Abstract Summary
The Green Village is a field lab for sustainable innovation in the built environment, with actual residents and exempt of standard rules and regulations. Every day, knowledge- and educational institutions, entrepreneurs, government bodies and civilians can research, experiment, validate and demonstrate their sustainable innovations. With access to the innovation ecosystem of TU Delft, science is literally around the corner. The Green Village is a place where people can live, work and learn to accelerate future innovations to the market. The primary goal of our field lab is the acceleration of sustainable innovation to scale up to large scale application. We form the ‘hop’, the first location for the researcher/entrepreneur to test their innovation in a real-life environment. Our unique selling point is that people live in our village/field lab, so we can take user experience into account in the development of the innovation. During the tour of the site, we will reflect on the three themes, in which various projects are discussed: 1. Sustainable building and renovation: Energy-efficient, circular, biobased and nature-inclusive. In our field lab, we are working on building and renovating homes and offices as sustainably as possible to make them future-proof. By using circular/reusable raw materials (glass, wood) and biobased (wool, seaweed, bulrush), modular construction and energy-efficient techniques. In addition, due to the energy transition, sustainable installations: heat recovery systems, solar panels, heat pumps. The aim of nature-inclusive building is to create a pleasant living environment in which people, animals and nature reinforce each other. Related innovations: worm farm, nesting facilities for birds, bee hotel. 2. Future energy system: The transition to sustainable energy means that our energy system is going to change rigorously. We will work with new energy carriers, such as heat and hydrogen, and produce more and more renewable energy locally. To make this work safely, reliably and affordably, numerous innovations are needed. Think of new ways of storage, the smart application of conversions, and devising, developing and testing the control of these systems. Innovations such as H2@Home, Seasonal Storage System, innovative open Heat Grid, Hydrogen Grid. 3. Climate adaptive city: Flooding, drought and heat stress, the consequences of more extreme weather. In our field lab, we are working on keeping neighbourhoods, streets and buildings livable and habitable. Here you will find innovations that buffer, drain and reuse water (Bufferblock, green car parks, dredging tiles, water-passive tiles). In addition, green and building solutions (such as green and/or water-storage facades and roofs, moss walls and possibilities to save drinking water at home) are tested to make Dutch buildings climate-adaptive.
