Floating Cities and Amphibious Architecture are Part of the Answer: A Conversation with Expert Engineers from The Netherlands and India

Coastal cities and low-lying regions around the world are on notice that they will have to adapt to rising sea levels, higher king tides, and more devastating storm surges. In many cases, sea walls are not the answer. They’re too expensive, environmentally destructive, and don’t address the underlying problems. In some cases, floating cities and amphibious architecture will prove to be viable alternatives. Amphibious homes, floating neighborhoods, office buildings, hotels, even farms already exist. In the next phase, we move from proof of concept to proof of scale, and it’s starting to happen. In this special Climate Week at Penn follow-up webinar, Penn Professor Simon Richter will lead a conversation with two pioneers, Rutger de Graaf-van Dinther, co-founder and director of Blue21, a world leader in floating architecture based in The Netherlands, and Namna Gireesh, co-founder of NestAbide, a design and engineering firm specialized in floating and amphibious buildings, based in Kerala, India. Between them, they can answer all your questions about the technology, feasibility, affordability, and what the future holds, including plans to create floating cities in South Korea, Wales, the Maldives, and between Finland and Estonia.