Lab Talk

WATER: CURSE OR BLESSING!?

#6 Water and Economy

The sixth and final Lab Talk in the series explores the connection between water, building and economy.

Moderated by Winy Maas, MVRDV, supported by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU) and the Embassy of the Netherlands in Berlin

Miniature houses placed on stacks of coins and lifebuoys, partially submerged in reflective water, symbolizing financial instability or risk in real estate investment due to flooding or climate change

Image © Shutterstock

Date: Wednesday, 18 June 2025, 18:30
Place: Embassy of the Netherlands, Klosterstraße 50, 10179 Berlin

Introduction

The spatial planning and economic sectors together hold significant potential to strengthen our resilience concerning future water management. The discussion examines the role of water in the built environment amid ongoing societal, ecological and economic transformations. This includes rethinking the value and evaluation of buildings and developments in an era marked by floods, droughts and other water-related risks – with far-reaching implications for insurance, investment and adaptation strategies.

Can disaster mitigation generate new economic opportunities? How can we create incentives for a sustainable, potentially circular economy while integrating water-conscious spatial planning and building measures? And is it possible to envision long-term developments that are already economically viable today?

Programme

Welcome
Hester Somsen, Ambassador of His Majesty the King of the Netherlands in Berlin
Hans-Jürgen Commerell, Director, Aedes, Berlin

Introduction
Winy Maas, Director, MVRDV, Rotterdam

Presentations
Michelle Sanchez, Sustainability Lead, RSHP, London
Sandra Phlippen, Chief Economist, ABN AMRO Bank, Amsterdam/Groningen
Henk Ovink, Executive Director, Commissioner, Global Commission on the Economics of Water, New York

Panel discussion with participants, moderated by Winy Maas, Director MVRDV, Rotterdam

Video

Video by Reframe

The Series

WATER: CURSE OR BLESSING!?
Aedes’ international, interdisciplinary programme aims to establish new planning processes and structures related to water use and distribution in the built environment. Through a series of six Lab Talks dedicated to building future resilience, Aedes seeks to identify and discuss sustainable water-related architectural and urban development projects that also address the (re)establishment of socio-economic coherence through conscious water management.

Interdisciplinary experts explore the role of water in climate change mitigation — from reducing CO2 emissions and ecological footprints to adaptation and resilience in urban and national contexts, and recognising water as a common good from source to sea. As an element, resource, and infrastructure, water has a profound impact on the natural, built and living environments. In Water: Curse or Blessing!?, architects and planners engage in innovative knowledge exchange with experts from environmental research, science, and politics, deriving insights for their work processes, planning, implementation, and building projects.

Lab Talk Series

Water: Curse or Blessing!?

Aedes Theme

Water: Curse or Blessing!?

In collaboration with:
Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt, Osnabrück
The Netherlands Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, The Hague
The OBEL Award, Copenhagen
Transsolar, Stuttgart
PolyUrbanWaters Research Project
GBA Lab, Shenzhen