Poldering in the Netherlands

From Mark Sommers - Oregon, USA

For a program on sea level rise, I recently interviewed a wetlands expert in the Netherlands. He told me a fascinating story/The Dutch have been settling on lands well below sea level for a thousand years. Their primary defense against inundation has been for each village to create and maintain its own coordinated program to maintain dikes and other measures. Everyone in the village is expected to take part in this maintenance effort, and regardless of their other differences all are expected to come to agreement on this crucial defense effort. The lands between the dikes just happen to be known as polders and the consensus-building process that organizes these  efforts is known as poldering.  My informant told me that poldering is probably the single most important factor in creating an almost uniquely Dutch penchant for social cohesion and reaching consensus in a society of stubbornly individual citizens. Ironically, the very term poldering is actually the essence of de-polarizing decisionmaking. In this cases,not only have the Dutch been able to establish the world's most effective defenses against sea level rise but in the process they have created one of our best models for getting along with one another in a modern industrial nation on one of the most densely populated landscapes on earth.

Comments

[Katia]

A reminder how our challenges can actually create community. It made me wonder on the issue of Tsunamei Relief and deforestation is there a way to view this as a community building opportunity

[Josh]

Thanks to Mark for this story. What this made me really think through are the dynamics that exist in the context vs. the situation with hurricane Katrina. Two similar scenarios -- 1 handled effectively and the other very poorly. Curious what the primary differences are here and how the third side can assist in this context?

[Kurt O'Brien]

An intriguing story from Mark, and thought provoking comments/questions from Katia & Josh. One of the things that stirkes me about the two scenarios (the Netherlands and Louisiana) is that one takes a very proactive approach, while here in the US it was very reactive. Although the aftermath of Katrina was tragic, stories abound of the selfless response to help. Even today people from around the country are still volunteering their time to help with cleanup and getting people back on their feet. And while this response is wonderful, I wonder, what can we learn from the Dutch about proactively addressing the issue and involving community early on? Are we so caught up in our daily lives that it naturally leads to a more ractive mindset?

[justin bieber supra]

Hey ! am I glad to vist your blog ! from this I can get some information and facts that I didn’t know prior to. You made my day. Thank you rather much!

[crime scene cleanup]

This was incredible story Mr. Mark Sommers! This is a very informative story about the situation in Netherlands. Thanks for this sotry!

[elliptical reviews]

No offense, but i suggest admin adding a google+ button for easy share!