Original subtitles

Narrator: As the world's population grows,

Our cities have become inundated

With bigger and taller buildings.

But now, some innovative developers

Are setting their sights elsewhere.

De blok: Living on the water, this is the answer to so many questions

That we have going on in the world right now.

Narrator: A brand new way of living is on the rise,

Where the sea and modern engineering

Become one and the same.

Derouin: We call it "the next generation floating home."

You can change your view.

You change change your neighbors, if you want.

Adams: Everything you see here

I've done with a handsaw and hammer.

Narrator: As our planet suffers from environmental issues,

Like coastal flooding,

The sea has become home to a new breed of sea-steaders,

Looking to thrive

In these full-fledged ocean civilizations.

Van wingerden: Sometimes, you need to be a little bit crazy

To test innovations.

Narrator: But building an autonomous floating city

Has its challenges.

It will take some of the toughest sea monsters

To ensure each marine metropolis survives and thrives.

-- Captions by vitac -- www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by discovery communications

Every year, more than 87 million people flock to florida

To soak up the sun, and vacation on its balmy beaches.

But even though these shorelines may be beautiful,

They can also be ground zero for disaster.

And while the sunshine state isn't the only coastal city

Affected by rising sea levels and devastating hurricanes,

Over the past decade, a growing number of cities in florida

Have stepped up to the challenge to defend their communities

From the brutal effects of mother nature.

Throughout miami beach, entire road ways have been raised

To protect a nearby ocean-side community

Situated in the heart of hurricane alley.

Miami beach city manager jimmy morales is leading

The effort to safe-guard communities

At the highest level of risk from flooding.

Morales: We're standing in a neighborhood called "sunset harbor,"

On the northern end of south beach, on 20th street,

A street that, only about five or six years ago,

On a king tide day was literally underwater.

But it wasn't this side of the street, it was actually,

As you look over to my right, here, was that low.

Narrator: A rising sea level is likely to make coastal storms,

Including hurricanes, especially more damaging.

And over the last decade, florida's sea level

Has been rising faster than ever.

Morales: Let's say a hurricane hits during a massive king tide,

And now, you not only have the sea level up 2 or 3 feet

Higher than normal, you now have a storm surge.

That enhanced storm surge is a huge fear of ours.

Narrator: In the state of florida, there are over 120,000 properties

At risk from frequent tidal flooding.

To protect the properties in sunset harbor from flooding,

The city has installed a new storm-water system

And raised roads.

But over time, these systems have worn down,

And are in need of repairs.

Today, due in part to jimmy's initiatives,

Higher sea walls are being built around shorelines.

In addition, 80 pump stations will be installed

To prevent water from breaching that defense.

Just up the coast,

Fort lauderdale is following suit.

Gassman: Right now, the storm station is discharging.

This is coming mostly from ground water,

'cause you can see, it's not raining.

That ground water comes through what is a very porous geology,

And it seeps into our pipes.

And it's getting pumped through this storm station,

And out into the river.

And that's what's keeping downtown dry.

Narrator: But one design firm has found an alternative solution

To battling hurricane season.

Floating waterfront properties are quite literally

The next generation of ocean living.

When elevated, they are as stable as a house,

And protected from the waves.

Come on in. I'll show you around.

Narrator: Nicolas derouin has been talking up

Sustainable sea living for over a decade.

Today, he's taking us on a tour of one of his company's

Livable space models called "the arkup one."

Derouin: We have two main floors.

This is the main living area,

With the living, dining, kitchen, open floor plan.

We have 9.5 foot ceilings.

Total living area of the boat is 2,700 square feet indoor

And 1,700 square feet outdoor.

This, for example, is a retractable deck

That slides underneath the main deck

When we're under navigation,

And is extended to add about 500 square feet of outdoor space

When we are at anchor, and stable.

Narrator: At 75 feet long and 33 feet wide,

This dwelling is massive.

Powered by a pair of 136 horsepower

Electric thrusters,

This floating mansion can move at a top speed of 7 knots.

As impressive as this super home is on the outside,

Its infrastructure is even more amazing.

This is really one key technical compartment of the vessel.

That's the electrical room.

And the boat's completely solar electric,

And solar-powered, right.

So, here we have two big battery banks

To store that solar energy,

And then provide electricity for the all the loads --

Appliances, air conditioning, lights, and also the propulsion.

