Gerben is a member of the Research & Valorization team at AMS Institute. He is responsible for developing the Climate Resilient Cities program, which addresses all urban topics affected by climate change such as heavy rainfall, droughts and heat stress. This program also explores solutions that are technical or nature based. In addition to his work at AMS Institute in Amsterdam, Gerben contributes as a senior researcher to the Climate Resilient Cities program at Wageningen Environmental Research.
In his recent work, Gerben explored the role of landscape and nature-based solutions for urban climate adaptation with the so-called Landscape Based Adaptation approach. The involvement of citizens and other stakeholders in research projects is also characteristic for his work, such as in the notable “Clean Water Experiment” (Het Schone Water Experiment). This approach is applied with the Citizen Science project in Almere investigating the urban water cycle.
Gerben continuously expands the scope of his projects by involving partners from the construction industry and the financial sector. This approach has increased the chances of actual implementation and therefore the impact in making cities more resilient.
All in all, Amsterdam is receptive to such an approach and thus a perfect fit for Gerben to pursue his goal of crafting a livable and agile society that adapts to climate change. Next to his ongoing research responsibilities, Gerben is also an experienced conference manager. He initiated the Wageningen Soil Conference, an international 4-day scientific conference that will have its 4th edition in 2019.
“All thinking about adaptable and livable cities must incorporate the natural setting of landscape, soil and groundwater.”
Gerben Mol
Program Developer Climate Resilient Cities
