Ministry for the Future
Episode 3: Nomadism

With

Federica Remondi
Flood lead, Swiss Re

David Kostenwein
ETH Zurich, CH

Jan Freihardt
ETH Zurich, CH

Details

Public event, tickets available via Theater Neumarkt.
Self-determined tiered pricing CHF 15.-/30.-/45.-.

Duration: 2hrs
Meeting point: Rathausbrücke Zürich.

How will our near climate future look like? Science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson’s novel The Ministry for the Future has been celebrated as a science-based yet hopeful appeal to politicians and the public. Set in a near future that, in many ways, feels alarmingly close, the novel follows the efforts of a fictional UN institution based in Zurich and its determined leader as they tackle the devastating impacts of climate change.

Zurich’s Theater Neumarkt and the Collegium Helveticum take the fictional founding year of the Ministry as an opportunity to discuss important climate change issues within scenarios expected in 2034. The theater stages a four-part live series that envisions Zurich in the near future. Experts immerse themselves in these future scenarios to engage with the audience and discuss our shared future.

Episode 3: Nomadism

The Ministry for the Future typically tackles global crises, but this time, the disaster hits close to home. In 2032 and 2033, Switzerland and the Alpine region suffered catastrophic 1,000-year floods, forcing hundreds of thousands—including Zurich residents—to evacuate. With extreme weather becoming the new normal, Alpine governments now turn to the Ministry for guidance.

How likely is another flood in 2034? Should flood risk maps determine where people are allowed to live? Could the future of residence in flood-prone areas involve seasonal migration, adopting a nomadic way of life? And if so, where should people relocate—to other parts of Switzerland, or to neighboring countries?

At the hearing experts will discuss the future of flood resilience, policy, and adaptation strategies: Federica Remondi, responsible for Swiss Re's global natural catastrophe risk assessment, David Kostenwein, coordinator of the Humanitarian Planning Hub at the Spatial Development and Urban Policy Research Group at ETH, and Jan Freihardt, a political scientist specializing in the effects of climate change on communities in Bangladesh. More speakers will join the conversation as the debate unfolds.

Other episodes of this series

A collaboration with

Theater Neumarkt

Further details

Concept:
Yael Borofsky, Georgia Drew, Charlotte Müller, Eneas N. Prawdzic, Julia Reichert, Sascha Ö. Soydan, Linus Truninger, and Mario Wimmer 

Production Design:
Birke Beyer, Bettina Bessenyei, Juhee Han, Emily Hugger, Luca Ihns, Josephine Leicht, Ewa Wasilewska, Verena Zenker, and students of the HfG Karlsruhe (lead by Prof. Constanze Fischbeck)

Dramaturgy: Julia Reichert and Eneas N. Prawdzic (Proberaum Zukunft) 
Production Assistance: Linus Truninger