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Happy #worldcitiesday! Although today the weather in Amsterdam is already getting a bit frosty, we'd like to take you back to last summer's heatwave and share the results of our weather balloon research.

World Cities Day recognizes the importance of exchanging knowledge and innovations between cities around the world in order to improve the lives of future generations in the city. The results of this research will contribute to form a new #blueprint to help design #climateresilient cities.

The measurements show that the heat of the city - the so-called #urbandome – still reaches a height of 120 meters at 10 PM. And will be even higher for many cities worldwide.
Launching weather balloons in the city is unique. The last time vertical weather profiles were collected was more than 50 years ago in New York. Back then a helicopter was used for this purpose. The results of this research will contribute to forming a new blueprint to help design #climateresilient cities.

With: Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen Environmental Research and Clever°Franke

The Moscow Tourist Information Support Centre has launched a new hotline for tourists in Moscow. Visitors to the Russian capital can now get 24/7 help via a short number - 122, as well as a ten-digit landline number - +7 (495) 122-01-11. Moscow Call Centre operators will advise on how to pay fares in the Metro and get to the airport, how to get from one location to another, and where to rent a bike. They will also provide information on interesting events and festivals taking place in Moscow and give out the addresses of museums, stadiums, parks and other attractions. In addition, hotline staff will assist tourists in the event of emergencies and advise on the addresses and opening hours of embassies, consulates and visa centres.

The service is currently provided in two languages: Russian and English. In future, Chinese, French, German and Spanish will also be available.

The hotline was created by the Moscow Tourism Committee together with the Moscow IT Department on the basis of the citywide Contact Centre.

''The number of tourists visiting Moscow is growing every year, so the Call Centre is an important step to get their feedback. The short number 122 is easy to remember and takes only a few seconds to dial on your mobile phone. Call Centre operators provide advice in Russian and English, which is vital given the growing number of foreign tourists in Moscow. To establish the Moscow Tourist Information Support Centre, we made use of our previous experience, including the hotline of the Department of Transport and Road Infrastructure Development during the 2018 FIFA World Cup,'' said the Committee for Tourism.

The short number 122 can be dialed from the mobile numbers of all Russian and foreign operators in Moscow and Moscow Region. The ten-digit city number +7 (495) 122-01-11 can be dialed from mobile and landline numbers abroad and in Russia. Calls to both numbers are charged at your operator's rates.

The hotline currently has a staff of 20, but this number will grow quickly as the Call Centre’s workload increases.

The citywide Call Centre has been operating in Moscow since 2011. It receives over 2.5 million calls each month. Approximately 90 percent of calls are received by hotlines popular with Muscovites: the Moscow Unified Information Service, the Unified Control Centre, the unified service for making doctor’s appointments, the Moscow Transport Call Centre and others. It is one of the most innovative call centres in the world, with around 40-45% of all enquiries processed by a robot which can answer simple questions and give updates on the status of applications and complaints. Using a robot reduces waiting times and eliminates the human factor.

Groen Kapitaal, het Noord Hollandse netwerkplatform om biodiversiteit te stimuleren omschreef onlangs onze missie. Naast de aandacht die wij vragen voor een duurzame voedselvoorziening willen we onze gasten op een laagdrempelige manier in aanraking laten komen met duurzame innovaties.

The series 'Looking for the humane city' has a new episode: Save cities. In this essay I explain that more and technologically better equiped police is not the first step towards the safety of the city. Instead, improving income, housing and education have priority. Without devaluating the importance of the police's work!

In case you prefer reading in Dutch, check this link:https://wp.me/p32hqY-1Nu

The knowledge of food growing flows naturally within the generations in rural areas. The transfer of this green knowledge is mostly aborted in the city. Just enthusiasm is not enough for succesfull growing food in the city. Urban food growing starts with the transfer of green knowledge and green experience. A green cooperative learning experiment is started in the city of Arnhem (160.000 inhabitants) with the learning cooperative Arnhem Groen www.arnhemgroen.nl The bottom-up initiative YIMBY Yes-In-My-Back-Yard! shows the benefits of green cooperative learning in an urban environmont.

