There is a clear demand for a collaborative knowledge-sharing on climate adaptation and mitigation. The aim of most climate adaptation platforms is (inter)national knowledge exchange and raising awareness about climate adaptation in urban areas and promote solutions such as Nature-based solutions (NBS) and floating infrastructure. However their multiple benefits are often unknown to the wider public. During seminars (February 2020) in Indonesia climate adaptation measures where mapped and the relevance of the climate adaption platforms such as ClimateScan was evaluated by the means of workshops and a survey. The platform ClimateScan holds now over 5000 locations in 5 main categories of climate adaptation (water, nature, agriculture, energy and people). The conclusions from the workshops in Semarang and Surabaya show high relevance scores for NBS: permeable pavement and swales; for infiltration of stormwater to groundwater; for mitigation of high temperatures with heat stress measures; and flood barriers to mitigate flooding. There were low scores for floating urbanization because this is not a culturally accepted practice in contradiction to other parts of the world. Indonesian floating infrastructure as a floating library, restaurant and airport terminal where mapped during workshops bringing the total of international floating structure locations to 150. The workshops have raised awareness among participants and contributed to capacity building by empowering the participants to map and review climate adaptation measures. A high majority see the value of climate adaptation platforms and will use it in the future.
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The Global Urban Lectures are 15-minute lectures on themes related to sustainable urbanisation, delivered by renowned experts, UN-Habitat partners and UN-Habitat staff. The lectures have been ranked among the best MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) on cities.
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IntroductionOver time, surrogacy has become more broadly available to a variety of people (e.g. male same-sex couples or transgender women). Whether the wider public supports surrogacy, and what contributes to such support remains unclear. This study investigated what demographic and surrogacy arrangement-based (which people participate in the arrangement) factors shape attitudes towards surrogacy.MethodA representative sample of Dutch adults (N = 1,074) reported their attitudes on four (out of 30) randomly assigned vignettes in 2023. Each vignette described a surrogacy family with variations in sexuality and gender of parents, the social and genetic bonds between the parents, the surrogate, and the oocyte donor, and was followed by an attitude questionnaire (6 items). Multilevel regression analyses were conducted with attitudes as the dependent variable and demographic factors (gender, Dutch background, age, education, sexual orientation, urbanisation, and religiosity) and arrangement-based factors (parental composition, genetic and social bonds with the surrogate, and oocyte donors).ResultsParticipants held fairly positive attitudes towards surrogacy. People identifying as women, with only having a Dutch background, who were younger, more highly educated, non-heterosexual, or less religious were more likely to have positive attitudes. Participants had more positive attitudes if surrogacy arrangements entailed cis-man cis-woman parents compared to cis-man cis-man or transgender parents, and when there was no social bond between parents and oocyte donor.ConclusionsAttitudes are influenced by both demographic and arrangement-based factors. Based on these findings, families can be informed of fairly positive reactions they might encounter from their environment.
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As climate change accelerates, rising sea levels pose challenges for low-lying nations like the Netherlands. Floating developments (such as homes, solar parks, and pavilions) are considered the most climate adaptative solution for the future, but the effects on the environment are unknown which is holding back this floating transformation. Since public and private partners are not able to answer questions on the effect of floating urbanisation on the environment and water quality based on speculations by models without field data, permits are given only after proof that ecological & water quality will not affected (also EU warnings ‘deteriorating’ water quality (UvW 2025, EU 2025). This proposal aims to develop an innovative autonomous docking station for aquatic drones, enhancing environmental monitoring of floating structures. Only a few monitoring campaigns measured the impact of small floating structures (small structures and only basic parameters). Traditional monitoring methods rely on manual sampling and static sensors, which are costly, labour-intensive, and provide delayed results. A new study, led by Hanze with Gemeente Rotterdam, Waternet (Gemeente Amsterdam) and Indymo, will assess the impact of new large-scale floating developments with a new method. Autonomous aquatic drones improve data resolution but face operational challenges such as battery life and data retrieval. An innovating docking station will address these issues by enabling drones to recharge, offload data, and perform continuous missions without human intervention. Advanced tools—including aquatic drones, 360-degree cameras, sonar imaging, and real-time sensors—will collect high-resolution environmental data also monitoring biodiversity and bathymetry. The proposed docking station will support real-time sensor networks, allowing for spatial and temporal data collection. It will improve the (cost) efficiency and quality of long-term environmental monitoring, providing insights into water quality dynamics and underwater ecosystems in Rotterdam and Amsterdam as an international example of floating development in the battle of climate change.
