IDEA League Summer School 2022


This five-day summer school offers a platform for knowledge exchange and capacity building on technological-innovation aspects of sustainable urban transformation processes with a specific focus on climate action. It builds on the participants’ soft skills for working in a collaborative and interdisciplinary platform in which they reflect on the technology-driven perspectives of climate action through art-based methodologies. The summer school facilitates the RWTH Aachen campus as a grounded learning environment.

The first day begins with an introduction to the theme and programme of the summer school, followed by lectures on design, circularity, energy and governance aspects of urban transformation. Following three days, the participants work in groups to reflect on the thematic focuses covered during the lectures. They conduct fieldwork at RWTH Aachen Campus to gather empirical evidence through art-based methodologies, including observation, sketching, filming and photographing. Two visual artists and a filmmaker guide the fieldwork. The participants present their work on the final day in a short movie format and receive feedback from the lecturers. The summer school ends with a discussion session and social event.

During the summer school, the participants will receive an opportunity to meet the IDEA League Rectors, who will visit the summer school workshop.

On campus, RWTH Aachen University 

Free participation for IDEA League Students

Prof. Ute Habel

RWTH Vice-Rector for International Affairs

RWTH Aachen University

M.A. Miriam Hamel

Artist and Architect

Bauhaus-University in Weimar

Prof. Antonello Monti

Director ACS / Chair Automation of Complex Power Systems

Institute for Automation of Complex Power Systems

RWTH Aachen University

Prof. Eugenio Morello

Associate Professor in Urban Design

Department of Architecture and Urban Studies

Politecnico di Milano

Prof. Christa Reicher

Head of the Chair and Institute

Chair of Urban Design and Institute for Urban Design and European Urbanism

RWTH Aachen University

Dr. ir. Ceren Sezer

Research Associate, Speaker Research Cluster Campus Development 

Chair of Urban Design and Institute for Urban Design and European Urbanism

RWTH Aachen University

Prof. Andy van den Dobbelsteen 

Professor of Climate Design & Sustainability 

Department of Architectural Engineering + Technology

TU Delft

Prof. Niklas von der Aßen

Professor for Sustainable Life Cycles in Energy, Chemical and Process Engineering

RWTH Aachen University

M.A. Claire Waffel

Visual Artist

Bauhaus-University in Weimar

4 September – Arrival of the participants

Drinks (18-19:30) in Magellan, Pontstraße 78, 52062 Aachen, Germany

Day 1 | 5 September, Monday I Introduction + Exploration

RWTH Super C, Ford Room (6th floor)

08:00-08:30         Arrival, registration and coffee

08:30-09:30         Opening by Dr ir Ceren Sezer, and Welcome Speech by Prof Ute Habel and Prof Christa Reicher

09:30-10:30         Lecture 1: Prof Christa Reicher (RWTH), Sustainable Transformation of Cities and Regions, a spatial planning perspective

10:30-12:00         Lecture 2: Prof Eugenio Morello (PoliMi), Living Labs as effective tools of sustainable transformation

12:00-13:00         Lunch

13:00-14:30         Lecture 3: Prof Andy van den Dobbelsteen (TUDelft), Sustainable Transformation of campus areas

14:30-14:45         Coffee break

14:45-16:15         Lecture 4: Prof Antonello Monti (RWTH) – ‘Developing sustainable local energy systems’

16:15-16:30         Coffee break

16:30-18:00         Lecture 5: Prof Niklas von der Aßen (RWTH), ‘Circularity‘

18:00-19:00         Wrapping up and common picnic       

Join Zoom Meeting:

https://rwth.zoom.us/j/98530964925?pwd=Tlk5SUVjRFRDY1V0MFJYUWkyRUhnUT09

Meeting ID: 985 3096 4925
Passcode: 579830

Day 2 | 6 September, Tuesday I Research and Conception

RWTH Super C, Ford Room (6th floor)

09:00-09:30         Arrival and coffee

09:30-10:15         Introduction to fieldwork and art-based methodologies,Themes, scenarios, and methods: climate tools, writing video, materials and procedure

Group formation (Five groups: G1,2,3,4,5)          