About Zéger Nieuweboer:
I grew up on a farm in Waterland (NL) just north of Amsterdam. I studied at the Wageningen University (NL) and the University of Illinois (USA). I'm an urban, organic food grower in the city of Arnhem (NL). I'm owner/teacher at the green learning company www.learningisgrowing.nl. Contact: zeger.nieuweboer@gmail.com

Amsterdam is in ongoing discussions with Barcelona and Dublin to work closer to emulate and scale up its successful Start-up in Residence programme.

The Dutch capital has just concluded its fourth edition of the 12-week programme which partners with start-ups to innovate to solve city challenges which can then be procured.

🚀 --- www.urbannature.amsterdam --- 🚀

'Urban Nature Amsterdam' is de allereerste kaart die uitsluitend alle groene en blauwe plekken in Amsterdam laat zien. Het unieke product is speciaal ontworpen voor bewoners en bezoekers om de stedelijke natuur en het rijke landschap in de omgeving beter te leren waarderen. De grote papieren kaart toont aan hoe groen en blauw Amsterdam kleurt: de parken, (binnen)tuinen, plantsoenen, natuurspeeltuinen, sportvelden, grachten, meren, polders en bossen. De achterzijde is gebruikt als ‘call to action’: ontdek de natuur, draag bij en leer!

Er wonen op dit moment ruim 863.000 mensen in Amsterdam. In 2040 zijn dat er naar verwachting één miljoen. Deze aanwas vergt veel van de bestaande, vaak verouderde, infrastructuur. Initiatiefnemer Ioana Biris: “De hamvraag is hoe het stadsbestuur een goede balans weet te vinden tussen de gewenste groei en het welzijn van alle mensen die hier (komen) wonen en werken? Hoe zorgen we ervoor dat de kwaliteit van de stedelijke natuur ook in de toekomst blijft behouden? Inwoners, beleidsmakers, projectontwikkelaars, financiers, studenten en het bedrijfsleven zullen samen moeten bouwen aan een meer groene en meer gezonde stad. Een veerkrachtige stad waar de natuur als inspiratiebron dient.”

De kaart 'Urban Nature Amsterdam' is een ode van de makers aan Amsterdam. Deze unieke kaart, waar het grijs van de gebouwen en wegen niet op wordt aangegeven, biedt een nieuw perspectief op de stad. Een waardevol stadslandschap dat bewoners delen met ruim 10.000 soorten flora en fauna in Amsterdam.

Bijna 150 particulieren, initiatieven, instellingen en bedrijven hebben via een crowdfunding actie de realisatie van Urban Nature Amsterdam gesteund. De drie belangrijkste partners zijn Gemeente Amsterdam, Waterschap Amstel, Gooi en Vecht en Recreatie Noord-Holland. Staatsbosbeheer steunde de ontwikkeling van een speciaal instrument waarmee je kunt zien welke groene en blauwe plekken in de nabije omgeving van je voordeur of werkplek zijn te vinden. De makers nodigen iedereen uit om Amsterdam met de kaart in de hand te ontdekken; en te leven, spelen, werken, leren en genieten van de natuur.

<a> https://www.urbannature.amsterdam/product-page/urban-nature-amsterdam </a>
#UrbanNatureAmsterdam

In my second essay in the series Future Cities: Smart by Default. Humane by choice, I dive into what makes a city resilient an how resilience looks through humane glasses...
Resilient cities: http://smartcityhub.com/resilient-cities/
De veerkrachtige stad: https://wp.me/p32hqY-1MA

Often urban planning decisions are made by a select few. Some planning processes, such as public meetings or online comment petitions can prove difficult to get participation from everyone who will be impacted, especially those who feel as if there is no way for their voice to be heard, the poor, the disenfranchised, the fearful. One of the events during the WeMakeThe.City festival discussed the need for more diverse participation and inclusive communication of the needs of citizens within urban planning. A look back by special reporter Derrek Clarke.

