festival of the landscape - workshop reports

At the first digital “Festival of Landscape” in 2021, around 160 urban developers, landscape designers, planners, activists, and researchers came together in 13 workshops to develop shared visions for nature, landscape, and green infrastructure in the Ruhr Metropolis. The workshops advocated for a range of different outcomes; from new, bike-friendly street infrastructure to more community gardens and a socio-ecological center for Dortmund, to a collaboratively developed map of new narratives for the Ruhr region. A common theme emerged across the workshops: The transformation toward a livable, green urban landscape is achieved above all through accessible imagery rather than bans, through specific places rather than abstract concepts and by understanding landscape as a space that can be shaped collectively.