Chinese landscape architect and urban planner Kongjian Yu, a professor at Peking University and director of the landscape architecture firm Turenscape, one of the largest in the world, often tells a story about when he fell into a river as a boy in rural China. He managed to save himself by grabbing onto branches along the edge

Kongjian Yu, a globally recognized landscape architect and urban planner, has made significant strides in the realm of climate resilience and sustainable urban development. In a series of five keynote speeches delivered between May Early to Mid-June , 2024, Yu highlighted the application of Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) by blending traditional Chinese wisdom with modern scientific principles. This report provides a detailed overview of his activities and the key concepts he promoted during these ...

At a time when Brazilians still watch, almost incredulously, the consequences caused by the storms in April and May in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil received a visit from the Chinese architect and landscape designer Kongjian Yu, creator of the sponge city concept. This concept utilizes nature itself to better withstand the increasing occurrence of storms.

O Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (BNDES) promoveu, nesta terça-feira, 18, o debate “Reconstrução de cidades e mudança climática: experiências internacionais e nacionais para o Rio Grande do Sul e o Brasil”. Na abertura do evento, que aconteceu na sede do Banco, no Rio, o presidente da instituição, Aloizio Mercadante, destacou a importância da agenda verde.

In this context, the work of Beijing-based architect Kongjian Yu, founder of the landscape architecture firm Turenscape, has gained international visibility and recognition, which included receiving the 2023 Cornelia Hahn Oberlander International Landscape Architecture Prize (“Oberlander Prize”). His "sponge cities" concept, designed to address and prevent urban flooding in the face of accelerated climate change, was adopted as national policy in China in 2013. This approach prioritizes large-sc...

O Banco Nacional de Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (BNDES) promoveu, nesta terça-feira (18/6), o debate "Reconstrução de cidades e mudança climática: experiências internacionais e nacionais para o Rio Grande do Sul e o Brasil”. O presidente da instituição, Aloizio Mercadante, destacou a importância da agenda verde.

Cidades devem absorver e libertar água para enfrentar alterações climáticas, defende arquitecto paisagista. Planos de drenagem como o de Lisboa “são business as usual” e a longo prazo vão falhar, diz.

Recently there was a seminar promoted by the Vatican and the Chinese architect, Kongjian Yu, presented a solution, already used in his country for decades, based on nature itself, with the planting of vegetation that absorbs rainwater and porous concrete. The concept is known as Sponge Cities.

An applied research project in Scotland involving the use of earth observation science (EOS) in multiple water applications was just one of many highlights of  BlueTech Forum 2024 for Paul O’Callaghan, chief executive of BlueTech Research.  

Sponge City is a response to the failing modern concrete and steel stormwater management systems especially during heavy unexpected rains. Sponge City is an alternative resilient stormwater management approach that was conceived as early as the 1970s by Peter Cook but was shaped by the constant efforts of the Beijing-based landscape architect Dr.Kongjian Yu and gained popularity when applied by the Chinese government in 2013.