The Designing Change conference started off with professor of the University of Miami School of Architecture Eric Firley. He recently published a book on his research into the changing nature of urban design over the past forty years. The book, Designing Change, takes a deep dive into the practice of urban design as experienced through 12 leading practitioners from across three continents. Firley’s research aim is to foster cross cultural conversation and knowledge sharing of the different aspects of urban design. The WeMakethe.City 2019 talk to promote Professor Firley’s book did just that by fostering a lively back and forth discussion between the professor, his three urban design guests and the audience of citizens, architects and urbanists.

One thing everyone agreed on is that we need more diverse participation and inclusive communication of the needs of citizens within urban planning. As Regula Luscher, the Head of the Planning and Building Department of Berlin stated:

“Participation is about being able to reach target groups. This is very difficult to do and will impact the use of technology in urban development.”

Often urban planning decisions are made by a select few. Some planning processes, such as public meetings or online comment petitions can prove difficult to get participation from everyone who will be impacted, especially those who feel as if there is no way for their voice to be heard, the poor, the disenfranchised, the fearful. It isn’t to say, that achieving greater participation and hearing the concerns of impacted citizens is impossible. Amsterdam has proved to be a fertile experiment ground for participatory urban planning.

Both Tom Schaap, Senior Urbanist for the City of Amsterdam and Paola Vigano, Head of the Laboratory of Urbanism at the Technical University of Lausanne referenced Amsterdam as a classic model of what can be achieved through active community participation. As Tom explained, “Amsterdam is a great example to the EU and to the world with its development into a bike centred city. It didn’t happen overnight but involved lots of participation. It changed street by street and neighbourhood by neighbourhood”.

A Question Of Technology And The Smart City

Current technologies, mainly smartphones and low-cost sensors may hold the keys to more inclusive participation in urban development projects. Sensors can be used to track traffic patterns and public use of space while smartphone apps can be used to communicate with disenfranchised citizens to enable them to participate in the planning process.

However, the use of these technologies pose many questions around personal privacy and what secondary uses the collected data will be subjected to. Use of these solutions may drive citizen communication and participation in the process lower, or worse; mire the whole process in endless arguments. The Canadian city of Toronto is experiencing just this as it slowly tries to progress through the planning of Google's Sidewalk Labs’ waterfront development. Progress on this proposed smart city development has slowed because of discussions about the ownership and use of the data that will be at the core of the development’s smart city operations.

This is not to say that technology is bad and can’t serve a purpose when it comes to increasing participation in urban development, it can. To be useful, technology has to balance participation enablement with protecting the personal freedoms of the community as a whole.

Urban Planning Is The Chance To Dream At The Scale Of The City

A personal freedom cherished by all is the freedom of mobility. Whether a smart city or not, no urban development project can be discussed without addressing the topic of getting from one place to another. As Regula states, “In every participation project traffic is always the question. How to move the people is always a central idea.” History bears witness to this through the grand boulevards of Baron Hausmann in 1800s Paris or the many public works projects of Robert Moses in mid-20th Century New York City. Throughout history, traffic management and the need for better infrastructure to deal with congestion has been a central component of many urban development strategies. This focus on transportation continues today in cities such as present-day Amsterdam where communities are pushing for less use of personal vehicles and greater use of cycling, pedestrian ways and potential mobility-as-a-service options.

Urbanist Paola Vigano proposes another solution to increasing urban density and transportation congestion. She asks: “Why have we forgotten about living across the land and continue to focus on the urban area? Why continue to densify the city, which pushes out the people who already live there?”. Paola believes we should not neglect satellite cities. These should be developed as diverse places to live, play and work with high-speed connections to larger urban centers. Paola proposes this experiment to resolve urban congestion while also addressing the plight of rural areas suffering from population drain.

Moving Forward Through Experimentation

“If we can’t do experiments, then we can’t make the future” states Regula Luscher as she aptly sums up the combined views of the panellists and the audience in attendance at this talk. In the end, we must experiment to resolve urban development challenges. Whether the topic is how to address the challenge of community participation, immigration, migration, transportation or crisis such as climate change – the answer is always “we have to experiment and try out different solutions”.

