17.08.2011 - Ausgabe: 4/2011

“Families on the Move: Parents displace role model function"

With the peb survey “Families on the Move”, the Plattform Ernährung und Bewegung e.V (peb) (Platform for Nutrition and Exercise) has gained further knowledge to understand the requirements and obstacles in the way of sufficient exercise in everyday family life.

Parents believe that the reasons for this are a lack of time and not enough sports facilities in school and after-school care clubs. However, the importance of the parental role model function is far less identified.

Best informed, but implementation is proving difficult

The results of the survey are showing that almost all the mothers who were questioned feel well or sufficiently informed when it comes to the healthy lifestyle of their children. The importance of adequate exercise in everyday life is widely known. However, for many putting knowledge into practice is proving difficult: Not even half of those questioned are managing to realise the promotion of an everyday, healthy lifestyle, if things get a “bit stressful”.

No time for lots of exercise

For most mothers, the greatest obstacle is a lack of time to motivate their children to do exercise. 66 percent of mothers questioned admit that not having enough time in everyday life is the reason for not always being able to realise a healthy lifestyle optimally. However, hardly any of those questioned delegate parent responsibilities relating to exercise or nutrition to the father as a matter of priority. According to the mothers questioned, only eight percent of fathers take a significant degree of responsibility in promoting exercise among their children. This means that there is great potential for fathers to be promoting mobility and exercise among their children in their everyday lives.

Role model function is not obvious enough

Only a third of parents see the reasons in their own style of raising their children: Around 30 percent of mothers admit that they do not want to spoon-feed their child; only eleven percent recognises the opportunity to motivate their children to do more exercise by cutting down the number of hours spent in front of the TV and computer. Fewer than 20 percent are self-critical in recognising their own role model function for encouraging their children to exercise. Therefore, limited funds, a lack of space at home or inadequate sports facilities in schools or day-care centres are being considered as excuses or obstacles. Also the noise levels of children who are playing and the associated consideration for neighbours are jointly responsible for parents not always letting their children exercise enough. Two thirds of mothers owned up to the fact that it is simply too exhausting to run around and play with their children.

You can find further information on the peb survey “Families on the Move” at www.pebonline.de

bautec 2012: GRÜNBAU BERLIN focuses on attractive residential environments

Designing, Building and Maintaining Outdoor Spaces.

Preparations are in full swing at the Berlin Trade Fair Centre for bautec 2012 (21 – 25 February), a key event in the calendar of the European building industry for over 30 years. The international trade fair for building and construction technology has always adapted to changing conditions and updated and expanded its central idea. New formats such as GRÜNBAU BERLIN, the newly named section of the exhibition for public outdoor facilities, gardening and landscaping and playground and playing field construction, have further enhanced the appeal of Germany’s leading specialist construction trade fair.
Under the slogan “Designing, Building and Maintaining Outdoor Spaces“ GRÜNBAU BERLIN 2012, an independent segment of the event in hall 25 and on the adjacent open-air site, offers an attractive platform for all suppliers in the spheres of gardening and landscaping, playground and playing field construction and urban design. The growing importance of gardening and landscaping has become a key factor in the housing and construction industry. The revitalisation of housing developments and modernisation of leisure facilities are having a significant influence on residential value and quality of life.
The offering at GRÜNBAU BERLIN 2012, which is primarily aimed at landscape architects and planners, local authority decision-makers, construction materials manufacturers, construction companies, financiers and investors, includes street furniture, outdoor lighting, road construction systems, fountains and water installations, sun protection facilities, playground and sports facility construction and machinery/equipment for the construction and maintenance of public facilities.
The accompanying programme of presentations includes specialist lectures, discussion roundtables and workshops on themes such as “urban space design“, “water in the city“ and “playground construction.“
bautec 2012 runs from 21- 25 February at the Messe Berlin trade fair centre.

More attractive, better quality urban living

1,403 local authority decision-makers discovered more about sustainable urban development, civic participation and approaches for making towns and municipalities more attractive. At public11, the 3rd international exhibition for urban planning and public design staged in conjunction with the specialist trade fair association Zunkunft Kommune, a total of 109 exhibitors showcased their solutions and products for a more attractive living environment. In presentations, workshops and panel discussions visitors also gained insights into successfully implemented projects.

