With the support of the TRANS-Lighthouses project, the City of Brussels’ climate and city in transition unit has organized a series of participatory workshops to empower participants through learning about water management and exploring how Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) can help reduce floodings in the city. These workshops where held in Laeken, a priority area where the climate and city in transition unit is working to tackle urban flooding with the support of TRANS-Lighthouses.
🤝 Learning and getting inspired by Nature Based Solutions
On April 2nd, a dozen women currently enrolled in literacy courses at the feminist association Vie feminine took part in a visit in the Sewer Museum of the City of Brussels.
But it wasn’t the first part of the experience : in February, a first awareness-raising workshop was held to introduce the basics of Integrated Rainwater Management (IRWM) using the educational kit “Water in all its forms”, developed by the Sewer Museum.
This first session, held in a safe and women-only space, used accessible and inclusive methods to allow participants to:
- Understand the urban water cycle,
- Discover the difference between combined and separate sewer systems,
- Reflect on their daily water use and explore simple actions to reduce it,
- Explore the hidden waters of Brussels, such as the canal, the Senne, and the Molenbeek.
By making this technical subject more accessible, the workshop created confidence and curiosity among the group.
This first step led to the follow-up visit in April that allowed participants to deepen their knowledge about rainwater: they explored how Brussels’ sewer system works, discovered current and future rainwater management strategies in Brussels through the exhibition “After the rain”, and even visit a real sewer, getting the underground perspective of our city !
From rain gardens to ponds and vegetated areas, participants discovered – during both events – how bringing nature back to the city can help prevent flooding.
These workshops were a great example of how gender-inclusive and socially-inclusive approaches to climate action can empower communities. Built on trust, accessibility, and collective learning, each session helped connect global environmental challenges to participant’s daily lives — leaving them with new knowledge, new questions, and a renewed sense of agency.
A heartfelt thank you to the committed participants, the team at Vie Féminine, and the staff at the Sewer Museum for making this experience possible.
🌿Creating and dreaming thanks to Nature-Based Solutions
Our workshops are also about creating and imagining new possibilities in our city – together ! On June 11th, a co-design workshop was held with students from the school “Collège de la Fraternité”, located in Laeken, a neighboorhood frequently affected by flooding.
Fourteen students from 12 to 17 years old joined in a participatory activity to reimagine their schoolyard using NBS. The architecture firm Latitude Platform, which works with the City to co-design rainwater management solutions, started the session with an engaging presentation where students learned what rainwater is, why it matters and how we can manage it better.
Thanks to awareness-raising boxes created by the Brussels Climate and City in transition unit and the sewer museum, students gained a new perspective on the causes of flooding and how to reduce it – all while learning through playful activities.
Then it was time for the students to imagine and create ! They explored their schoolyard, observing and brainstorming how it could be transformed to better absorb rainwater while becoming more inclusive and welcoming space for everyone including nature. They translated their ideas into physical models and created the basis of a project that will soon become a reality - with the help of the architects !
Students were excited to design their own green, flood-resilient schoolyard – and we can’t wait to see it take shape!
🙏 Once again a heartfelt thank you to all the students for their energy and creativity, to their teacher and to the Latitude Platform team for their dedication and support !
From Ideas to Action: Start of participatory works in Verregat
The TRANS-Lighthouses project is not just about imagining — it’s also about building together. In the Verregat neighborhood, the Brussels pilot entered its first concrete phase with a hands-on participatory works. Local residents, municipal staff, and partners such as City to Ocean literally put on their boots to test the soil's infiltration capacity and kick off the transformation.
This pilot project involves for the moment, two private houses and includes the creation of ponds, rainwater tanks as well as associated infiltration zones — all designed to absorb rainwater locally, reduce flood risks, increase biodiversity and bring nature back into the urban fabric.
The process began with infiltration tests, followed by a co-design session where homeowners and the municipality worked hand in hand to shape the interventions. The works are now being carried out collectively, with everyone contributing from digging to planting. It’s a powerful example of how citizen participation and Nature-Based Solutions can come together to reshape our neighborhoods — one garden at a time.
PICTURE
These workshops and activities are part of the Brussels pilot of the TRANS-Lighthouses project, which aim to reducing urban flooding and integrating Nature-Based solutions in the City through meaningful participatory processes.
Text: Antoine Warrant
Photo: Antoine Warrant
Pictures related to activities with Vie Féminine, participatory works and infiltration test, and co-design workshops at the school “Collège de la Fraternité”. Header photo: students proudly showing their co-design.
