Floriade Almere 2022 – Growing Green Cities
Niek Roozen has cooperated as landscape architect in the developments of the design for the Expo Floriade Amsterdam – Almere 2022. The Green City concept is central in the masterplan, designed by Winy Maas (MVRDV). Niek Roozen has been asked to take up the role as advisor to the Floriade BV within the area of green, the realisation of the Green City Arboretum has been an essential part of this work as well. Each tree and plant in the Green City Arboretum contributes to at least one of the four main themes on the Floriade; Greening the City, Feeding the City, Healthying the City and Energising the City. The masterplan bulbs with the WOW zone is essential for the experience of the visitors and contributes to the biodiversity in the whole area (icw Jacqueline van der Kloet).
Besides this green framework, we have designed diverse green areas of the Floriade, like the Footprint (to the idea of Klokhuis (a famous Dutch television show)), the Classics & Future planting examples and the eco zone at the south side of the terrain, which will fulfil a new nature connection for the city of Almere. A Floriade will also tell the story of many national and international entries. For a few specific entries, like World Village, the Birch forest and the Climate arboretum we have made the design or advised in the design process.
Especially the Green City Storytelling project has also been important for our office, to represent the concept of Growing Green Cities and to transfer the information on the audience, so city councils, institutes and private people will be inspired to create a more green living environment, where the right plant of the right place is essential. This project resulted in several information kiosks and signs on interesting locations with QR-codes, so both analog as digital to be found in the total area (icw Blunt, Northernlight en Brandwacht).
Read MoreIntro
On April 13th 2022 our King Willem-Alexander opened the 7th Floriade of the Netherlands. The Floriade is a world horticultural exposition that the Netherlands hosts once every ten years. The first official Floriade in the Netherlands was organised in 1960 in Rotterdam.
The current Floriade is in Almere near the Weerwater. The Weerwater is a lake in Almere City,
from which the banks are known for its many recreational activities. The area is the perfect location for the Floriade design, an exposition but at the same time a new city district in which health, sustainability and obviously green will flower. The Floriade is organised by the Almere municipality in cooperation with the Floriade B.V., the province of Flevoland and the Dutch Council of Horticulture.
The Floriade Almere 2022
Key to the Floriade Amsterdam – Almere is Growing Green Cities, so it will be established as a living lab. Innovation in the areas of water, climate and energy are central, with a strong emphasis on food supply. All this stems from contemporary challenges regarding urbanisation, a global fact that forces us to bring green back into our lives by different manners. The Floriade accepts this challenge by launching a green, healthy and self-reliant city district it its entirety.
As stated in the CHW land-use plan from July 2017, Almere should be a city that produces healthy food, clean energy and pure water. A place that reuses waste as building material and where circuits are closed; a city that triggers a healthy lifestyle and houses a wealth of flora and fauna. The Floriade symbolizes this development.
Functioning as a part of the walking and cycling route ‘Rondje Weerwater’ (circuit around Weerwater), a wide promenade will encircle the entire terrain. The terrain itself will be shaped like a ‘carré’, or raster, offering an area for multiple governments, research institutes and companies to experiment with sustainable energy, health and urban agriculture. An important section within this area is the Green City Arboretum: a collection of about 3000 trees in 750 different species and variaties that will contribute to a more healthy and green city.
The Expo Floriade can be visited until October 9th of this year. After this date the area will be transformed into the new neighbourhood Hortus, where green areas, like the forest, the boulevard and the Green City Arboretum will be the legacy of the Floriade.
Website
Click https://floriade.almere.nl/ for the official website of the Floriade Almere 2022.
Project
Floriade Almere 2022 – Growing Green Cities
Year
2016-2022
Client
Municipality of Almere
Collaboration
Almere city council, Jacqueline van der Kloet, Northernlight
Area
60 ha
Location
Almere, the Netherlands