Narrator: The batteries store everything

This solar-paneled roof can kick out.

So, even in stormy weather, there's enough stored power

To keep this house running for three days.

And the rain comes in handy, too.

In addition to produce our own energy,

We also harvest the rainwater,

And then collect it in a 4,000 gallon

Freshwater tank behind this wall.

And we filter the rainwater to our drinking water on board.

And these are the different filters

That are part of this purification system.

Narrator: But the heart beat of this whole operation is up at the helm.

This is the main control panels and systems for the vessel.

So, on this right side of the helm station,

This is actually where we control the propulsion system.

So, these are the controls

For the electric thrusters at the stern.

And this is for the bow thrusters.

So, we use it mainly to maneuver and dock.

Then, we have, like, basic navigation features,

Like the navigation lights, anchor lights,

The horn, the vhf radio.

Those controls, here, are for the sliding decks.

And then, this screen is where, basically,

We monitor all the resources on board.

So, here, the screen tells us the rpms of the engines

When the boat's under navigation.

This is the charge of the battery.

So, it's almost fully charged.

This is the fresh water capacity.

And then, on the other part of the helm station,

On the left side, those controls are for

The anchoring and the stabilization system.

Those four joysticks actually control

Each one of the four anchors,

Those four pilings, that enable to stabilize the boat,

And lift it out of the water.

Narrator: The arkup one is a fully mobile, zero emission,

Self-sufficient home

That's immune to floods and rising seas.

It is even designed to handle 156 mph winds.

That's equivalent to a category 4 hurricane.

But staring down mother nature's fury takes nerves --

And legs -- of hardened steel.

So, this is one of the four anchors of the vessel.

So, it's called a "jack-up system."

It's actually a steel piling and a hydraulic system

That lifts it or drops it.

In shallow waters, like 10 feet, for instance,

We can lift the entire vessel 15 feet above the water.

Narrator: Today, nicolas is running a critical test

On the arkup's legs,

In preparation for hurricane season.

Derouin: Since hurricane season's coming,

We want to make sure we are completely prepared,

And able to use the jack-up system

Whenever we need, if we really need to use it.

So, I'm gonna start inspecting the lifting system,

To see if the boat moves accordingly.

Narrator: Lifting this fully furnished house

Can take up to two hours,

So nicolas needs to constantly adjust the height of each leg

To keep the arkup level.

Each leg is a 39-foot long, 99-ton hydraulic jack.

As the legs extend, they can be individually adjusted

To cope with an uneven seabed below.

And together, they can lift the entire,

Nearly 300-ton arkup 26 feet into the air.

So, we just finished the inspection routine,

And all the systems look good.

We've tested each one of the four anchors,

And we're ready in case of an event

Where we would need to lift the vessel,

Or lower it to move it.

Narrator: The arkup's technological capabilities

Make it the perfect building block

For a future marine metropolis.

Although miami has taken some major strides

To protect its coastal communities from flooding,

By installing pumps and raising roads,

These measure only provide a short-term solution

To an ever-growing problem across the country.

But while the u.S. Is still battling

How to handle rising sea levels,

The netherlands has already figured it out.

Narrator: Nearly 1/4 of the netherlands is below sea level.

To prevent the country from flooding,

The dutch have developed innovative

Water protection systems to push back against the waves.

For centuries, they've used windmills

To clear low-lying land, by pumping water out to sea.

In the 1990s, the dutch built these massive steel gates,

Called the "maeslant barrier",

To protect the port of rotterdam from violent storm surges.

Today, engineers are building vast raised barriers

Along the entire coast, to keep the north sea at bay.

And now, developers are taking living on water

To the next level.

100 years ago, people were looking for new space,

And they went up, in vertical buildings,

Making high-rise buildings.

Now, today, it's the same.

We see water. We see the possibility to build on water.

And with our floating technology,

We can slowly grow into the water.

This is the most dutch view you will ever get.

We have the bicycles, of course you need bicycles in holland.

And we have the floating homes.

And the floating homes,

They stand for the new thinking in holland

That you shouldn't fight the water.

We should live with the water.

Narrator: Architect koen olthuis is the founder of a design firm

That specializes in floating structures,

Including the arkup.

For over 20 years,

Koen's been developing a new form of urban design,

Called "aquatecture" --

Architecture designed to work with water.

And all of koen's hard work has contributed to this.

