Sustainable Cities

Cities are growing; generally, they grow at high rates in the developing world, but urban growth is also continuing in the industrialized world. Moreover, city dwellers consume more energy and resources than the inhabitants of rural areas. Reducing the footprint of the urban dweller is of utmost importance for mitigating climate change, preventing resource depletion as well as for making cities more resilient to catastrophes.

Cities have scope to improve. Current urban systems are often quite inefficient. The growth of cities creates scope for renewal, as innovation can be far better achieved in new Greenfield urban districts. Besides improving separate urban systems, improvements might be achieved by symbiosis of the various urban systems: for example -using the heat generated in a waste water treatment plant to feed a district heating system, or – using canals or rivers in the city for heating/cooling purposes.

The focus will be on how to cope with climate change in the urban infrastructures of the city: how to provide the residents with drinking water, heat and electricity, remove sewage and waste, and prevent urban heat?

The module will take place in The Hague. During the 2 weeks we’ll learn more about challenges for the Netherlands and how they relate to other countries. We will have a schedule of classes in the morning and a fieldtrip in the afternoon. During those fieldtrips we’ll show you examples of problems and solutions we have explained and discussed in the morning. These will be the background for the video you have to make during the programme.

Course leader

Dr. Karel Mulder, Sabine Eijlander MSc.

Target group

The program is open to anyone who has obtained the high school diploma (or its equivalent) and has at least completed the first year of their bachelor degree. All applicants should have a good command of English (Level B2 or higher). The Hague Summer School reserves the right to determine if the level of applicants' English is satisfactory.

Course aim

To develop the ability of forming a comprehensive picture of urban systems and create opportunities for innovating them.

To learn scenario thinking and apply it to a real-life situation.

To recognize wicked problems and find ways of overcoming them.

To develop and build upon relations with students from various educational backgrounds and nationalities.

Credits info

3 ECTS
The Hague Summer School is assigned ECTS (European Credit Transfer System). The two week program is worth 4 ECTS and the four week program is worth 8 ECTS.
Detailed programme descriptions and outlines, in order to facilitate the credit transfer, will be provided to the students.

Fee info

EUR 1750: Regular fee.
EUR 1650: If you sign up for the Hague Summer School 2019 before April 22, you are eligible for an early bird fee of EUR 1,650 for 1 period (2 weeks) or EUR 3,200 for 2 periods (4 weeks). You might be eligible for further discounts, please contact thehaguesummerschool@hhs.nl for more information.