Holistic urban strategy to combat floods, droughts and pollution through blue-green strategies. The project City of 1,000 Tanks identifies the interrelationships between the underlying causes of floods, water scarcity and pollution in Chennai and offers a holistic solution to these three problems. Recognizing that 20th century flood protection measures have deprived the city of its available water, we propose to collect and clean water by means of a blue-green infrastructure of tanks and cleansing channels, rather than drains. To recharge aquifers during the yearly monsoon and release reservoirs over long stretches of time, the city must transform into a dynamic seasonal landscape. Building upon interconnected art and pilot projects, we introduce an incremental approach to realize this strategy. We consider spatial, technical, organizational, cultural and economic challenges in a staged and adaptive reform of the current water management system to achieve a better use of Chennai's abundant water provision.