Land4Flood- Summer School
Build Back Better – How to Learn from Flood-Affected Regions
September 10th and 11th, 2026
Venue: IQIB – Institute for Qualitative Industrial and Infrastructure Research
Kurgartenstraße 1, 53474 Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany
in cooperation with TERRAenVISIOn 2026 “Nature-based solutions to facilitate the
transitions for living within the planetary boundaries” (7-9 September 2026 /Trier,
Germany)
Aims and Background
The summer school focuses on climate change adaptation with an emphasis on increasing
resilience in both urban and rural areas. Recent flood disasters, such as the Ahr River Valley
(Germany) in 2021 or Valencia (Spain) in 2024, have demonstrated the urgent need for
coordinated and knowledge-based flood recovery efforts that go beyond technical
reconstruction.
In the aftermath of such disasters, affected regions aim to “build back better”—to reduce
vulnerabilities, restore livelihoods and prepare more effectively for future disasters. Yet
flood recovery is rarely straightforward. Communities often face difficult decisions about
land use, housing, infrastructure, and long-term spatial planning. At the same time,
innovative approaches have emerged that integrate local knowledge, institutional learning
and nature-based solutions to strengthen adaptive capacities.
These challenges reflect wider debates on climate adaptation and sustainability transitions,
particularly the growing role of nature-based solutions in supporting resilient land and
water management. The summer school builds on this perspective by linking concrete
recovery experiences from flood-affected regions to broader research on how nature-based
solutions can contribute to long-term transitions toward more resilient spatial
development.
This summer school aims to:
– Share experiences and knowledge from flood-affected regions
– Compare various reconstruction and recovery approaches
– Develop recommendations that support regions facing similar challenges in rebuilding and
strengthening long-term resilience
This summer school provides a collaborative platform for early-stage researchers,
practitioners, and regional stakeholders to exchange knowledge and reflect on flood
recovery as part of wider climate adaptation processes. Organized jointly by RPTU
University Kaiserslautern, TU Dortmund University and IQIB Germany, the event
emphasizes cross-sectoral collaboration and mutual learning between science and practice.
The summer school will be organized in cooperation with TERRAenVISIOn 2026 “Naturebased solutions to facilitate the transitions for living within the planetary boundaries” (7-9
September 2026 /Trier, Germany). This cooperation situates the summer school within a
broader scientific debate on climate adaptation and sustainability transitions. Within this
scientific conference, oral and poster presentations as well as special sessions will be open
for participants of the summer school. The close cooperation between the EU-funded
initiative TERRAenVISION and Land4Flood provides a strong scientific and practical
foundation for the planned summer school activities.
What to expect
The summer school program applies a transdisciplinary and interactive approach
combining:
– Field visits to understand real-world challenges and recovery processes
– Workshops for joint analyses and solution development
– Facilitated discussions supported by experts and regional stakeholders
The emphasis lies on co-production of knowledge, encouraging participants to merge
scientific insight with practical experience. Up to12 Ph.D. students from European
universities will work together with up to 13 facilitators and stakeholders. Stakeholders
from local administrations, infrastructure operators, and civil protection agencies will be
actively involved. Their participation ensures that academic reflections are directly
connected to on-the-ground realities.
With mentoring from experienced scholars in the field, this intense summer school provides
a unique opportunity to develop this important and often overlooked niche in the risk cycle.
The research of the summer school will focus on three specific subjects:
o Challenges of recovery from spatial planning perspective
o Motivation versus incentives: private land and flood recovery
o After the flood and recovery: became the affected region more resilient?
Organisation and Scientific Committee
• Prof. Dr. Robert Juepner, Dr. Martin Fabisch (RPTU Kaiserslautern University)
• Prof. Dr.-Ing. Thomas Hartmann, Ayça Ataç-Studt (TU Dortmund University)
• Dr. Bert Droste-Franke, Tanja Nietgen (IQIB, Germany)
• Daniel Gronwald, Patrick Tarrach (THW – German Technical Relief Service)
• Stefan Frank (DB Infra GO – German Railway)
Venue and Contact Information
IQIB – Institute for Qualitative Industrial and Infrastructure Research
Kurgartenstraße 1, 53474 Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany.
The venue is located in the Ahr Valley region, approximately 30 km south of Bonn and 50
km north of Koblenz. It can be reached easily by train or car from Cologne, Bonn, or
Frankfurt. The venue is in reach of Cologne Airport
Program
Fees
There will be no summer school fee. It is expected, that the participants will cover their
travelling expenses to the venue as well as the hotel.
How to apply:
If you are interested in intensively participate in the Land4Flood summer school please
write a short application with
– Your cv
– Ph.D. research topic and actual status and
– Motivation
to Prof. Dr. Thomas Hartmann (TU Dortmund university):
summerschool.land4flood@gmail.com
Information:
Further Information will be announced at our webpage: xxx
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact
Prof. Dr. Robert Jüpner (RPTU Kaiserslautern): robert.jeupner@rptu.de