The logistic landscape

No other land use expands as rapidly in the Netherlands as logistics. During the pandemic, web shops flourished, as well as a lively debate about the impacts of distribution centers. Yet, our ambitions to become a circular economy and eat more regional food highly depend on clever logistic systems. In this fourth pre-Floriade talk we propose to learn from logistics to build greener cities, and discuss some of the key innovations and design concepts of the logistic landscape.

— video live broadcast —

Let’s admit, compared to the mind-blowing developments in the logistics sector, (landscape) architects and city planners seem rather slow and old-fashioned in their methods. What if the power of logistics could be applied to making green cities, without putting our cities in the hands of the empire of large e-commerce platforms? Can we leverage the system to fulfill the needs of a sustainable society, beyond the mere delivery of packages in today’s fulfilment centers? What could logistic companies give back to the regions where they operate? And what are the design concepts of the logistic landscape of the future?

“Landscape architects, who have the capacity to theorize dynamic systems, have for the most part restricted their attention to natural and ecological flows. Neither architecture nor landscape articulates a design project in the constructed networks that pass through and organize the city.” – Clare Lyster, in ”Learning from Logistics”

Speakers

Clare Lyster – Associate Professor, University of Illinois in Chicago

Clare Lyster is an Irish-American architect and associate professor at University of Illinois in Chicago who likes to “combine the reasonable with the radical”. In her book Learning from Logistics (2016) Lyster explored the intriguing networks and places of companies such as FedEx and Ryanair, to draw lessons for urban planners and architects. Lyster collaborates with the Irish pavilion at the 2021 Venice Biennial, showing the country changes its territory to remain a global data-hub. Live from Chicago, Lyster presents some of her spatial-logistic explorations, ending with pressing questions regarding the emerging logistic landscape after Covid-19. Two guests in the studio of the Food Center in Almere reflect on her talk.

Tim Beckmann – CEO at Intospace

Tim Beckmann is CEO at Intospace, the logistic real estate branch of Somerset Capital Partners. Tim is committed to developing sustainable distribution centers, with an efficient and multifunctional use of space – for instance by realizing sports facilities, solar farms or allotment gardens on the roof. Beckmann has worked in several logistics companies and has broad knowledge of their chains and operations from the inside.

Janna Bystrykh – Lecturer, TU Delft and Academy of Architecture

Janna Bystrykh is an architect and researcher, currently teaching at TU Delft and Academy of Architecture. Previously Bystrykh was an associate at AMO*OMA, where she worked on the Countryside program, culminating in the recent Guggenheim exhibition. Bystrykh participated in one of the four design teams of Design Challenge ‘Out of the Box’ (2020), to develop spatial concepts for the logistic landscape of the future.

Program

15:00     Introduction by moderator Sophie Stravens
15:05     Presentation by Clare Lyster
15:30     Reflection by Tim Beckmann
15:40     Reflection by Janna Bystrykh
15:50     Discussion with the guests, polls, questions from the audience
16:30     End of session

Polls

During the session, the speakers will discuss a couple of questions related to how logistics can play a role in the green cities of the future and the public will be invited to participate by reacting to the polls:

Should city planners and designers learn from logistics to build green cities?

— Yes, concepts from the logistic sector can help cities become green;

— No, not until logistics becomes a sustainable sector itself;

Where is the logistic landscape of the future?

— At a hub of different transport systems, far from your home;

— Underneath your apartment building and tennis court;

— Everywhere.

About the program

This program is part of ‘Going Green’. A series of six online talks on the topic ‘Growing Green Cities’ organized by Vereniging Deltametropool in collaboration with the Province of Flevoland. The program is a warm up for Floriade Expo 2022 and builds up on the knowledge network of the event. The talks are moderated by Sophie Stravens and documented in a series of chronicles, written by Sanne van den Breemer. The program is broadcasted live from the Floriade Expo 2022 site in Almere (Food Forum pavilion, Province of Flevoland)