United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP23)

The 23rd United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP23) was held in November 2017 in Bonn. The 12-day event was the largest international conference ever to take place in Germany. 26,000 participants from 196 countries and 7000 crew members from 70 sites had to be taken into consideration. Various Bonn authorities were brought in for the fire protection and safety concepts, as well as a flood concept. In addition, the Rheinaue area on the banks of the Rhine on which temporary buildings were placed should remain as undamaged as possible. Furthermore, the climate summit was realised for the first time ith an environmentally friendly event management according to EMAS. A superordinate aim was to keep the environmental impact of COP23 as verifiably minimal as possible. Vagedes & Schmid coordinated these many complex factors in just 9 months.

The concept consisted of designing a creative venue for events, personal exchanges and the networking of the participants. A “Blue Zone” was to be created as a negotiation area and a “Green Zone” as a platform similar to a trade fair. As the Bonn World Conference Centre and the UN Campus were not adequate for this, the agency built a supplementary two-part city of temporary buildings spanning 55,000 square metres. The content specifications were realised in a “Bula Zone” (Fijian for “welcome”) in which the official climate protection negotiations took place. The “Bonn Zone” (or “Green Zone”) was relocated to the Rheinaue area, a public park by the Rhine. Possible solutions were demonstrated and discussed there in a temporary tent city. In reference to the COP presidency of the island state of Fiji, the sleek design with targeted contrasts, large-format images and Fijian greetings on wave-shaped wall elements was intended to generate a “Fiji look and feel”