With the support of the TRANS-Lighthouses project, the City of Brussels’ climate and city in transition unit has organized a series of participatory workshops to empower participants through learning about water management and exploring how Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) can help reduce floodings in the city. These workshops where held in Laeken, a priority area where the climate and city in transition unit is working to tackle urban flooding with the support of TRANS-Lighthouses.
🤝 Learning and getting inspired by Nature Based Solutions
On April 2nd, a dozen women currently enrolled in literacy courses at the feminist association Vie feminine took part in a visit in the Sewer Museum of the City of Brussels.
But it wasn’t the first part of the experience : in February, a first awareness-raising workshop was held to introduce the basics of Integrated Rainwater Management (IRWM) using the educational kit “Water in all its forms”, developed by the Sewer Museum.
This first session, held in a safe and women-only space, used accessible and inclusive methods to allow participants to:
- Understand the urban water cycle,
- Discover the difference between combined and separate sewer systems,
- Reflect on their daily water use and explore simple actions to reduce it,
- Explore the hidden waters of Brussels, such as the canal, the Senne, and the Molenbeek.
By making this technical subject more accessible, the workshop created confidence and curiosity among the group.
This first step led to the follow-up visit in April that allowed participants to deepen their knowledge about rainwater: they explored how Brussels’ sewer system works, discovered current and future rainwater management strategies in Brussels through the exhibition “After the rain”, and even visit a real sewer, getting the underground perspective of our city !
From rain gardens to ponds and vegetated areas, participants discovered – during both events – how bringing nature back to the city can help prevent flooding.
These workshops were a great example of how gender-inclusive and socially-inclusive approaches to climate action can empower communities. Built on trust, accessibility, and collective learning, each session helped connect global environmental challenges to participant’s daily lives — leaving them with new knowledge, new questions, and a renewed sense of agency.
A heartfelt thank you to the committed participants, the team at Vie Féminine, and the staff at the Sewer Museum for making this experience possible.
🌿Creating and dreaming thanks to Nature-Based Solutions
Our workshops are also about creating and imagining new possibilities in our city – together ! On June 11th, a co-design workshop was held with students from the school “Collège de la Fraternité”, located in Laeken, a neighboorhood frequently affected by flooding.
Fourteen students from 12 to 17 years old joined in a participatory activity to reimagine their schoolyard using NBS. The architecture firm Latitude Platform, which works with the City to co-design rainwater management solutions, started the session with an engaging presentation where students learned what rainwater is, why it matters and how we can manage it better.
Thanks to awareness-raising boxes created by the Brussels Climate and City in transition unit and the sewer museum, students gained a new perspective on the causes of flooding and how to reduce it – all while learning through playful activities.
Then it was time for the students to imagine and create ! They explored their schoolyard, observing and brainstorming how it could be transformed to better absorb rainwater while becoming more inclusive and welcoming space for everyone including nature. They translated their ideas into physical models and created the basis of a project that will soon become a reality - with the help of the architects !
Students were excited to design their own green, flood-resilient schoolyard – and we can’t wait to see it take shape!
🙏 Once again a heartfelt thank you to all the students for their energy and creativity, to their teacher and to the Latitude Platform team for their dedication and support !
From Ideas to Action: Start of participatory works in Verregat
The TRANS-Lighthouses project is not just about imagining — it’s also about building together. In the Verregat neighborhood, the Brussels pilot entered its first concrete phase with a hands-on participatory works. Local residents, municipal staff, and partners such as City to Ocean literally put on their boots to test the soil's infiltration capacity and kick off the transformation.
This pilot project involves for the moment, two private houses and includes the creation of ponds, rainwater tanks as well as associated infiltration zones — all designed to absorb rainwater locally, reduce flood risks, increase biodiversity and bring nature back into the urban fabric.
The process began with infiltration tests, followed by a co-design session where homeowners and the municipality worked hand in hand to shape the interventions. The works are now being carried out collectively, with everyone contributing from digging to planting. It’s a powerful example of how citizen participation and Nature-Based Solutions can come together to reshape our neighborhoods — one garden at a time.
PICTURE
These workshops and activities are part of the Brussels pilot of the TRANS-Lighthouses project, which aim to reducing urban flooding and integrating Nature-Based solutions in the City through meaningful participatory processes.
Text: Antoine Warrant
Photo: Antoine Warrant
Pictures related to activities with Vie Féminine, participatory works and infiltration test, and co-design workshops at the school “Collège de la Fraternité”. Header photo: students proudly showing their co-design.
