The Ark of the Newest Covenant by BreukersGodrie is the winner of the Post-Fossil City Contest, which asked for imaginative ideas for cities that no longer are dependent on fossil fuels. The Ark of the Newest Covenant is a traveling source of inspiration, meant to inspire the radical change needed for the transition towards sustainable cities.
The Post-Fossil City Contest, organized by the Urban Futures Studio that is part of the Faculty of Geosciences at the University of Utrecht, called on artists, designers, architects, urbanists, authors, photographers, filmmakers and all-around creative thinkers to imagine a city that is no longer reliant on fossil fuels. the contest received 250 submissions from people in over 40 countries, ranging from architects to scientists, from designers to musicians.
The ten most innovative, inspiring, and imaginative ideas, selected in March, received €1,000 to further develop their concepts. All ten are featured in the Post-Fossil City Exhibition at Utrecht’s Stadskantoor until 31 July.
Forty-year programme
In the Ark reside the Symbolic City and the Ten Sustainable Commandments. The upcoming forty years, the Ark will travel from city to city. In each city, inhabitants will interpret the Ten Sustainable Commandments. By doing so, they will add their local knowledge and wisdom to the Commandments and conceive new sustainable concepts.
In this way, the Ten Sustainable Commandments will cause a chain reaction of cities, together in the same Journey, creating a web of locally founded, sustainable cultures.
Ten commandments
The ten commandments are:
1 — See language as a tool to change reality.
2 — Break the old covenants.
3 — Reject infinity.
4 — Fire is a gift of the sun, do not imitate it.
5 — Remember, you once were an owl.
6 — See death as a source of life.
7 — Do not create future, reorganize past.
8 — Kill only in full consciousness.
9 — Species are wealth, honour them.
10 — Create your own covenant.
‘Philosophically profound and poetic’
The jury finally selected the Ark as the winner, remarking: ‘Philosophically profound in message, and poetic in its visualisation, the Ark intrigues and helps us reflect what a post-fossil city should be about and on how to get there.’ According to the jury the Ark was the project with the biggest potential to become a ‘multiplier’.
BeukersGoderie, a studio for future scenario’sfounded by Walter Breukers and Jaap Goderie, receives €10,000 to execute their project.