This is skoonship.

When it's finished, more than 100 people

Will live in this floating community.

Olthuis: The good about building on water is that you have flexibility.

So, you could just connect a floating swimming pool,

Or an extra room for your grandmother,

If she comes to stay, or a greenhouse,

Or I could put my house, and rotate it,

And put it back.

Narrator: Located in north amsterdam, the community of skoonship

Aims to make the most of the netherlands' usable space

While future-proofing housing against rising sea levels.

But building a fully sustainable community

Didn't happen overnight.

It's taken 10 years to get municipalities

To rewrite legislation,

And allow this type of community to operate.

Until recently, laws regarding building codes or property tax

On the water was an unexplored concept.

So, if you place your house on water,

You still also need a license to place it over there.

And you need to own, or to lease, the water.

So, either you will buy a plot of land,

With water on top of it,

And you can place your floating house there,

Or you pay a monthly lease to the city.

And then, you get the right to moor your house

On that location.

Narrator: The first step in building skoonship

Was to install five permanent t-shaped piers.

Then, 60 steel support structures

Were mounted into the canal bed below.

The houses are fastened to these steel structures,

And the homes are equipped with water pumps

That extract heat from the canal's water.

This is our heat pump,

Which takes care of our heated tap water,

And also, the floor heating, to heat our house.

We have solar panels on the roof, which generate energy.

And most of it, during the day is stored inside this battery.

We have our water pump for waste water.

And we have a vacuum system that takes our waste from the toilet,

And transports it to a central facility

That generates bio-energy.

Narrator: Now, the town is installing its last piece of infrastructure.

Kingma: There's so much energy, there's so much excitement,

So much people working in work groups.

Today, our ship is coming home.

Glasl: So, the bridge here is an important traffic junction.

For the municipality, it's really crucial

That they cannot open this bridge for too long.

So, they have a very strict time slot.

It's actually kind of a military operation,

Because what they need to do is,

They need to go through the bridge,

And the bridge is a little smaller than 11 meters.

And the boat will be about 10 1/2 meters.

Narrator: The team works quickly to move the structure

Through the narrow bridge.

One of the most crucial steps is anchoring the boat,

So these homes don't become drifting debris.

Every houseboat is attached to two big poles, basically,

Which keep the boat in place.

There's squared anchors around the pole.

And that keeps us from floating around, basically.

We have massive winds here,

But the house is still pretty solid, yeah.

If there's a very, very big storm,

I think it's difficult to say.

But in general, they're very stable,

And they can move up and down.

So, if the water level will change,

They move with the water.

Narrator: And the skoonship homes all work together

As a one-of-a-kind smart power grid.

Each house contributes to a circular energy system,

In which solar panels account for most of the energy needed,

And a battery in the basement stores any extra.

Glasl: So, that means that, when I generate energy,

And I'm on holiday, for example,

My neighbor can use my energy, also.

And that's very unique for the netherlands,

Because that's not allowed, usually.

And we got an exception of the law

In order to experiment with that, with the smart grid.

Gladek: A lot of what you find in this project is extremely unique,

And we hope that, through all of the efforts in pioneering,

These kind of projects will be able to be replicated

And scaled more broadly across the world.

Narrator: 10 years ago, this floating neighborhood

Was just a pipe dream.

But for the people living in this community,

It's a dream come true.

Uffink: There is this very big sense of freedom

That I have since I'm living here.

I wake up in the morning, I just want to stay here, you know?

De blok: I think today it's a big relief for a lot of people.

You know, you look at this and you think,

"oh, nice, happy people living here."

But it was a lot of work, a lot of stress,

A lot of money, a lot of time.

It's like we went in the jungle with our knives,

And we paved the roads for other people.

Narrator: There's no question that, when it comes to ingenuity,

The dutch reign supreme.

In this waterlogged country,

The ideology is not to subdue mother nature,

But rather find opportunities to work with her.

And now, not only is the netherlands building

Floating communities,

They're also re-thinking how cities can promote

A sustainable food cycle.

Van wingerden: Sometimes, you need to be a little bit crazy,

To test innovations.

Narrator: Around the world, homeowners are packing their dry bags,

And moving out to sea.

In miami, florida, there's a high-tech home that can swim.

In amsterdam, there are entire smart communities that float.

And now, across the netherlands, in rotterdam,

Even dairy cows are taking the plunge.

