Tours and Courses 2026 and 2027
Composting and Soil-Architecture at the rainwater-retention-basin
Sa, May 30, 2026 | 3 – 6 pm
Conductor: Martina Kolarek – Soil Scientist and Artist, DIE BODEN SCHAFFT
Costs: 5 Euro
For the past four years, composting has been taking place in the rainwater retention basin at Tempelhof Airport to improve soil quality and boost biodiversity. Which organisms are involved in this process, and how can social actors such as Floating e.V. support them in their work?
Through her long-standing initiative DIE BODEN SCHAFFT, soil scientist Martina Kolarek is committed to promoting better soil management. On this interactive tour of the site, she will showcase the results of the practical work carried out at the Floating University. We will get to know the different soils, their structure and their inhabitants first-hand, and discuss with them our current options for preserving these valuable habitats and developing them sustainably.
Preserving seeds – environmental stewardship and biocultural practices of remembrance
Sa, October 10, 2026 | 3 – 6 pm
Conductor: Adriana Gahona Miranda – Architect and Mediator
Costs: 5 Euro
The workshop will be held in English with German translation.
In this hands-on workshop, we will explore the deep connection between seeds, people and the planet. At the Floating University, we will learn together about the traditional methods communities have used to nurture, select and pass on seeds across generations. These practices are key to safeguarding our food, our environment and our cultural roots. We will also reflect on how today’s industrial agriculture threatens this knowledge, and discover the role of seed savers – people who lovingly protect seed diversity and the stories it carries.
Biodiversity and Gardening in Floating University
Sa, May 22, 2027 | 3 – 6 pm
Conductor: Adriana Gahona Miranda – Architect and Mediator
Costs: 5 Euro
The workshop will be held in English with German translation.
The site of the Kreuzberg retention basin serves as a refuge for forms of life that are often excluded from the urban environment. The variety of plants, birds, insects and small vertebrates is remarkable and creates a unique biodiversity within an urban landscape. The Floating Gardens working group at the Floating University is dedicated to fostering harmonious relationships between humans and non-human life forms, with the aim of contributing to greater biodiversity in the city.
In this workshop, we will explore the unique ecosystem of the rainwater basin. We will discuss ecological practices used to enhance local biodiversity, such as promoting natural plant communities, supporting insect-friendly flora, and understanding the role of wild plants in ecosystem regeneration. We will kick off the gardening season with a group sowing session and round off our meeting with a seed swap to spread biodiversity across the city.
From the vineyards to the retention basin – The history of the Kreuzberg rainwater retention basin
Sa, May 29, 2027 | 3 – 6 pm
Conductor: Ute Lindenbeck – Scenographer and Mediator
Costs: 5 Euro
The workshop will be held in oral German, some Eglish translation is possible.
This workshop is a guided tour to a special spot in the city. The rainwater retention basin at the former Tempelhof Airport is an engineering structure where an important aquatic ecosystem has developed over the years. Since 2018, the Floating University has been creating a space here for learning, research and experimentation, and developing narratives that tell the story of the equal coexistence of people, animals and plants in the city. On this guided tour, we will observe the interplay between the ecosystem and the city and ask ourselves: What stories do places like this tell us – and which ones do we want to carry into the future?
We will explore the historical and current uses of the site and discuss the conflicting plans for its future development. What role can our involvement as neighbours play in this, and what does it mean to claim spaces in the city – not as property, but in connection with their past and their non-human inhabitants?
BILDUNGSZEIT: Water, Soil and Ressources in Berlin
Di, June 1 – Fr, June 4, 2027 | 9 am – 4 pm and 9 am – 1 pm (Fr)
Conductor: Ute Lindenbeck – Scenographer and Mediator and Martina Kolarek – Soil-Scientist and Artist
Costs: around 40 Euro (details are coming)
The workshop will be held in oral German, some Eglish translation is possible
In large cities like Berlin, rainwater is usually invisible. Yet we rely on it every single day. Some parts of our drinking water comes from groundwater within the city limits, which is fed by rain. If there is no rain, the water supply comes under pressure. During heavy rainfall, however, the sewer system reaches its limits, with toxic consequences for rivers and canals. Rain is vital, yet barely noticeable in everyday urban life.
In this educational seminar, we embark on an interactive journey of discovery: informative, exploratory, critical and utopian. We approach rainwater and soil as a source of life and an urban challenge, engaging all our senses and perspectives.
Day 1, Seeing, hearing and feeling water
We begin at the Floating University in Berlin-Kreuzberg. An aquatic ecosystem has developed in the rainwater retention basin, right in the heart of the city. We encounter amphibians, algae and micro-organisms and reflect on our own water consumption in times of global water scarcity. Using artistic and research-based methods, we explore the concept of the ‘sponge city’, a city that does not drain water away but stores it.
Day 2: The soil is the sponge
In a sponge city, water is primarily stored in the ground. What types of soil are found at the Floating University, and how do they store rainwater in different ways? We will find this out for ourselves using scientific methods. In the afternoon, we will visit a location in Berlin where the sponge city concept has already been successfully implemented. What can we learn from the plants, animals, people and microbes there?
Day 3, Following the hidden ponds
We follow the trail of rainwater beneath Tempelhofer Feld and discover old glacial lakes, remnants of the Ice Age, fed by groundwater and rainwater. But they are under threat: falling groundwater levels and sealed surfaces are causing them to dry up. Together, we explore new approaches to water infiltration, such as those in the ‘Atelier Gardens’. What does it take to save old ponds and create new water features?
Day 4, Waterworks, Change and Visions
To conclude, we will visit the Ökowerk in Grunewald, the site of one of Berlin’s first waterworks. Here, we will look back at the technological history of the city’s water supply and look ahead to possible future scenarios. What does Berlin need to successfully tackle climate change as a ‘sponge city’? What initiatives already exist, and which ones could emerge? We conclude the seminar with a shared vision: what might a Berlin that lives with the rain look like?