What works in one city may not directly translate into a successful initiative in another city. We have to listen to communities, get their participation and collectively experiment until we have working solutions.

Photos and text: Derrek Clarke

SAVE THE DATE:
11.07.2019 20:00-21:30 / Pakhuis de Zwijger

A city as a #NationalParkCity
https://dezwijger.nl/programma/amsterdam-as-a-national-park-city

July 11 2019 we are launching #UrbanNatureAmsterdam, the first green and blue map of the city. The aim of this large paper map is to show that residents of Amsterdam live amongst parks, gardens, allotments, natural playgrounds, green roofs, lakes, canals, rivers, forests and polders. A unique green and blue urban landscape which we share with more than 10000 species of flora and fauna.

Discover the 'urban nature' of Amsterdam with this map as your guide. You are welcome to attend on July 11 the official launch to hear more about the green ambitions of the cities of London, Amsterdam and Breda. This event will be hosted by Pakhuis de Zwijger.

An evening about urban green ambitions with:
🌿 Daniel Raven-Ellison | Guerrilla Geographer & Creative Explorer and founder London National Park City
🌿 Charlie Peel | Director Urban Good
🌿 Geertje Wijten | Senior Planner Ruimte en Duurzaamheid bij Gemeente Amsterdam
🌿 Paul Depla | Burgemeester Gemeente Breda
🌿 Robert Graat | Programmasecretaris Groene Metropool bij Staatsbosbeheer
🌿 Ioana Biris | Co-Owner Nature Desks
🌿 Arita Baaijens | Explorer, biologist, writer, initiator 'The Landscape Speaks'
🌿 Jaap de Jong | Directeur De Gezonde Stad
🌿 Daniël Goedbloed | Programmamanager Amsterdam Rainproof

🌿 The moderator of this event is: Nadine Galle

More info: https://www.urbannature.amsterdam

The first edition of my new series - Future cities. Smart by default. Humane by choice - deals with the question how can cities become healthy places. The answer - apart from good medical care - is in the first place, a liveable income, adequate housing and a proper living environment.

Dutch version: https://wp.me/p32hqY-1M8
English version: http://smartcityhub.com/healthy-cities/

By many accounts the Amsterdam of today represents an urban success story. Despite all the positive changes however, there are many complex social challenges that need addressing. In a short period of time, Amsterdam has transformed drastically in terms of population and economic development but also in the number of visitors.

These urban challenges were the focus of the 2nd Up Close and Liveable Conference which took place on June 21 as part of Amsterdam’s WeMakeThe.City festival. A recap by our special reporter Katerina Ryabets.

By many accounts the Amsterdam of today represents an urban success story. Despite all the positive changes however, there are many complex social challenges that need addressing. In a short period of time, Amsterdam has transformed drastically in terms of population and economic development but also in the number of visitors coming to the city.

These urban challenges were the focus of the 2nd Up Close and Liveable Conference which took place on June 21 as part of Amsterdam’s WeMakeThe.City festival. The conference brought together an international audience of urban professionals, researchers, policy-makers, and city-dwellers to address a range of social urban pressures, ranging from access to housing and climate justice, to the impacts of increased tourism, the protection of digital human rights, and urban health.

So, who belongs in the city?

Well-known for her popular TED talk on the topic of urban belonging, the Nigerian writer, editor, and activist OluTimehin Adegbeye kicked the day off with a keynote address and the question: who belongs in the city? In her talk, OluTimehin reminds us that our cities are reflections of ourselves, and that it is up to us to keep both our governments and ourselves responsible for creating safe and accessible cities for all: “If cities are to continue to exist we cannot accept systemic exclusion as part of the urban experience. Cities are only as exclusionary as we make them”.

Speaking from her experiences in her hometown of Lagos, Adegbeye raised challenges that are being felt in cities across the world, from Nigeria to the Netherlands. Her speech reminds us that the feeling of belonging in a city is not universal and the unfortunate reality is that the urban experience does not offer the same opportunities for all.