Van wingerden: Sometimes, you need to be a little bit crazy

To test innovations.

Narrator: This three-story structure

Is nearly 19,400 square feet of floating farmland.

Peter van wingerden has been

Running this futuristic dairy farm

Since it opened its doors in may 2019.

Van wingerden: So, this building has three layers.

On top, you see the production area, where the cows are.

One layer on the first floor is a processing area.

So, that's where the raw milk is being processed

Into pasteurized milk and yogurt.

And downstairs is our floating part, the water part.

Narrator: The first challenge in building a floating dairy farm

Is ensuring a stable infrastructure.

Just like the floating homes,

The farm sits on a hollow concrete foundation.

Van wingerden: So, now, we are going to the key of the technology.

We're downstairs, now, over here.

This is our floating caissons.

We have designed and engineered these caissons.

These are huge concrete caissons.

Narrator: Three huge caissons are connected, side by side,

To form the farm's massive floating base.

With an entire story submerged below the water line,

There's enough buoyancy to keep four fully loaded 747s afloat.

It's practically unsinkable.

And to make sure the cows on board don't get sea sick,

It all sits in a well-protected spot,

Far from the wind and waves of the north sea.

Like the skoonship homes,

The floating farm is anchored by two huge metal piles,

And that foundation is so wide and stable

There's barely any movement --

Even when the herd's on the move.

But this farm does a lot more than just float.

Van wingerden: We wanted to design and implement

The best animal-friendly, comfortable stable there is.

And I think we managed that.

Narrator: On the farm's top floor,

The milking is done automatically by robots.

Then, it's transferred to a storage tank below deck.

Van wingerden: So, this is our storage tank.

It's 3,500 liters.

So, we're producing 800 liters per day of milk.

So, we can store between four and five days

Over here, in this tank.

We cool it down to 4 degrees.

From the storage tank, we bring it to the next stage,

And that's the pasteurization part.

So, here, we pasteurize and homogenize the milk.

And we also bottle it into bottles, partly milk and yogurt.

And then, it goes to our cooling storages,

And from there, we sell it back to the city.

Narrator: This floating farm also utilizes waste products

From local industries,

Making it not just futuristic, but sustainable.

Van wingerden: Here, you see, by the way, our automated feed-belt.

So, we collect all the bio waste that gets in this machine.

There, it's assembled.

And we're working with beer broth,

We're working with potato peels,

We're working with grass from golf course,

From our biggest football team over here.

So, we get all this bio waste,

And then, it goes automatically on top

With this automated feed-belt.

Narrator: 50% of the farms power comes from a solar array

Floating right next door,

Designed in the shape of a milk bottle.

Soon, peter hopes to add windmills, too.

Van wingerden: We're collecting rainwater on the roof.

The rainwater's being treated downstairs with membranes,

And goes back as drinking water to our cows.

Narrator: Not only does the farm utilize waste from other industries,

It also repurposes its own waste.

Van wingerden: Upstairs, the manure over this, collecting the manure.

It dumps it in this funnel over here.

And here, we split it into dry matter and to urine.

So, the urine we treat again.

We take out all the water.

We can dispose the water in the river.

And the salt we sell back to the city as a nutrient again.

Narrator: This place has literally taken renewable

Urban living to the next level.

For peter, the technological advances made to sustain

This vertical floating dairy farm are huge.

Van wingerden: Food transportation is polluting the world dramatically.

It creates food losses, as well.

So, we have to produce food

As close as we can get to consumers.

So, we need to find space inside cities,

And the best climate-adaptive space is on the water.

The next farm will be next door, over here.

And that hosts 7,000 chicken.

And we will also have one with vertical farming.

So, we will produce vegetables over here on the water.

So, we strongly believe that we are part of a great symbiose

Between city and the water landscape.

And we leave the landscape on the land side intact,

Because land is not meant to be transformed into concrete.

It should be land.

And to catch rain, and to produce oxygen,

And what we call the most essential part of life,

Producing healthy food.

Narrator: Thanks to this innovative concept,

Even dense downtown areas

Could soon be farmed to feed the masses.

And while rotterdam is the only city to experiment

With this agricultural method,

One couple has taken the idea of waterborne living

Even further.

Narrator: While many designers have just recently

Made life on the water a reality,

Off the coast of british columbia's

Vancouver island,

One couple has been living on their own water world

For over 25 years.

