IBA as planning instrument

History of the "Internationale Bauausstellung"

In Germany, international construction exhibition projects have been revitalising pushes in urban development for over one hundred years in the form of great constructional innovations. Traditionally, domestic architecture was in the centre of attention. From 1989 to 1999 it was IBA Emscher Park which was dedicated to the restructuring of an entire region for the first time - the Emsch area in the Ruhr region. It has developed a new type of cultural landscape there. This approach is being addressed by IBA Fürst-Pückler-Land in the south of Brandenburg where from 2000 through 2010 the subject "landscape" is and will be in the centre of activities.
In Lusatia millions of cubic metres of soil are being moved within the framework of lignite extraction and redevelopment. Where the energy centre of the former GDR once used to be, you will find Europe's largest landscape construction site today. In this region mountains are being moved and new lakes created. Part of this process of change are industrial buildings, mining equipment, company towns and large-area industrial sites for which new perspectives are to be found.