9. ‘River Movie’, Nature, and Culture Projects on the Banks of Lyon’s Rhône and Saône Rivers

In this chapter, we examine how three major regeneration projects to enhance green and blue infrastructure in Lyon’s metropolitan area have evolved in recent years on the banks of the Rhône and Saône rivers. Already in the 1990s, Anneau bleu offered some solutions that have come to be viewed as central to preserving drinking water resources, natural areas, and biological corridors. In the 2000s, with the Berges du Rhône, the city dwellers’ appetite for nature was satisfied with the creation of a relaxing place within a décor laid out as a natural space. Since the 2010s, with the Rives de Saône project, the riverbank riparian zone has become a natural and ecological connection between various elements of the metropolis. This project, named ‘River movie’ by its artistic director, was conceived as a journey along the Saône River featuring works by artists and a waterfront redesigned by environmental designers and landscape architects. It takes into account the reality that rivers sometimes overflow and proposes to adapt intelligently to the rivers that cut through the city. Thus, strategies and urban design are being reconceived to better address sustainable development and give more prominence to artistic interventions.