Find out interesting insights after the last general assembly of The HuT

The general assembly of The HuT has come to an end, but we are just getting started! It was the chance to meet all the partners to discuss preliminary results of the first year of the project in one of the Demo site, Valencia.

One of the result presented was an art installation in the botanical garden entitled ‘Welcome to 2050’ made in collaboration with Chele Esteve, curator and professor of the Engineering Design course from the University of Valencia (UPV) and Salva Mascarell, local artist. The goal is to launch a very important message of awareness within the citizens of Valencia: droughts and heat waves are going to mark the future of this city if they are not stopped.

The installation entitled ‘Welcome to 2050’ makes the viewer enter a landscape that recreates drought. With a feeling of suffocation due to humidity and heat, the viewer is presented with a painting of a liquid blue landscape. The painting representing the water is made on a very light-sensitive fabric which will be decoloured by the exposure to the sunlight – it will disappear, water will disappear.

This activity has been presented to all the other 9 Demo sites so they can consider duplicating it in their own contexts: it is indeed a powerful tool to engage communities and raise awareness of the urgent need to be prepared for these climate extremes. This knowledge-sharing and transfer of best practices is the ultimate goal of The HuT.

Additionally, having all the partners in Valencia gave the chance to organise some activities such as the first International DRR Nexus Forum led by our partner University of Geneve. This first edition aimed to co-design DRR strategies with experts. Two series of workshop were held to identify barriers and enablers for the co-creation of DRR strategies. Future edition of I-DRR Nexus Forum will be held to further define DRR strategies.