Urban design which draws on the commitment and willingness of citizens to contribute to planning and everyday matters was a key theme at the public11 trade fair. A session arranged by Entente Florale looked at how this aspiration can be put into practice. According to Dr. Hans-Herrmann Bentrup, chairman of the board of trustees of Entente Florale Deutschland, it is easy to engage the community when it comes to green urban spaces.

The results presented by Prof. Dr. Helmut Klages of a representative survey conducted in a German city show that residents attach huge importance to green space. Green spaces and parks rank right at the top of the list of priorities for an overwhelming majority of people – ahead of school and cultural provision, shopping facilities and medical services. And residents were also more willing than assumed to get involved. “On average seven in ten people are prepared to participate in planning and decision-making processes in their local communities though few do so in reality at the moment," confirmed Klages, Emeritus Professor at the German University of Administrative Sciences Speyer. One reason for this failure to get involved is the mistrust that exists between citizens and politicians. To reduce these mutual suspicion ideas for civic participation must take into account a number of key considerations. Thus it is important that citizens are aware of the issues and projects in which they can become involved and have the opportunity to participate of their own volition.

The countryside: an energy supplier with potential

According to the ERNEUERBAR KOMM! research project, rural communities can not only save energy but produce it themselves. With the help of wind energy, hydro power, solar and biogas plants the surrounding area can not only meet local power needs but become an energy supplier for conurbations, explained Prof. Dr. Martina Klärle of the Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences. The project's online calculator permits the mayors and citizens of the participating municipalities to work out how much power their community can generate with renewable energies. The calculator uses available geodata from the local statistics offices and takes into account various local factors such as population, land use, protected areas, wind speeds, built-up areas and watercourse gradients.

The next edition of public11 will take place from 24 - 25 April 2012. Since Düsseldorf and Stuttgart take turns hosting the event it will again be staged in conjunction with Zukunft Kommune, the eighth edition of the specialist trade fair for municipal solutions, services and procurement, and Public IT,2, the specialist trade fair for municipal IT solutions and services at the Messe Stuttgart trade fair centre: www.public-messe.de

Recife (Brazil): An exemplary citizen participation project

The Brazilian city of Recife (1.7 million inhabitants) has been awarded the inaugural Reinhard Mohn Prize 2011 worth €150,000. The focal point of the prize-winning participation project are citizens’ budgets with wide-ranging decision-making responsibilities for residents of the city. Each year, more than 100,000 adults and young people use the participatory system to decide on issues relating to education and urban development. The prize will be awarded on 16 June 2011 by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Neues Theater in Gütersloh.
To choose this year's winner, some 11,600 members of the German public, selected to reflect the makeup of the general population, were asked to vote online. Seven finalists were chosen from a list of 123 projects around the world featuring exemplary public participation.
For over ten years the residents of the Brazilian metropolis of Recife have been playing an active role in the development of their city through forums and online voting tools. They make suggestions and determine priorities in 15 different policy-making areas. 2,700 elected delegates monitor the related processes, making it possible for residents to share responsibility with the city authorities for implementation of the chosen programs.
Residents have decided, for example, to commit significantly larger amounts of funding to poorer districts of the city in order to improve living conditions. Large numbers of young people, moreover, get involved to set budgets for their own schools. Since the introduction of participatory budgeting in 2001 some 5,000 projects have been initiated by the public, financed by more than €220 million in public funds.
The Recife model varies significantly from many of the participatory budgeting systems used in Germany. For example, residents in Recife can decide directly on how a given share of the public budget will be spent, since the city council generally accepts and implements all suggestions made by residents. In addition, the specially elected delegates ensure an ongoing exchange between members of the public and the city authorities, as well as the successful execution of the chosen programs. By focusing on the needs of poorer districts of the city and providing unimpeded access to public administrators, Recife has succeeded in integrating underrepresented groups in policymaking processes.
"With its participatory system, the city of Recife shows how policymakers and the public can come together to collaborate more closely," said Dr. Gunter Thielen, chairman and CEO of the Bertelsmann Stiftung, in announcing the winner of the prize. "The system complements the city's representative democracy by allowing citizens to become an immediate part of the decision-making process, in conjunction with city administrators. It's a very good example of how the public can get involved in government, an idea often advocated by Reinhard Mohn“
(www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de)