Adams: Everything you see here

I've done with a handsaw and hammer.

Every board that I have here --

And I have over 240,000 pieces --

I've hauled it all. I moved it all here.

Narrator: Freedom cove is a floating island

Unlike anything you've ever seen.

Run by wayne adams and his wife, catherine king,

This multi-colored floating refuge

Sits on top of a dozen interlocking steel docks

That were all recovered from an old fish farm.

In fact, everything constructed here

Has been made from re-claimed materials.

Adams: Choosing to be artists means we had to do things

With a low budget.

So, I barter. I trade.

60% of what you walk through here came through trade.

Narrator: Part art, part vegetable garden, this ultra-sustainable habitat

Was designed to make use of whatever

And whenever it's available.

King: It started out as a salad garden,

And I very quickly realized

I wanted to grow everything that we eat.

And so, each year, it got bigger, and bigger, and bigger.

Narrator: Today, this island weighs just over 1,000 tons.

But the secret to keeping it afloat

Lies hidden beneath its leafy crown.

Assembled like massive legos is a random assortment

Of over 30 heavy-duty floating platforms

That were once used as walkways around local fish farms.

Wayne has spent decades salvaging them.

Every time his island grows,

He ties it all together with cast-off rope.

Adams: All this is recycled from the fish farm industry,

Because they cannot re-tie ropes.

It makes them un-insurable.

Me, I'm not insured in any way.

As the storms come, and the winter comes,

Everything must move, and not break.

It must be flexible.

Everything likes to move.

I don't have a rigid system, like the fish farms do.

I have ropes tied to shore, like a giant spider's web.

I put tension and weights on those lines, so that it moves.

So, it's a giant flexible system that moves up and down,

And around about 20 feet,

And takes the storms, and takes movement.

Narrator: As wayne keeps the island afloat,

Catherine keeps them fed with produce

From the world's largest floating vegetable garden.

King: This is greenhouse number one, two, three, and four.

I start everything from seed in the greenhouses,

And then bring the plants out as they're ready.

I grow all our fruits and vegetables.

I'm able to grow them all year round.

This time of year, I have fruits and berries,

So that I'm eating everything right from the garden.

Narrator: The summer's yielded a good amount of crops.

Freedom cove looks like a floating forest,

But all of this can change during the winter season.

Adams: I'm able to hang my stuff up.

I can look in the jars to what I need,

And I need a lot of things here, to make this island work.

Narrator: There's no question that living on the edge

Of the pacific northwest is a full-time job.

There is constant work to be done,

Especially in preparation for winter.

Adams: This is the time of year I get everything ready for winter.

So, when the big storms come,

I make sure all my fabric, everything is nailed down,

So the hurricane-force winds don't rip my roof apart.

I've lost two roofs, here, in hurricane-force winds.

So many people come out here,

And they don't fix things right away,

And it becomes a very big problem.

And most of them leave because it becomes too much.

Narrator: The island receives electricity by way of photo-voltaics,

Which is a process that converts light into electricity

Using semi-conducting materials.

Adams: The science behind the paint is,

If I paint my house, to keep it light.

It keeps my house dry,

And my house doesn't take on moisture from the rain.

So, I don't take on more weight.

When you have a cedar house, and it rains,

The house became so heavy it immersed in the water 10 inches.

And the fresh water is less float-ability than saltwater.

So, now, I have the rain, and extra weight,

I have less float-ability.

The challenge in life is to keep the gardener

Form bringing more plants.

But as you can see, there's no room.

My job is to keep floating it.

Narrator: For wayne and catherine, freedom cove is as much

Their home as it is an entire installation art piece

That transforms every year, often inspired by the seasons.

I have a few west coast firsts.

First floating fire pit,

So I can have a fire away from the forest.

And behind me, over here, I have west coast's first

Floating double garage.

I never have to worry about bending my boat

When it's pouring rain anymore.

I have my own floating totem pole.

It took me eight years to carve it.

And I put it all up by myself.

I have a floating wood shed over here.

So, it's nice and handy to the house.

I keep a quart of wood in there, and that's good for a month.

The lighthouse upstairs I did for my grandson,

As a little treat for him.

But the light works, and I'm able to keep to keep things dry,

Like I have a hot water tank

And a shower for when the family comes.

And then, we have four greenhouses we made.

