〜From Proof of Concept to Social Implementation: The Journey Toward a “Civilization Living on Water”〜

Session 5: Case Studies and Future Outlook

Research on floating cities is steadily progressing from theoretical concepts to actual implementation in society.

In the Netherlands, several projects have already been trialed within actual urban spaces. These serve as “preliminary models” for large-scale research like Floating Future, playing a crucial role in feeding back experimental results to society.

This paper introduces two representative case studies—Schoonschip and Space@Sea—and explores the “future vision of aquatic society” revealed through them, along with the future outlook envisioned by our organization, OCI.

◾️Schoonschip: A floating community created by citizens

Schoonschip, a floating residential community spanning the former shipyard site in northern Amsterdam, is recognized as the world's most sustainable floating community. It stands atop a floating module connecting approximately 30 homes, equipped with a floating power grid and a rainwater reuse system.

The impetus for this project came not from government or business, but from citizens' ideas. In 2008, a group of residents gathered around television producer and activist Marjan de Blok, motivated by the desire to “create sustainable living with our own hands.”

Architects, engineers, and urban planners collaborated to achieve a design that minimizes environmental impact. Homes are connected by piers and feature a shared solar power system integrated into a smart grid (local power network). Furthermore, the floating foundations utilize materials conducive to biological colonization, contributing to the regeneration of micro-ecosystems.

This case demonstrates that floating cities are not merely “mega-development projects,” but can also become living spaces created primarily by citizens themselves. The first step toward society opening up to the water may well begin with these “small floating communities where people can enjoy living.”

◾️Space@Sea: Industrial Platform through European Collaboration

Another noteworthy example is the Space@Sea project, supported by the EU's Horizon 2020 research framework. It ran from 2017 to 2021 and involved 13 international partners from countries including the

Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and Norway.

The purpose of Space@Sea is to create new industrial and residential spaces at sea. It is a concept to deploy diverse industrial hubs—such as energy production, aquaculture, logistics, and research bases—as modules on the ocean surface, rather than merely creating residential areas.

The development was centered at MARIN (Maritime Research Institute Netherlands), where dynamic stability tests were conducted on the floating modules considering wind, waves, and tidal currents. The modules are designed based on a hexagonal shape, featuring a structure that allows for free reconfiguration and expansion. This flexibility is expected to form the foundation for future “floating city clusters” and “oceanic national networks.”

Additionally, Space@Sea also included governance design and environmental assessment for maritime living within its research scope. Given its dual-track approach of advancing both technological development and social systems, it can be considered a precursor to Floating Future.

◾️New Values of “Floating Cities” Demonstrated by Real Examples

Schoonschip represented “spaces for human daily life,” while Space@Sea represented “spaces for industry and technology.” Combining these two axes reveals the potential value inherent in floating cities.

1. Suitable cities

A city that transcends land constraints, freely expanding and reconfiguring itself above sea level. It functions as an evacuation hub during disasters and serves as a place for living, education, and research in peacetime.

2. A Circular Society

Forming a sustainable economic model that encompasses energy, food, and water circulation systems, connecting land and sea.

3. Co-creating Community

A new form of urban governance designed and operated collaboratively by citizens, businesses, government, and academia. A society built together, not imposed from above.

Floating cities are not merely offshore structures; they can become vessels for a new civilization.

◾️OCI Perspective: Building a “Maritime Civilization” in Japan

OCI is learning from these overseas examples while striving to realize a “society that lives with water” through a unique approach originating in Japan.

OCI's “Project Seatopia” aims to create a multipurpose, mobile floating base that integrates disaster response, international cooperation, and environmental restoration.

For example,

・Function as a base for rescue, medical, and material support during disasters,

・Serve as a venue for international conferences, cultural exchange, education, and research during peacetime,

・Establish a modular network of offshore bases.

This is not merely the development of structures, but the formation of a “maritime civilization foundation” that connects people, regions, cultures, and the environment.

As demonstrated by initiatives like Floating Future and the Blue Revolution Foundation, integrating technology, institutions, culture, and civil society is the key to shaping the future of ocean society. OCI is advancing a vision to adapt this philosophy to the realities of Japan and the Asia-Pacific region, evolving it into the construction of an Ocean Asia Model.

◾️Future Outlook: From Maritime Society to “Ocean Civilization”

The floating city of the future is no longer a science fiction dream. Floating technology is emerging as a practical solution to real-world challenges such as climate change, population concentration, energy crises, and food shortages.

Looking ahead over the next 20 to 30 years, we will likely see an era where:

・Parts of cities expand into the sea,

・Disaster-resistant offshore evacuation bases are established,

・ Self-sustaining floating communities utilizing marine resources and renewable energy emerge.

However, what truly matters is not the technology itself, but the vision of what kind of society we build upon it. What we at OCI aim for is a new vision of civilization: “redefining the sea not as a boundary that divides us, but as a shared space that connects humanity.”

The floating city is a platform for humanity and nature to find harmony once more within the Earth's environment. There, energy, food, and culture are interconnected through the principles of circulation and symbiosis.

◾️In Lieu of a Conclusion

From the quiet canals of Schoonschip to the Space@Sea experimental module floating in the North Sea, and on to research and policy movements around the world...

The tide of floating cities is undoubtedly heralding the arrival of a new oceanic era.

OCI will continue to walk the path of “creating a marine civilization” while learning from this international movement. The future city floating on the sea will not merely be a technology to prepare for disasters and climate change; it will become a symbol of humanity choosing once again the path of “living in harmony with nature.”

Reference Case Links

Schoonschip Official Site

https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/774253