Building the future

How can urban spaces be expanded sustainably? How can densification happen without further diminishing the urban quality of life? And what opportunities lie in the conversion of existing buildings? The four-part series "Under and Over", a co-production of Arte and BR in German language, addresses these questions and presents international projects: From the rededication of an urban motorway into a green pedestrian bridge with botanical garden on the part of the architectural office MVRDV, to roof extensions by Coop Himmelblau or Herzog & De Meuron, to the expansion of underground urban space on the part of Zaha Hadid Architects. The results are forward-looking linkages of urban space with nature as well as clever solutions that show how to make the most of the limited space available in the city. "More than two million new flats could be built on residential and commercial buildings in Germany by adding one or two storeys," says Reiner Nagel, President of the Federal Foundation for Building Culture. (am)