“The promise of cities lies in the remarkable ability to aggregate the vast spectrum of human possibilities and create new and unforeseen realities from that. We all lose when cities are allowed to become hubs of homogeneity.” - OluTimehin Adegbeye

Community-centered interventions for improving urban health

The morning breakout session on improving urban health highlighted an important theme that would run through the rest of the day. All speakers stressed the necessity to consider the day-to-day lived experiences of underserved or marginalized individuals and communities when developing policies or interventions to address urban inequality.

Jessica Attard from the Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Charity in London shared insights from their efforts fighting childhood obesity in two of the city’s most diverse and deprived boroughs. She explained that to be able to positively impact the health of vulnerable communities we must first start with a change in perspective to really understand the lived experiences of these groups. This sentiment was echoed by Cecilia Vaca Jones, Program Director of the Bernard van Leer Foundation whose work with initiatives such as Urban95 focuses on improving urban environments so that children and families can thrive. Like Attard, she challenged the audience to consider the city from the perspective of its smallest and most vulnerable users, arguing that if we can make cities work for them, they will work for everybody.

Accessibility and inclusivity in the digital city

A later session focussing on the topic of digital human rights (rights that individuals and communities are entitled to when accessing and using the internet and other digital technologies) introduced the work of the Cities Coalition for Digital Rights- a joint initiative launched by the cities of Amsterdam, Barcelona and New York City to protect and uphold human rights in the digital realm. In explaining the goals of the Coalition, Max Sevillia, Director of External Affairs at the City of New York spoke about the necessity of putting a foundation of digital human rights at the core of urban technological interventions or platforms that cities introduce.

The internet plays a central role in our daily lives, and for those without equal access to digital technologies, accessing governmental services, searching for employment opportunities or even pursuing education represents a real challenge. By sharing insights, and co-creating actionable plans, the cities within this coalition are putting their weight behind protecting and promoting digital human rights and are focused on eliminating the barriers that different groups face in accessing technological opportunities.

“We are often sold on the idea of smart cities. But it’s much more important to be a wise city. Wise cities put people first. '' - Daniel Sarasa Funes, Urban Innovation Planner, Zaragoza City Council (Spain)

Do better policy tools lead to more equal cities?

One of the final sessions of the day turned the discussion over to the tools that politicians and planners are using when developing policies addressing urban inequalities. The Social City Index, created by the International Federation of Housing and Planning (IFHP) is a tool that can be used to provide municipalities with a better understanding of how their city is doing along various social indicators at the city and neighbourhood levels.

The goal is to assist in decision making, ideally fostering cross-departmental collaboration within local and regional governments. While there was a unanimous agreement from the panel about the importance of collecting measurable data for informed decision making, Professor Darko Radovic of the Keio University in Japan raised an important point. He reminds us that while data can help paint a picture of the state of society, we must be aware that numbers are not neutral, and to continue to consider those groups and individuals whose experiences may not be adequately covered by selective indicators. In other words, we must be curious about what the numbers aren’t showing us.

Putting the individual at the heart of complex problems

After an inspiring and thought-provoking conference, by far the greatest takeaway was that anyone concerned with improving accessibility and inclusivity in the city, be it governments or societal groups must begin their efforts with a deep understanding of the day-to-day realities of the communities that they wish to empower. Unfortunately there is no magic pill for fixing urban inequality, but it is only from this consideration for the lived experiences of the city’s most vulnerable users that we can take meaningful strides towards making cities better for all.

Do you have an idea for the livable city and are you looking for a location to conduct an experiment? That is now possible at the Marineterrein Amsterdam Living Lab!

The Marineterrein Amsterdam will become available to research, experiment and test in a real-life setting. Today, June 21th, the Marineterrein Amsterdam Living Lab (MALL) will be launched with the core partners in this project: Bureau Marineterrein, AMS Institute for Advanced Metropolitan Solutions (AMS Institute), Amsterdam Smart City and Amsterdam Economic Board and NEMO Science Museum.

