Prof. Martin Dieterich raised the problem of high-density urban areas by presenting the shining example of Stuttgart Metropolitan Area and Swabian Alb Mountain accompanied by definitions and rather detailed description of strong sustainability and ecosystem goods and services. The speaker concluded that urban environment cannot be sustainable as it strongly depends on its hinterland and  there is a real need to find new balance between them.

Dr. Klaus Kubeczko talked about cities and the imperative of sustainability, emphasising the necessity for long-term orientation and the changes indispensable in dealing with urban challenges. Answering the key questions of his presentation “Where we are?”, Dr. Klaus Kubeczko inferred that “we are in the beginning of changing time”.

Dr. Elena Lioubimtseva made an inspiring presentation concerning the anomalies and catastrophic outcomes from Climate Change such as floods, droughts, heat-waves, tornados in the world during past years. Touching upon the issue of adaptation to Climate Change, she deduced that “it is not about +3°C”, but about specific communities and which resources they have; there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution for adapting to consequences of Climate Change.

There are many challenges for creating Eco-cities of the future; however, the analysis of this workshop shows that the necessity of them is definitely clear. Moreover, the solutions require radical and fast changes in all aspects of our present existence.