What is really needed to solve pressing social sustainability issues?

An interview with Tjibbe Winkler, director at the GIDO foundation and program manager of the Bridge Campus Flevoland-Floriade and Raw Materials Collective Almere

There are a number of grand societal tasks that have been on the table for too long. These include, of course, the urgency of building housing and renovating infrastructure. But yes, in order to build and renovate, we need raw materials. At the same time, there are legitimate climate challenges and sustainability ambitions. In short: what will be the solution regarding, for example, those waste streams and the reuse of materials?

We are talking to the visibly enthusiastic Tjibbe Winkler who knows the answer to the questions at hand: circular economy. "And by that I mean not only an actual cycle of raw materials but also a cycle of finances as well as data."

Winkler estimates that the cost of failure in construction in the Netherlands due to inefficiency is about 16 billion euros annually. "There is something to be gained," he says. "First, it is important that we develop other competencies in people and organizations in the chain. After all, we are doing new things. For example, the structural application of cementless concrete from the Theo Pouw group as with the Floriade bridges. That takes guts, and not just from the contractor Reimert. I wonder why, in the current times, when literally so many new challenges come our way, we keep running through the standard lists and ticking them off. This is also much more about more effective interaction between client and contractor in order to arrive at better solutions together and to have a clearer picture of where materials can be reused, for example. For example, DuraVermeer is applying existing girders from the A27 footbridge to one of the Floriade bridges. We must be aware that it is necessary to turn waste streams into new raw materials. And that in the shortest possible chain. That is the basis of the necessary circular economy. Scaling up successful pilots is crucial in this regard."

Winkler feels he is a booster of creating new forms of cooperation. "Chain cooperation, new business models, inspiring pilots ... you name it: in short, a systemic change has to come about."

Is sustainability more expensive? Sustainability - according to Winkler - is still too often seen as a cost. "A sustainable, sometimes also higher investment, can ultimately make management cheaper through medium-term returns. There is a large cross-section of all kinds of factors that can reduce the cost of 'management' - if properly combined and well-chosen."

Winkler therefore has a clear appeal to the industry.

"For example, literally let go of the cement in construction and give room for other options of bonding. We have been cemented up for 200 years, but there are other options. I also advocate combining different residual streams. That variety provides new opportunities. And, finally - reusing concrete is also a serious option. Bridges can be given a second life through clever use of materials. The end result? Less waste of raw materials. So more sustainability. And ... if we are lucky, this will save 16 billion in failure costs. And these are costs that ultimately the citizens bear, every year, without any social benefit." 

See also www.bruggencampus.nl and www.gca-almere.nl.