Main goal is to develop scalable innovations that make and keep cities livable. To develop, test and apply solutions to global urban challenges, the partners bring together their expertise, network, and communities in the field of research, innovation, urban development and experimentation at this unique location in Amsterdam.

Whoever enters Marineterrein Amsterdam will immediately notice that it is a special part of Amsterdam. The wall, the surrounding water, the tranquillity, the greenery and various image-defining buildings appeal to the imagination and make this area a place that stands out from other places in the city.

Everyone is welcome to test at the Marineterrein. Given the special location, high demands are made on parties who come to develop and test on the Marineterrein. In addition to thematic alignment with the themes of the parties, careful consideration is given to whether the applications are innovative, whether they ensure connection between people and knowledge and to opt for a clear focus within a relevant issue.

Look here for more information, contact details and the registration procedure.

© foto: Siebe Swart (2014)

My friend Marco Maréchal wrote an interesting article on unlocking municipalities and the countryside towards the cities via sustainable mobility on demand.

Although I agree with most of his views, I think we should take this conversation to a more holistic level: how can we work parallel towards innovations that people do not need to travel to work every day anymore.
Let's also think about moving ‘bits and bytes instead of atoms’ or in other words bring the ‘work to the worker instead the worker to work’ (quotes by Bas Boorsma).
So, we can work on reducing the amount of transportation movements. Compare it with waste management or reducing your electricity bill.

If we are able to convince people to produce less waste, it is the best solution to our waste problem instead of finding innovative and most of the expensive ways to process all the current waste.
And reducing energy consumption by isolating houses is far more effective than generating more energy in sustainable ways.

Therefore, reducing cars and other transportation activities is at least as important as finding sustainable mobility solutions on demand to improve the quality of living of citizens who work-live-play in urban and rural areas.
f we are able to convince people to produce less waste it is the best solution to our waste problem instead of finding innovative and most of the expensive ways to process all the current waste.
And reducing energy consumption by isolating houses is far more affective than generating more energy in sustainable ways.

Therefore, reducing cars and other transportation movements activities is at least as important as finding sustainable mobility solutions on demand to improve the quality of living of citizens who work-live-play in urban and rural areas.

Until recently, no mayor asked me how to become a smart city. Recently, I talked to an audience of mayors and civil servants in Zagreb. When I told them that the first step to become smart is not about technology, their attention was caught. Then I advised them to go through six steps. Does your attention be caught too? Read my post.
You will find a Dutch version here: https://wp.me/p32hqY-1Ll

Throughout history, the Dutch have been world famous for reclaiming land to make way for more productive space. Fast forward to today, and we see how the city is reclaiming derelict space to make way for creative industries. With over 60 locations to date, ‘Amsterdam Broedplaatsen’ has already transformed former problem-properties into more productive and profitable districts. Since its inception 10 years ago, this approach has proven to be a success having created acclaimed hotbeds like De Ceuvel, A-Lab, B.Amsterdam.

Can the success of Amsterdam Broedplaatsen work internationally?

Last month, we tested the Broedplaatsen concept in Boston. This 24hrs hands-on workshop asked 8 teams of entrepreneurs, spatial planners and community leaders to transform 15 properties in the Dorchester & Mattapan neighbourhoods. The challenge utilised digital tools and strategies of relevant data collection, applying design thinking, and immersion techniques. All eight teams rapid prototyped some serious pop-up solutions that will have a lasting impact on the growth and sustainability of the district communities.

See the results here: http://www.citixl.com/reclaiming-space-results/

Do you have an innovative idea on how to make this world more sustainable? Share it at www.duurzamedinsdag.nl.

Wat is Duurzame Dinsdag?
De eerste dinsdag van september is Duurzame Dinsdag. Een bijzondere dag waarop duurzame ideeën en initiatieven een podium krijgen in politiek Den Haag. Het kabinet neemt op deze dag de Duurzame Dinsdag-koffer in ontvangst met honderden duurzame ideeën en initiatieven uit alle hoeken van onze samenleving. De meest duurzame, innoverende en onderscheidende ideeën en initiatieven maken kans op prijzen en de mogelijkheid om het idee of initiatief een extra impuls te geven.

