Seminar
Prof. Dr. Max Welch Guerra, Dr. Nathalie Jean-Baptiste
Note - 3 LP/2 SWS
Cities across the globe are facing the reality of climate variability. Climatic threats such as floods, storm surges, sea level rise are predicted to have negative effects on human, economic and environmental assets. Urban areas in low- and middle-income nations are particularly at risk. They account for already more than a third of the world’s total population and they are likely to house most of the world’s demographic and economic growth in the next 10–20 years. Such growth does not come without consequences in a global and climatic changing environment
Extreme events have disastrous consequences across the globe resulting in financial, social and environmental losses. Since Hurricane Katrina’s destruction in 2005, the world has seen heavy flooding across Africa in 2009, 2011 and 2013; the effect of a Tsunami in Japan in 2011; the damages caused by Hurricane Sandy in North America and the Caribbean islands in 2012 as well as the most recent destructions from Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. The world has experienced tremendous challenges to anticipate, cope with and recover from these extreme events.
Global environment changes (including extreme weather events, unregulated processes of urbanization as well as economic and conflict related migration) will make the whole issue of housing even more relevant in the future. The question of housing in connection with growing demands and pre-conditions for adaptation to climate change needs to be considered in the framing of sustainable housing development.