Citizens & Living
Events

For the 15th year we're celebrating International IoTDay, it's all about sharing knowledge about how to create your own projects and connecting with people in the process!
We’re excited to share a fun and engaging project with you! Join the Easter workshop, creating a beautiful personalized ornament that you can lasercut and program yourself! (of course we'll help!)
More information on the project can be found here:
https://sensemakersams.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Sensemakers-XMas2024-Project.pdf
There is a fee involved, but we have 2 'Pay-It-Forward' kits available for those low on budget this holiday season. Just dm Manon if you want one of those!
And of course we'll have some free alternatives like experimenting with 3D printing your own Easter-buddy:-)

(this event is in Dutch)

De actie-onderzoekers van DRIFT werken jarenlang aan hun proefschrift en ontwikkelen daarmee state-of-the-art kennis en tools. Traditioneel gezien wordt deze kennis echter alleen ontsloten in boekvorm en overgedragen aan hun commissie van (hoog)leraren. Daarom organiseren we naast een PhD-verdediging een PhD-vertaling.

Op 11 april is de beurt aan Tessa de Geus. We duiken in haar proefschrift ‘Capturing change’ (<em>verandering vatten).</em> Het onderwerp: verschillende vormen van ‘capture’ in de energietransitie – krijgen radicale nieuwe initiatieven of ideeën de wind eronder zodra ze zich op een groter speelveld begeven of raken ze vleugellam?  

Hoewel de term buiten de transitiewetenschap (nog) niet zo bekend is, is ‘capture’ een heet hangijzer voor wie werkt aan fundamentele maatschappelijke verandering. Denk aan een overheid die een burgerinitiatief ondersteunt of eigen innovatieve praktijken opschaalt – in grote veranderingsprocessen als de energietransitie is veel hoop gevestigd op zulke nieuwe bestuursvormen, maar is weinig bekend over de schaduwzijde ervan, stelt Tessa. 

Net als bij de PhD-verdediging beginnen we met een ‘lekenpraatje’ — Tessa legt in begrijpelijke taal uit wat ze heeft onderzocht en welke conclusies en aanbevelingen daaruit volgen.

Daarna openen we het gesprek. Onze drie panelleden stellen zich kort voor en dan gaan met de promovendus in gesprek over vragen als: wat betekenen jouw uitkomsten voor mijn beleid, bedrijf of activisme? Wat herken ik en wat zie ik toch anders? En hoe zouden we opgedane lessen en methodes kunnen toepassen in ons (werk)veld? 

Op 11 april kun je van 10:00-11:00 via YouTube live meekijken met dit evenement. Meer informatie vind je op onze website:

Imagine a world where everyday objects are imbued with the power of generative AI. What possibilities and challenges would emerge? ThingsCon aims to explore this frontier by inviting designers to create provotypes of the near future “generative things”.
To ignite imagination and foster meaningful discussions, we like to use the concept of “provotypes” – provocative prototypes of generative things. These tangible glimpses into tomorrow are catalysts, opening up critical dialogues about our impending relationships with AI-infused objects.

The exhibition “Generative Things” premiered at TH/NGS 2024 on 13 December 2024 in Volkshotel Amsterdam and will travel to other places in 2025, sparking conversations and imagination. ThingsCon organizes this initiative in collaboration with Master Digital Design of Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Waag Futurelab, and is part of the Amsterdam 750 futures program.

14 April: exhibition and workshop
Next up, we’re taking Generative Things to Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. Our next public event, scheduled for late 14 April, will feature:

• An updated exhibition with new and refined provotype designs
• An in-depth reflection workshop relating the provotypes to city life

We’re revisiting the provotypes to create “situated designs” that respond to Amsterdam’s unique context. By partnering with local societal organizations, we’ll develop specific scenarios to test our provotypes in real-world settings, bringing the future of Generative Things to life in our city’s streets and spaces.

The outcomes will be an inspiration and a point of departure for a speculative design workshop on 15 April to create a future zine. We have a separate RSVP for this workshop day.

The program of the Salon:
14:00-15:00 Visit the exhibition with provotypes
15:00-17:00 Workshop to sketch out interactions in the city with each provotype

• introduction on the backgrounds
• short 3 min pitches by designers of the provotypes
• discussing the provotypes in relation to the categories
• formulate takeaways

17:00-19:00 Share results, drinks
If you can not make it to the workshop but like to see the results, feel free to drop by at 17h.

Location
The Salon and the Makeathon will take place Monday 14 April at the location of Master Digital Design, Theo Thijssenhuis building, 4th floor, Wibautstraat Amsterdam.

Read more about the background of the project on the website.

Across six interactive online sessions, this course offers the tools, knowledge, and inspiration needed to support just and sustainable transformations – grounded in action research, critical reflection, and peer learning.

We are offering the course for the third time, this year in collaboration with Dina Lupin from University of Southampton.

We have made the programme a bit more compact to make it more affordable, and as always offer it at a variable rate (€1,775.00 for well-paid professionals and €1,245.00 for those with more limited financial means) to make it as accessible as possible.