How Geodesign Could Enhance Collaborative Urban Planning
In the summer semester of 2022, 20 students took part in the week-long excursion "City, Nature & Sea: The Schleswig-Flensburg District" organised by the Spatial Planning and Regional Development working group of the Institute of Environmental Planning. The five-day excursion focused not only on nature conservation but also on aspects of urban and regional development, which were made tangible and comprehensible by means of selected excursion destinations.
The first day of the excursion began in the city of Flensburg, where the students were accommodated for the next few days. They started with a (city) tour by Anne Langen from the Department of Urban and Landscape Planning of the Department of Urban Development and Climate Protection of the City of Flensburg, which gave them a look behind the scenes of Flensburg.
The participants spent the second day of the excursion in the city of Schleswig. The city is easily accessible 20 minutes from Flensburg on the Schlei, a Baltic Sea fjord. The first half of the day began with a lecture by Martin Steen from the nature conservation department in Schleswig's district hall about the different areas of responsibility in the district administration. Afterwards, Rowena Sandmeier, Head of the Urban Development Department of the City of Schleswig, guided the group through the city, thematically dealing with urban planning and landscape architecture. Finally, the students spent the afternoon on the museum island of Gottorf Castle. After Dr Ralf Bleile's guided tour of the Museum of Archaeology Gottorf Castle, which focused on the master plan for the modernisation of the museum island, the participants explored the Museum of Art and Cultural History and the Museum of Archaeology on their own.
On the third day, the nature reserve Geltinger Birk, part of the ecological area network "NATURA 2000", was visited. There, Nils Kobarg from the State Office for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Areas and Miriam Kimmel from the Foundation for Nature Conservation guided the participants through the extensive area, past wild horses, cattle, cormorants and much more. The lunch break took place at Kappeln harbour. In the afternoon, the tour continued to the Bildungshaus Treenelandschaft, the species conservation centre in Eggebek. There, insights were gained into the modern educational house with its growing outdoor area. The day ended with a joint dinner in Flensburg.
On the fourth day, Haithabu, the oldest trading town in the north with its unique border wall, the Danewerk, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2018, was visited. World Heritage Manager, Astrid Hummel, showed the site and reported on her daily work. In the afternoon, they went to Germany's largest free-standing photovoltaic system on moorland, the Lottorf solar park. Here, the multifunctionality of the area was discussed with the operator.
The last day ended with a joint boat trip from Flensburg to Glücksburg. Here the participants could experience the city from the water.
We would like to express our special thanks to Martin Steen, who initiated, planned and implemented the excursion - thank you very much for your commitment!!!
