Wheelmap Uses Crowd Wisdom to Make the City More Inclusive
Wheelmap is the world's biggest crowdsourced and open database for wheelchair-accessible places. The initiative hopes to contribute to a more inclusive city for people with mobility impairments.
‘Myth Buster’ Peter Hein van Mulligen on the Dutch Housing Market
We spoke with Peter Hein van Mulligen, chief economist of Statistics Netherlands, about the housing market, inequality and broad prosperity. Spoiler: things are (still) going pretty well in the Netherlands.
In the Future, Energy Will Be (Almost) Free for Everyone
Entrepreneur Ruud Koornstra thinks we're on the eve of unprecedented changes in our energy system. It’s almost impossible to imagine, but energy will become virtually free for everyone.
Why We Could All Use Some More Vitamin G
Sociologist Jolanda Maas has been researching the positive effects of greenery on our health for years. Her plea for more vitamin G in the residential environment is more important than ever at a time when urban green spaces are disappearing and (mental) well-being is declining.
Adriaan Geuze on the Future of the Dutch Landscape
What will the Netherlands look like in 90 years? Landscape architect and West 8 founder Adriaan Geuze hopes that the big challenges and crises will force us to reinvent our spatial planning tradition.
Free Street Manifesto Is a Guide for a Post-Car City
Cars have dominated the streetscape for so long that it's hard to imagine a future without them — but that's exactly what The Free Street Manifesto does. With images, comics, historical information and scientific insights, the book tries to convince readers of the importance of so-called 'free streets'.
“Thanks to Intensive Agriculture, There’s Still Room for Nature in the Netherlands”
Agriculture largely determines what the face of the Netherlands. About half of the total surface area of our country is agricultural land. Developments in agriculture determine the spatial future of the Netherlands. Petra Berkhout, researcher agricultural economics at Wageningen University & Research, thinks the Dutch should be happier with their agricultural sector.
The Energy Transition: From Ambition to Implementation
In recent months, together with de nieuwe draai and commissioned by Alfa-college and construction company BAM, we have been working on Energiehub050 — a temporary practice centre in Groningen that trains students to work with the latest sustainable technology.
Inclusion and the Built Environment
How do we ensure that buildings, spaces and facilities better meet the personal needs of the people who use them?
How the Metaverse Will Fundamentally Change the Workplace
Work is one of the most invested areas of development for metaverse applications. Major companies are working to develop their own virtual workspaces, making the future of work increasingly digitally immersive.
Why More and More Cities Are Entering the Metaverse
Building replicas in the metaverse opens up a whole new world for cities. What are the new opportunities we can expect from the rise of Web3?
The Ideal City: A Manifesto of Hope for the Urban Future
The book The Ideal City by SPACE10 takes us on a journey of human creativity. Various examples from around the world paint a picture of the optimistic city of the future and how to get there.
Tracing the Fruits of Local Production and Consumption: Ogawamachi, a Mecca for Japan’s Organic Farming
A bakery with home-grown yeast, a coffee shop that serves lunch made with regional ingredients, an organic farm that grows and collects their own seeds for harvest, and a 100% self-sufficient brewery. We trace the fruits of Ogawamachi's local production and consumption to explore the future possibilities of trans-locality.
How the Paris Cycle Network Was Created Bottom-Up
Cyclists are increasingly dominating the streets in Paris. To everyone's surprise, the French capital has changed in a few years from a car city to a bicycle city. But how did this happen?
The New Era of ‘Home’ — With Renny Ramakers
Dutch design collective Droog has shaped contemporary design practices through their modern, minimalistic and innovative products. In recent years, they've expanded their scope, now spearheading urban-related projects. What is co-founder Renny's take on the drastic changes we witness in our cities?
