Summer semester 2026

F06 - Integrated Climate Resilience Planning in Bacolod, Philippines

The City of Bacolod is the most populous and highly urbanized city on the Island of Negros with a total of 624,787 inhabitants as of the 2024 census. The city experienced a steady population growth of 1-2% p.a. in the last 25 years. The economy has shifted from sugarcane production to information technology (IT) and business process outsourcing (BPO) activities as well as serving as the main hub for maritime and airborne transport. Bacolod is also home to 5 universities.

From ridges to reeve, Bacolod City faces climate risks ranging from severe flooding and typhoons to extreme heat. The convergence of climate-related hazards and urban expansion poses a serious challenge to the city in achieving modern economic development goals while building resilience to combat escalating climate extremes. These climate impacts disproportionately affect the most vulnerable communities and marginalized groups - particularly the urban poor and informal settlers, as well as jeopardize susceptible urban infrastructure, including utilities and transport systems.

The F-project will focus on exploring options for an integrated climate resilience urban development in Bacolod, Philippines, with a proactive, multi-sectoral approach for enhancing communities' climate resilience. While some interventions can be on the city-wide level, the F-project can also focus on a designated area within the city, specifically the old airport area and coastal settlements, to design a resilient neighborhood with community-based interventions.

The F-project will work closely with the planning department of Bacolod. It will be supported by the joint research project "Urban-Act- Integrated Urban Climate Action for Low-Carbon & Resilient Cities" from TU Dortmund University and University of Stuttgart, the local government and local university in Bacolod and GIZ.

At the University of Stuttgart in the winter term, a MSc project focusing on infrastructure development will work parallel on Bacolod and a mutual exchange is planned. Local students of Civil Engineering (The University of Negros Occidental) will also work on the same area, and a joint workshop is planned during a 2-3-week excursion to Bacolod in February/March 2025.

Dates: Tuesday, 21.04.2026 to 21.07.2026 , 14:00 to 18:00, weekly
Friday, 17.04.2026 to 24.07.2026, 14:00 to 18:00, weekly
Location: GB III, R 101
Further information: Event in LSF
Supervision: Dr.,Dipl.-Ing. Wolfgang Scholz, Dr.-Ing Wiriya Puntub,Dr. Raphael Beier