Winners decided for German Landscape Architecture Prize 2011 and Special Residential Environment Prize

First prizes were awarded to the “Park am Nordbahnhof“ in Berlin and “Schloss Freudenstein“ in Freiberg/Saxony. The “Transformation of the Schorfheideviertel district“ project in Berlin garnered the 2011 Special Residential Environment prize

The juries for the German Landscape Architecture Prize 2011 and the Special Residential Environment Prize reached their final decisions on 18th and 19th March 2011. The seven-person jury headed by Andrea Gebhard, President of the Federation of German Landscape Architects (bdla), evaluated a record total of 166 projects. In recognition of the quantity and, above all, the quality of the projects submitted the jury awarded two first prizes in the German Landscape Architecture Prize 2011 while eight entrants received honourable mentions; in the Special Residential Environment Prize category outstanding planning performances were acknowledged with one first prize and six honourable mentions.

German Landscape Architecture Prize 2011

The members of the jury unanimously selected the “Park am Nordbahnhof, Berlin“, designed by Fugmann Janotta Landschaftsarchitektur und Landschaftsentwicklung bdla, Berlin, and „Schloss Freudenstein – the restoration and conversion of Schloss Freudenstein Palace in Freiberg into the Saxon Mountain Archive and Mineralogical Collection, Freiberg/Saxony“, Birgit Hammer Landschafts.Architektur, Berlin, as joint recipients of the first prize.
Of the “Park am Nordbahnhof“ project the jury stated: “In executing compensatory and replacement measures the designers used simple means to create a “green framework‘ of extensively cultivated meadow- and woodlands that lend the park a lively, almost natural ambience. At key sites intensive uses have been embedded in these structures that allow residents to pursue leisure and recreational activities. The project has succeeded in combining essentially competing aspects of ecology and intensive park use in an overall concept.“
Of the successful planning for the Schloss Freudenstein project the jury members remarked: “In her design of the two courtyards and of the moat outside the palace the landscape architect Birgit Hammer has demonstrated an impressive understanding of the individual characteristics of stone architecture, of the content of the new museum and of the dimensions of the two courtyards. (…) She has lent the new palace courtyard a strikingly patterned appearance with light granite slabs which derive inspiration from widespread crystal forms and are embedded in reddish mastic asphalt.“

2011 Special Residential Environment Prize

The bdla also organised a special prize for the second time, which this year considered designs for open spaces that enhance quality of life in urban environments. The competition attracted 86 entries. The objective was to select projects that achieve a perfect blend of design and function and which accommodate a wide range of requirements. The Residential Environment prize was claimed by the “Transformation of the Schorfheideviertel district“ in Berlin Marzahn, planned by the Berlin-based gruppe F landscape architects Gabriele Pütz, Gerd Kleyhauer, ThoMi Bauermeister for degewo AG, Berlin. The jury praised: “The modelled park landscape featuring pines and grasses as the lowest common denominator in a strong, memorable overall design that encourages multiple uses and which can be appropriated naturally (...) The active participation meant neighbourly networks could be formed; this strong design concept has created a new piece of home."

The prize

The members of the jury were: Andrea Gebhard, mahl-gebhard-konzepte, Munich, Guido Hager, Hager Landscape Architects, Zürich/Switzerland, Dr. Bernd Hunger, GdW, Berlin, Prof. Gabriele Kiefer, Büro Kiefer, Berlin, Gottfried Knapp, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Munich, Till Rehwaldt, Rehwaldt Landscape Architects, Dresden, and Bernd Streitberger, Senior Urban Development Officer, Cologne.

The award ceremony for the 2011 German Landscape Architecture Award will be staged on 15th September 2011 in Berlin. The prizes and documents will be presented to the winners at the Federal Building Ministry in the presence of Dr. Peter Raumsauer, the Federal Minister for Traffic, Construction and Urban Development.
Comprehensive information on the 2011 German Landscape Architecture Award and Special Prize can be found at www.deutscher-landschaftsarchitektur-preis.de. Bund Deutscher Landschaftsarchitekten bdla, Köpenicker Straße 48/49, 10179 Berlin, tel. 030 27 87 15-0, Fax 030 27 87 15-55, info@bdla.de, www.bdla.de
 

vortritt / photocase.com