Cartagena Co-Design Session

Cities are critical hotspots for water challenges and opportunities. The Colombian city Cartagena, known for its direct connection to water, is a place where the most vulnerable and affected neighborhoods feel the impacts of water pollution and environmental degradation on a daily basis. In order to improve the city’s water system, Colombia and the Netherlands have joined forces as part of the Water as Leverage Cartagena project. Water as Leverage is a Dutch-founded public-private partnership (PPP) programme launched in 2018. It addresses climate issues raised by the Paris Agreement and a number of United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The Water for Leverage - Cartagena project is to generate innovative conceptual designs to address climate change adaptation and urban water management challenges in the city. Within the International Call for Action, Felixx is tasked – as part of a multidisciplinary team - to address the issue. CO-DESIGN Beginning of July, Felixx travelled to Colombia for the second co-design session with local communities and stakeholders from the private and public sector. Analysis and proposals were presented, followed by interactive moments with the participants, concluded by a “market” for people to interact with our proposals and vote for their favorite solution for a resilient Cartagena. In the coming months the team will continue to work on the project, further developing and implementing the stakeholder's reflections and suggestions of the community. A third local workshop is planned for September 2023.  We are proud to be part of the Water as Leverage Cartagena Project and to generate innovative conceptual designs. We hope to make a difference with our integral and holistic design approach to mitigate water challenges based on Nature Based Actions. Not only focusing on flood reduction, but also on socials issues like employment, economy, biodiversity and health for all.   MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAMS Our team consists of the consortium ‘Roots of Cartagena’: Witteveen+Bos (lead organisation, the Netherlands), Felixx Landscape Architects & Planners (the Netherlands), Aqua & Terra Consultores Asociados S.A.S. (Colombia), Universidad de Cartagena - Colombia (Colombia), CSC Strategy & Finance (the Netherlands). The selection of the teams was done by RVO, in consultation with the Water as Leverage Cartagena Advisory Board.  Learn more about this collaboration through the Partners for Water website and the Water as Leverage Cartagena website.