Duurzame Dinsdag biedt alle soorten duurzame ideeën en initiatieven een podium. Van uitgewerkt businessplan tot een briljant duurzaam idee in het eigen huishouden, alles komt samen in de koffer. Ook de afzenders van de ideeën en initiatieven zijn enorm divers. Ze komen onder andere van particulieren, verenigingen, bedrijven, maatschappelijke organisaties en start-ups. Samen laten ze zien dat duurzaamheid leeft, en geen 'ver-van-mijn-bed-show' is.

Are you . . .
* Passionate about the role that the bicycle plays in keeping Amsterdam and the metropolitan area accessible and livable?
* Playing an active role in sharing this knowledge internationally?
* Experienced with building digital platforms and innovation ecosystems?

If so, the City of Amsterdam and the Vervoerregio (Amsterdam Transport Region) could select your organization as the collaboration partner to support the following goals:
* Develop and share knowledge about cycling
* Stimulate innovation and experimentation in the field of cycling
* Profile Amsterdam nationally and internationally as a knowledge cycling city
* Stimulate bicycle use to achieve these goals

Why?
In its Multi-year Bicycle Plan (MJP), the municipality of Amsterdam profiles itself "nationally and internationally as The Knowledge City in the Field of Cycling.” According to the MJP, the City would like to create more room for experimentation in order to solve Amsterdam’s unique cycling challenges, and testing of innovative bicycle concepts plays an integral role in finding those solutions.

Amsterdam has been building on knowledge development in the field of cycling in a compact city, and the municipality is now taking a deliberate path toward a stronger profile of sharing knowledge and supporting innovation and experimentation. To achieve these goals, the municipality of Amsterdam and Vervoerregio seek support for the following activities:

1. Digital Knowledge & Innovation Platform
Knowledge sharing leads to concrete ideas, projects or initiatives. The winning proposal will need to detail plans for a digital platform which will be in both Dutch and English, through which knowledge and innovations concerning cycling in the Amsterdam region will be bundled and made accessible. It will provide a shared bicycle platform for companies, citizens, academic, municipality, and transport region and social organizations in the field of cycling for the Amsterdam region. The platform will also offer the opportunity to showcase Amsterdam as a cycling city internationally. The platform must be fully transferable, so that it can be managed and further developed by the municipality or third parties at the end of the term of the agreement.

2. Expanded Network in the Field of Cycling
The winning proposal will be charged with setting up, mobilizing, and stimulating a powerful network organization. Through this network, the makers, inventors, implementers and policymakers will share bicycle knowledge and will be empowered and supported to develop innovative ideas in close collaboration with the commissioning parties.

3. Receive Delegations
The Bicycle platform for knowledge sharing, innovation and experiment has a leading role in receiving international delegations, giving and organizing presentations, and arranging excursions for the many delegations that are expected in Amsterdam and throughout the region.

Interested?
Deadline for proposals is May 14 at 14:00 via TenderNed. All relevant documents and information can be found in Dutch via: https://www.tenderned.nl/tenderned-tap/aankondigingen/162544

Good Luck!
The wining proposal will play an important role in strengthening Amsterdam visibility as a cycling city nationally and internationally!

The world around us is asking for innovative and entrepreneurial action. This two week summer course will challenge you to find entrepreneurial opportunities that contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

EXPLORE HOW TO IDENTIFY ENTREPRENEURIAL OPPORTUNITIES THAT MAKE AN IMPACT ON THE UNITED NATIONS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

• Take a deep dive into the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the role of innovation and entrepreneurship for a real and lasting impact
• Experience the potential of innovation driven entrepreneurship and technological innovations for the creation of new business models
• Explore your own capability for opportunity recognition and motivation for entrepreneurship, innovation and impact

Cool. Our NB-IoT emergency button featured an article on the VodafoneZiggo website. (in Dutch). Production samples will be available very soon. Exciting.

Dutch design & innovation in action.

https://www.vodafoneziggo.nl/verhalen/van-bejaardenknop-naar-gewilde-gadget/