NOVALIS 2029
NOVALIS 2029
A book by Michael Schindhelm (Published by ARX Editions, December 2024)
This speculative fiction imagines us in 2059 reading the accounts of a working day in the life of Maren,
an artist employed by an engineering firm in 2029. Whilst at Novalis, an experimental campus in the
South of Switzerland, Marian discusses and explores her projects with a diverse group of colleagues
she encounters virtually and in-person. These discussions encompass an extensive range of topics,
including repurposing obsolete sites, infrastructures, energy storage, geoengineering, terraforming,
underground agriculture, space travel, smart cities and the reconstruction efforts in conflict zones.
Schindhelm looks back into the past, a past that is still in our future and seamlessly
blends speculative explorations of the future with real-life reflections from five influential experts
in the fields of engineering, architecture, urbanism and the politics of creating a sustainable society.
Novalis 2029 is a utopian vision that represents the triumph of human ingenuity over
the short-sightedness of the past. It shows the transformative power of design and engineering
as a force for good, countering error with creative solutions that harmonise with nature, promote
equality and embrace the limitless possibilities of the human mind.
The author
Michael Schindhelm is a German-born Swiss author, filmmaker, curator and cultural consultant
known for his multifaceted contributions to the arts.
Contributors
Pierre de Meuron, Daniel Wiener, Aymen Cheikh Mhamed, Sabrina Kost and Andrea Galli
The publisher
ARX Editions is the foresight and publishing division of ARX, a global network of smart
minds providing cutting-edge solutions in complex design and engineering.
A book created by
Jannuzzi Smith