Everything is made from recycled materials,

And all the greenhouses are a little bit different,

Because all the materials came at a different time.

I have a water source above me, over the hill, here.

It's a old succeeded lake.

And I have 50 feet of vertical head,

And I'm able to pipe the water into the garden.

Without the water, we couldn't have the garden.

I have my little man cave, here.

Watch your head. I made it for a little irish guy.

I have several things in here --

My workspace, and my tools.

I have a washing machine in here.

I have heat in here, solar batteries, and a generator.

So, I have multi-use energy, and I keep the power going.

Narrator: If all that doesn't float your boat,

Wayne's living room is truly one-of-a-kind.

In the dead of winter, he can catch at fish

Without ever having to leave his house.

Adams: There is nothing like being at home, and fishing off the couch.

It's always been a dream of mine.

Fresh fish every day.

Very alive this time of year.

That's because of the ocean channel.

Narrator: After more than two decades afloat,

Freedom cove proves you don't need to be high-tech

To live self-sufficiently on the water.

Adams: We are blazing the trails.

Living on liquid is going to be

A very big thing in the future,

And we have to work together on that.

The technology is there.

People are starting to realize that

There's something good about that.

Narrator: Whether you live in a floating community,

Or build your own off-the-grid paradise,

There's no denying that sustainable living

Is on the rise.

But what if you're looking for a happy medium?

A home that provides all the benefits of life on the water

Without actually leaving an urban setting.

Thanks to this community, you might be able to have it all.

Narrator: Across the globe, oceans cover more than 70% of the planet.

They're the biggest life source in our universe.

But due to rising sea levels,

Our current existence on land could be in danger.

To adapt, some people are turning to a life out at sea.

But unless you're willing to pay for a luxury floating yacht,

Or build your own community from the ground up,

Is there another option?

In vancouver, canada, judy ross is the co-founder

Of a modern floating development

Called "spirit trail ocean homes."

This community offers the unique experience

Of living on the water without the hefty investment.

I think a lot of people are looking at

The lower-price float homes,

And thinking maybe that would be a lifestyle they'd like to have,

And also be somewhat more affordable.

Narrator: Many of the pads here are a generous size.

Then, there's this.

It's called "the sea star."

At 538 square feet,

It's small enough to slide into a standard boat slip.

You've got your living room,

With fireplace and nice big windows.

Narrator: This tiny home comes fully equipped with a gas fireplace,

A three piece bath, a kitchen, and even a washer and dryer.

But what makes this place unique is located down below.

Ross: A lot of people don't get the opportunity

To see their floats under their float home,

Because they're floating.

I like to call our floats

"the rolls royce of concrete floats,""

Mainly because the strength of the concrete

That goes into this is 13,000 psi.

And most normal concrete, like sidewalk concrete,

Is only 3.

Narrator: Concrete doesn't usually float.

But these foundations are hollow,

With 3-inch-thick concrete walls.

The entire house actually weighs less

Than the water it displaces.

It's a fully contained box from here to about here,

Just above these little holes.

And so, if we look underneath,

There's about almost 2 feet of space

To add extra flotation.

What's typical is, homeowners bring everything,

And they don't really think about being on a float home,

And balance.

So, sometimes, they'll end up with a home that's like that.

Narrator: Compared with steel, concrete foundations

Are virtually maintenance-free, and can last up to 150 years.

But you may need that long to pay for it.

Even the tiny sea star costs 375 grand.

But regardless of its foundations,

There's no stopping ever-rising sea levels.

Even cities like vancouver are feeling the squeeze.

It's surrounded by high ground.

Unfortunately, that's part of the problem.

Ross: There's only so much land,

And we can't go up the mountains much more.

Narrator: Like it or not, all this water is here to stay.

So, maybe it's time we start using it.

Olthuis: It's almost impossible to plan a city today

That can face the problems of tomorrow,

Because you don't know what the problems will be.

So, normal buildings on land, you put them there,

And they stay 50 or 70 years in one spot.

And now, on water, we can move them.

We call this "rise of the blue city."

So, cities threatened by water today

Will be the champion cities of tomorrow,

Because they have the water, and they can take advantage of it.

They can make cities flexible, and adaptable.

And we need adaptability, because building for change

Is the only way we can be ready for the future.

We don't know all that the future holds,

But for sure, there will be more water in our way.

And some innovators are dreaming up very far-out ideas to cope.

