.
The current and further development in timber construction
Until the outbreak of the Corona pandemic, the mood in the timber construction industry was good. The satisfaction of carpentry and timber construction companies is also reflected in the Holzbau Deutschland business survey, in which almost 370 companies took part at the turn of the year 2019/2020. Their order backlog at the beginning of the year already averaged 17 weeks (previous year 15 weeks). The current exceptional situation in the wake of the Corona pandemic has not changed this much: According to recent surveys, most businesses are going about their work without any significant restrictions and in compliance with clearance and hygiene rules. Builders are also sticking to their construction projects. Many timber construction companies are currently benefiting from the existing high order backlog. For some of them, the workload will last until next year.
How turnover in timber construction will develop in 2020 and beyond, and what impact the Corona pandemic will have, cannot be reliably assessed at the present time. Regardless of the current situation, the timber construction industry has assumed a further 5 percent increase in sales by the beginning of March. The value is also based on the cautious confidence of the entrepreneurs from the economic survey of Holzbau Deutschland.
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