Today we left Amsterdam early, to go to the University of Twente in Enschede. After arriving we had a tour of the campus. UT is the only university in the Netherlands with an American style campus. Most universities in the Netherlands have their campus spread out across towns whereas UT has a contained campus. The campus was large and contained lots of greenery which was beautiful to observe as we walked around. After a tour of the campus, we learned about water management systems in Enschede, specifically about Kristalbad.

We began with a lecture from a member of the local water board. The water board is an organization that makes decisions on how to protect and use water resources in the Netherlands. This is essential as Enschede is a city that relies heavily on water management. Prior to Kristalbad, heavy rainfall would cause flooding. To combat this the Kristalbad was created to retain water during floods. During droughts, the kristalbad is able to retain the water for long periods, ensuring agriculture and nature reserves do not dry out too quickly. The Kristalbad exemplifies sustainability as it not only prevents the city from flooding, but it also ensures agriculture is successful even in times of drought. Furthermore, it implements a large water treatment plan, which transforms sewage water into water that is biologically active and safe for wildlife.  This water treatment plan works by filtering out phosphorus from the water after it has undergone sewage treatment.

We finished off the day by meeting engineering students at the University of Twente. It was a great experience to meet people from all over the world that also study engineering. One thing I found interesting was meeting people and learning about the industrial design engineering degree which I have not heard of before.