Hamburg, Germany

Last Thursday my Sustainability in Europe class ditched our regular classroom to study in Hamburg, Germany!  Our three day study trip included a historic biking tour of the city, two meetings with urban planners, and a conference on Cities, Culture and Sustainability at Hafen City University.  

{St. Michaelis Church}

 {Hamburg City Hall}

{cute lunch spot-- perhaps what my kitchen will look like in 10 years?}

{traditional German brewhouse with my classmates}

{wrong day to be a vegetarian}

On Saturday morning, the urban planner of the up-and-coming Wilhelm district guided us through several of the area's most recent developments.  

{WWII air raid bunker turned into a renewable energy production plant}

Smart Material Houses

{black railing? nope, try solar panels!}

{built to minimize use of non-renewable raw materials}

{these glass panels are filled with algae! algae is used as biomass to provide heat for the building}

"Every one of a hundred thousand cities around the world has its own special sunset and it is worth going there, just once, if only to see the sun go down"

-Ryu Murakami