Main Content
Date of lecture: September 17, 2025
PANEL DISCUSSION & BOOK PRESENTATION
Since the 2021 German-US conference CLIMATE BRIDGE, the political leadership of both countries changed. How do the new governments impact climate politics? How do politics affect scientific and professional cooperation between Germany and the US?
Climate change is creating new challenges for spatial and environmental planning on both sides of the Atlantic. Planning and policy must balance moderating climate change impact from rising temperatures, extreme precipitation, and sea level rise with social equity and environmental justice. Climate Bridge compares New Jersey and the German Ruhr region to build an international perspective on how to enact climate action at the government-public interface.
The first section of the book compares international environmental planning approaches and outlines different approaches to common problems. The second section presents case studies that highlight adaptation strategies for uncertainties caused by climate change. Finally, the closing section reminds us of our dependence on ecological systems for physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Contributors to this landmark volume include planners, designers, scholars, public administrators, and decision-makers on both sides of the Atlantic. Together, the chapters bring interdisciplinary approaches and diverse perspectives to the environmental, economic, political, and social dimensions of planning and design in the context of climate change.
Editor Team
WOLFRAM HÖFER is a professor and the director of the Rutgers Center for Urban Environmental Sustainability in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Rutgers University. FRANK GALLAGHER is an associate professor of professional practice in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Rutgers University. ARIANNA LINDBERG is an assistant teaching professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at Rutgers University. ANGIE OBERG is chief climate officer in the Rutgers Office of Climate Action. SEBASTIAN SCHLECHT is the founder of lala.ruhr and a lecturer at Technische Universität Dortmund.