On 3 July DOWN TO EARTH’s seventh and final exhibition, THE HIGH GROUND, opens at the Biesboschhal in Dordrecht. Curated by IABR–DOWN TO EARTH chief curator George Brugmans, THE HIGH GROUND shows how Dordrecht’s water safety agenda can be used as leverage to promote the Drechtsteden 2030 Growth Agenda as well as Dordrecht’s sustainability ambitions.

^{DOWN TO EARTH: THE HIGH GROUND}

^{image: Aad Hoogendoorn}

The exhibition focuses on the results of the IABR–Atelier Dordrecht, with Adriaan Geuze (West 8) as its lead designer. They make it crystal clear that De Staart can play an unexpectedly important role in realizing the city’s water safety agenda. De Staart, currently an isolated area with many problems and few prospects, is located outside the dikes and is Dordrecht’s high-ground city district.If Dordrecht decides to go with the water-safety-as-leverage approach, this will create unexpected opportunities for the sustainable development of an attractive mix-used living and working district including new forms of housing, water-safe facilities, innovative work concepts, and a unique river-bound tidal park, all in harmony with nature and including new connections for slow traffic that can also serve as escape routes.

^{DOWN TO EARTH: THE HIGH GROUND}

^{model by VenhoevenCS - image: Aad Hoogendoorn}

Turning a disadvantage into an advantage
On De Staart, the City of Dordrecht can hit many pins with one ball: increase water safety while at the same time building housing and stimulating employment, optimizing connections in the city and region and increasing the quality of life and recreational opportunities for all inhabitants. Thanks tothe water-safety-as-leverage approach, the Map of Opportunities of De Staart created by West 8 for THE HIGH GROUND reads like a collection of once in a lifetime chances.

^{Biesboschhal, Dordtyard, Dordrecht}

THE HIGH GROUND opens on Saturday 3 July in the Biesboschhal in Dordrecht and can be visited Wednesday to Saturday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. until 14 August.
The exhibition is free of charge and, given the current corona measures, you do not have to make a reservation.

For more information about THE HIGH GROUND, click here
For more info about the IABR–Atelier Dordrecht, click here