Stylish floating Amsterdam village produces and shares all its own energy
The city of Amsterdam is known for having beautiful homes along picturesque canals, but in the industrial north part of the city, a floating neighborhood has been completed that is unlike anything we’ve seen before. The visionary neighborhood is called Schoonschip (Dutch for “clean ship), and Read More...
Waste architecture takes center stage at this quirky campsite
Just 10 minutes outside the Dutch city of Rotterdam, a new campsite has sprung up unlike any you have ever seen before. You won’t find tents there, but what you will find are futuristic shelters made from recycled and repurposed items. The Culture Campsite, as it’s being called, is putting a Read More...
Bizarre: Whale sculpture saves Dutch train from falling off the tracks
Here’s another item to add to the list of bizarre things to happen in 2020: A Dutch metro train crashed through the stop blocks at a station just outside Rotterdam and was bound to fall 10 meters (32ft) to the ground. But rather than a tragic free fall, the train landed on top of a giant Read More...
This eucalyptus-based hoodie can be composted in your garden
Just over a year ago, we wrote about Vollebak, a Dutch clothing startup making T-shirts that you can bury in your backyard once you’re through with them. That’s because the shirts are made entirely out of wood pulp and algae, which breaks down in soil and becomes “worm food” within months. Read More...
This energy-neutral Dutch school promotes sustainability by design
What better way to teach kids about sustainability than to have them study in a school building that has embraced the concept to the maximum? In the Dutch city of Utrecht, a recently completed primary school has done exactly that. Located in Utrecht, Dutch architecture firm EVA architecten has Read More...
Dutch officials advise single people to find a sex buddy for lockdown
Social distancing is already hard enough, but if you’re not in a relationship, the lack of physical contact can be extremely frustrating. In the Netherlands, many singletons have been voicing their frustration at the social distancing rules for single people. One writer, Linda Duits, a Read More...
Experimental “dementia villages” turn back the clock to help seniors
Just imagine how terrifying it would be to find yourself lost in your own home, or to have everyone around you keep insisting that a person you don't recognize is your own child. That’s what life can be like with dementia. It’s scary—and not only that, it can also be dangerous. A person with Read More...
The Netherlands is doubling its 2020 green subsidies to meet climate goals
Let’s start with the bad news: The Netherlands is struggling to meet its obligations under the Kyoto Protocol to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 25% below 1990 levels by the end of this year. The good news: the Dutch government is actually taking this seriously. This week, the government Read More...
A Dutch company is turning food waste into a chemical-free sugar substitute
Yesterday we brought you a story about a new type of all-purpose cleaner made almost entirely out of food waste. Today, we bring you another novel product being made from food waste: a sugar substitute. In the Netherlands, a company called Fooditive is turning leftovers from apples and pears, along Read More...
This is why the Netherlands is closing so many prisons
Earlier this week we wrote about the criminal justice nonprofit, Vera, which is teaming up with Google to create detailed, transparent data on prisoners. Policymakers have no access to such data, so the idea is that it will help them make more informed decisions to shape the country’s flawed Read More...