IN-PERSON Barcelona Livable Cities. Section B

Abstract

This paper explores the transition to sustainable practices and energy efficiency in urban environments, focusing on houseboat communities in the city of Amsterdam. Houseboats, rooted in Amsterdam’s cultural heritage since the 17th century, face challenges in adopting energy-efficient measures despite municipal initiatives aimed at promoting their adoption. Many still rely on gas for cooking and lack insulation and solar panels, amidst ongoing issues such as rising living costs, legal uncertainties, and neighbourhood disturbances. Part of the Envision Change project within EU’s programme Driving Urban Transition (DUT), this study employs ethnographic and participatory methods to investigate the needs, aspirations, and challenges of houseboat residents on the Stadhouderskade. This street is regarded as Amsterdam’s most polluted and unhealthy street, characterized by noise and air pollution, and safety hazards. We examine the role of houseboat residents in the municipality’s effort to transform this highly polluted street into ‘The Green Mile,’ a sustainable, green, and vibrant urban environment. The research highlights residents’ perspectives on energy efficiency and broader liveability issues, revealing concerns, comforts, and preferences regarding noise pollution, waste management, tourism, and urban redevelopment. The findings emphasize that the uptake of energy efficiency measures is intertwined with broader discussions on liveabality and the values associated with canal living, such as individualism, activism, and autonomy. The paper reflects on the importance of gaining insight into the deeper needs and desires in examining the concept of liveability, and shares how creative methods can be used in inviting residents as co-responsible collaborators in imagining their living environment.