[ cheering ]

To the first sea-stead by ocean builders.

Off the coast of thailand, one engineering firm

Is building the world's first home

Designed for the open sea.

Inside the sea-steads living quarters

Are a main kitchen and dining area,

A bedroom, bathroom, and small pantry for storage.

Then, there's the rooftop patio.

Thepdet: You know, you cannot buy this view.

Like., you can see the sunset and sunrise, you know,

See the many, the thousand million stars, you just look up.

According to the sea-steading institute,

Life out here could fix some of the world's

Most challenging problems.

Their mission states that, to find something better,

You have to try something new.

But when it comes to weather, the middle of the ocean

Is the most hostile outpost on earth.

To cope with this unpredictable environment,

This rule-breaking team

Turned to an unlikely source of inspiration

To help construct the design of their floating home.

Elwartowski: And there it is.

We have the spar.

Narrator: Off the coast of thailand, one engineering firm

Has taken modern sea-steading to the extreme

By designing a permanent floating structure

Located in the middle of the ocean.

But living on the high seas has its challenges.

Waves and unpredictable weather are unavoidable

In this type of environment.

To stay afloat in these rough waters,

The team came up with a unique solution

Inspired by the spar design of oil platforms.

A spar is a long, vertical cylinder.

It's mostly hidden beneath the waves.

Most of the spar is hollow, to provide buoyancy,

But it's weighted at the bottom with concrete

To lower the center of gravity, and keep it from tipping over.

And because it drops so far down,

Wind and waves at the surface

Have less impact on the super structure above.

Just like an oil rig,

The sea-stead perches safely high overhead.

Now that we've proved the concept,

We'll be building 20 more.

And they'll be higher, taller, better.

And we're looking forward to freedom-loving people

To come join us out in the open ocean.

Ocean builders is already prepping

For their next sea-stead, called "the mark ii."

This structure will have updated features,

Like futuristic curves and coral gardens,

To attract sea life below.

It will even have a room inside the spar,

With underwater views --

All for a cool 150 grand.

And it's all designed by architect koen olthuis,

Designer if the luxury floating home the arkup

And the floating city skoonship.

Olthuis: What we have learned

Is that the idle cities on the ocean

Are not like, kind of, tied paradise with small boats.

I think it will be much more like oil rigs

Combined in a kind of community.

'cause the waves you can expect in the middle of the ocean

Are extreme.

Narrator: A city on the open seas could be possible in the future.

But for now, it's still well out of reach.

Whether it's in a community,

Or in an individual floating home close to shore,

Living on water is possible.

This is oceanic city,

A concept that combines technology and nature

Into one massive water world.

Based on a modular design, it could be easily expanded

From a community of 300 to a city of 10,000.

It would also be fully self-sufficient,

So all sewage and waste would be recycled.

Power, fresh water, and heat would be produced through clean,

Renewable energy sources.

Plant-based good would be grown on every platform

Above the water line.

And fish would be harvested from ocean farm below.

Each module would be built on land,

And then towed to sea,

Where they would be anchored in place.

Each would be designed to survive a category 5 hurricane.

There's no doubt that a floating city of this size

Would be expensive.

But in some areas of the world, it may be well worth the price.

Take hong kong, for example.

It's one of the most densely populated places on earth --

So crowded that a single parking spot here

Recently sold for $969,000.

With the global population

Predicted to hit 9.8 billion by 2050,

Mega cities like these will only get more crowded,

And more overpriced.

So, if you look at our cities today,

They are in need of space.

They are in need of more room for houses.

And if you can't find space on land,

Maybe you can find space on water.

Narrator: The best way to future-proof our planet

May be to stop fighting the water,

And start working with it.

People think that what we are doing here is really special.

I would like to say that it's kind of normal.

Floating, for me, it's, like, the most logical solution.

I think it's gonna save a lot of great places

Before it's too late.

Olthuis: We're water architects,

So we find solutions to work with water.

And what you say, "do better. Do better,"

We can do that in a very anxious way.

Also, we can see there's an opportunity

To create innovation, and to make our cities even better.

Narrator: If there's one thing history has taught us,

It's that human ingenuity always rises to the challenge --

Even if that challenge is building on a more water world.

The new generation of daring aquatects

And innovative engineers is proving even the open sea

Can be tamed,

With the help of some powerful high-performance sea monsters.