In the Netherlands they compete to see who will remove the concrete to make way for greenery

The "Tegelwippen" competition was born in the Netherlands, which aims to remove artificial flooring and replace it with earth and plants.

• For four years, a competition to make cities greener has been taking place in the Netherlands.
• Citizens undertake to remove tiles and paving to make way for grass and flowers.
• Every year a prize is given to whoever has removed the most tiles.

In the Netherlands a new national sport is gaining ground, in the literal sense:The Tegelwippen.This competition annual objective is to remove artificial flooring to replace them with earth and plants, thus encouraging the expansion of the public green urban and supporting the country in achieving its climate objectives.In 2024 the fourth edition, in which Dutch municipalities compete to remove the greatest number of tiles, transforming gray spaces into green areas.

A collective action for urban greenery

The process is simple:approximately 30 centimeters of sand and soil are removed under the cement tiles, replacing them with fertile soil.Certain, lifting concrete tiles and carrying them to collection points can be tiring work.For this reason, local authorities provide so-called “tile taxis” for collect waste for free.Thus tiles and other hard surfaces such as concrete and asphalt removed are counted and the municipality wins wins the coveted "golden tile" award.

This year's winner will be decided at the end of October, but the competition has already had a significant impact:since 2021, the year in which the creative agency Frank Lee kicked off the competition, over 11 million tiles have been removed, returning to nature a surface area equal to that of 200 football fields, transformed into trees, gardens and flower beds.

The competition from the Netherlands is a pretext

“The competition is clearly a pretext,” explains Eva Braaksma, creative director of Frank Lee.“People love competition!But the strength of this initiative lies in its simplicity:grab a shovel and start digging.” Participants are also invited to document their work:every month a jury selects the most successful transformations, assigning the title of whipper of the month.Jelmer, a participant from Groningen, was one of the winners.Together with his son Abel, he demolished the tiles in his garden, taking them away with a wheelbarrow to create a green space where he now grows herbs, pumpkins, salads and fruit.

Neighbors also often join forces to create green facades or vertical gardens, small green oases that extend between the street and the homes.In many Dutch municipalities, it is sufficient to notify the local authorities to obtain permission, and in some cases, the latter even offer to do the work.These gardens help keep homes cool during the summer and absorb rainwater during the increasingly frequent downpours, one of the most tangible consequences of the climate crisis.Rotterdam holds the record for the longest green façade in the country, stretching over 140 metres.

Another whipper of the month he removed around 200 tiles in a single day, creating green borders in his garden in Meppel, in the north-east of the Netherlands.Not only will children enjoy playing in the puddles created in the new space, but less paving means better water drainage and, consequently, drier roads for the millions of cyclists who cross the country every day.

In short, Tegelwippen it's not just a race, but a concrete step towards a greener and more resilient Netherlands.Another of those examples to be made known to the whole world so that they can be replicated.