Sponge Cities: When Nature Teaches Us How to Design the Future
Not long ago, while walking through Cumbayá during a heavy rain, I ended up soaked to the knees because of a collapsed storm drain. It’s ironic: we live in a city of mountains and ravines, yet we’ve made it impermeable. Concrete everywhere, rivers channeled or buried, and every winter catches us off guard as if we didn’t know what was coming. That day, I stumbled upon a fascinating idea: “sponge cities.” It sounds almost like science fiction, but it's a real proposal that’s transforming how we design urban spaces. Instead of resisting water, these cities absorb it, filter it, and reuse it—mimicking natural ecosystems like wetlands and forests. In China, the concept gained momentum after the devastating floods of 2012. In 2015, the government launched a program to transform 30 cities—including Wuhan—into sponge cities, aiming to absorb up to 70% of rainfall. They used green roofs, floodable parks, permeable pavement, and urban wetlands (World Resources Institute, 2022). And it’s not...