10:15-11:00         Site writing, reading and experience

11:00-11:15         Break    

11:15-12:30         Project development / Climate tools

12:30-13:30         Lunch

13:30-14:30         Brief feedback from the groups

14:30-15:00         Coffee break 

15:00-17:00         Project development / Climate tools

17:00-18:00         Discussion 

Day 3 | 7 September, Wednesday I Development and filming

Location: Super C, Room 531 and 532 (5th floor)

08:15-09:00         Arrival and coffee

09:00-10:00         Introduction: video as an artistic and conceptual framing

10:00-12:00         Group work – reflections of the implementation, process and insights

12:00-13:00         Lunch

13:00-14:45         Planning of videotake –writing voice off

14:45-15:00         Coffee break

15:00-17:30         Planning of videotake –writing voice off

17:30-18:30         Drinks (Super C, Main Hall – top floor)

18:30-19:00         Discussion 

Day 4 | 8 September, Thursday I Development and filming

RWTH Super C, Ford Room (6th floor)

08:30-09:00         Arrival and coffee

09:00-12:30         Video & Audio take

12:30-13:30         Lunch

13:30-15:00         Walk-in visits by the IDEA League Rectors

15:00-15:30         Coffee break

15:30-18:00         Video & Audio take

18:00-19:00         Discussion 

Evening                 Film editing

Day 5 | 9 September, Friday I Preparation and presentation

RWTH Super C, Ford Room (6th floor)

08:30-09:00         Arrival and coffee

09:00-12:00         Final preparations

12:00-13:00         Lunch

13:00-15:30         Tour of the projects, forum and reflections

15:30-16:30         Closing screening and drinks

Husain Syed . RWTH Aachen . Urban studies

Hong Yuening . RWTH Aachen . Construction and robotics

Gallego Gruesso Santiago . RWTH Aachen . Transport engineering and mobility

Derdzikowska Magdalena. RWTH Aachen . Architecture

Grobe Helen . RWTH Aachen . Business administration

Cheng Yuxing . TU Delft . Transport and planning, civil engineering

Prieto Guillermo. TU Delft. Engineering and policy analysis

Martellotto Carolina . TU Delft . Strategic product design

Rolli Christian . ETH . Environmental Sciences

Sierra Jaime . PoliMi. Mobility

Fumarulo Savino . PoliMi . Management engineering

Soukkarieh Rihab . PoliMi . Sustainable architecture and landscape

Lin Zhihang . PoliMi . Architecture

Khodaei Mahya . PoliMi . Urban planning and policy design

Zoe Burgess . PoliMi . Architecture

Jia Shi . PoliMi . Architecture and urban design

Satyasom Rout . PoliMi . Sustainable architecture and landscape design

Delara Tohidi . PoliMi . Urban planning and policy design

Zhang Junhao . NTU, Singapore . Image recovery and fault detection

Amartuvshin Munkhsuuri . Tokyo Tech .  Architecture and building engineering

RWTH Aachen University – Chair and Institute for Urban Design and European Urbanism

Prof Dr Christa Reicher – Head of Institute

Dr ir Ceren Sezer – Research Associate

Seher Ulusoy M. Sc RWTH – Research Assistant

with the support of

IDEA League General Secretary

Dr J. Leslie Zachariah-Wolff

RWTH Aachen University, Vice Rector for International Affairs

Prof Dr Ute Habel

RWTH Aachen University – International Office

Elina Krause B.A. /IDEA League Network Coordinator

Prof Antonello Monti / RWTH Aachen University, Chair Automation of Complex Power Systems

Prof Eugenio Morello / Politecnico di Milano, Department of Architecture and Urban Studies 

Prof Andy van den Dobbelsteen / Delft University of Technology, Department of Architectural Engineering and Technology

Prof Niklas von der Aßen / RWTH Aachen University, Institute of Technical Thermodynamics

M.A. Miriam Hamel

M.A. Claire Waffel

M.A. Rikisaburo Sato

Student Assistants

Transforming City Regions Master Programme, RWTH Aachen

Denis Eke, Ecem Erol, and Shaily Shaily.