Digital City

 
The photograph above is misleading. Reading a book instead of watching the road is not allowed in any country, unless the car is parked.
 
For more than a decade, car manufacturers have been working on technology to take over driver's actions. A Lot  of money has been invested in this short period and many optimistic expectations have been raised, but no large-scale implementation of the higher SAE levels resulted so far. Commercial services with robotaxi’s are scarce and still experimental.  

The changing tide

Especially in the period 2015 - 2018, the CEOs of the companies involved cheered about the prospects; soon after, sentiment changed. In November 2018, Waymo CEO John Krafcik said that the spread of autonomous cars is still decades away and that driving under poor circumstances and in overcrowded cities will always require a human driver. Volkswagen's CEO said fully self-driving cars "may never" hit public roads.
The companies involved are therefore increasingly concerned about the return on the $100 billion invested in the development of car automation until the end of 2021. The end of the development process is not yet in sight. Much has been achieved, but the last 20% of the journey to the fully autonomous car will require the most effort and much more investment. Current technology is difficult to perfect. “Creating self-driving robotaxi is harder than putting a man on the moon,” said Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, after terminating Argo, the joint venture with Volkswagen, after the company had invested $100 million in it.
 
The human brain can assess complex situations on the road much better than any machine. Artificial intelligence is much faster, but its accuracy and adaptability still leave much to be desired. Driverless cars struggle with unpredictability caused by children, pedestrians, cyclists, and other human-driven cars as well as with potholes, detours, worn markings, snow, rain, fog, darkness and so on. This is also the opinion of Gabriel Seiberth, CEO of the German computer company Accenture, and he advises the automotive industry to focus on what is possible. Carlo van de Weijer, director of Artificial Intelligence at TU Eindhoven, agrees: “There will not be a car that completely takes over all our tasks.”
Elon Musk, on the other hand, predicted that by 2020 all Tesla’s will have SEA level 5 thanks to the new Full Self Driving Chip. In 2023 we know that its performance is indeed impressive. Tesla may therefore be the first car to be accredited at SAE level 3. That is not yet SAE level 5. The question is whether Elon Musk minds that much!  

The priorities of the automotive industry

For established automotive companies, the priority is to sell as many cars as possible and not to make a driver redundant. The main objective is therefore to achieve SAE levels 2 and possibly 3. The built-in functions such as automatic lane changing, keeping distance, and passing will contribute to the safe use of cars, if drivers learn to use them properly. Research shows that drivers are willing to pay an average of around $2,500 for these amenities. That is different from the $15,000 that the beta version of Tesla's Full Self Driving system costs.
The automotive industry is in a phase of adjusting expectations, temporizing investments, downsizing involved business units, and looking for partnerships. GM and Honda are collaborating on battery development; BMW, Volkswagen and Daimler are in talks to share R&D efforts for autonomous vehicles; and Ford and VW have stopped developing an autonomous car and are working together on more realistic ambitions.  

Safety issues at SAE level 3

But even with a focus on SAE level 3, the problems do not go away. The biggest safety problem may well lie at this level. Elon Musk has suggested for years that Tesla's autopilot would allow drivers to read a book or watch a movie. All they must do is stay behind the wheel. They must be able to take control of the car if the automatic system indicates that it can no longer handle the situation. Studies in test environments show that in this case the reaction time of drivers is far too long to prevent disaster. An eye on the road and a hand on the wheel is still mandatory everywhere in the world, except in  few paces for cars accredited at SEA level 4 under specified conditions.
The assumption is that the operating system is so accurate that it indicates in time that it considers the situation too complex. But there are still many doubts as to whether these systems themselves are sufficiently capable of properly assessing the situation on the road at all times. Recent research from King's College London showed that pedestrian detection systems are 20% more accurate when dealing with white adults than when dealing with children and 7.5% more accurate when dealing with white people compared to people with dark skin.
In the next post I will go into more detail about the legislation and what the future may bring.

You still can download for free my newest e-book '25 building blocks to create better streets, neighborhoods and cities' by following the link below

Our Showcase is here - tap into the potential of transformation design and create transformation ripples with us!

On January 24th, come and explore the projects carried out by the trainee teams from our Digital Transformation Intensive Programme dedicated to shaping an inclusive, sustainable and diverse society. Get inspired, learn more about how Transformation Design is done and meet fellow changemakers in our Clubhouse or online via our YouTube livestream.

Our trainee projects focus on the integration of technology into society and design for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through topics such as Sustainability Monitoring, Digital Health & Well-being, and Regenerative Cities, among others. In 20 weeks, they learn to work responsibly and sustainably by using design, technology and social innovation together with one of our partners.

We have prepared an exciting programme for you:
16:00 - 17:00 Mini-keynotes:

• "Digital Activism" by Marleen Stikker, director & founder of Waag Futurelab
• "Learning Communities" by Zlatina Tsvetkova, Learning & Knowledge Manager at Commonland
• "Systemic Design" by Andrea Nesta, Experience Design Lead at Nomads

17:00 - 18:00 Clubhouse exhibition of design solutions of trainee teams
18:00 - 20:00 Networking & drinks

There will be plenty of opportunities to connect with the trainees, partners and the extended Digital Society School community, so don't miss out!

Since mid-2022, Cruise and Waymo have been allowed to offer a ride-hailing service without a safety driver in a quiet part of San Francisco from 11pm to 6am. The permit has now been extended to the entire city throughout the day. The company has 400 cars and Waymo 250. So far, it has not been an unqualified success.  

A turbulent start

In a hilarious incident, an empty taxi was pulled over by police; it stopped properly, but kept going after a few seconds, leaving the officers wondering if they should give chase. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating this incident, as well as several others involving Cruise taxis stalling at intersections, and the Fire Department reports 60 incidents involving autonomous taxis.

Pending further investigation, both companies are only allowed to operate half of their fleet. In addition to the fire department and public transport companies, trade unions are also opposed to the growth of autonomous taxis. California's governor has rejected the objections, fearing that BigTech will swap the state for more car-friendly ones. It is expected that autonomous taxis will gradually enter all major US cities, at a rate just below that of Uber and Lyft.
 
Cruise has already hooked another big fish: In the not-too-distant future, the company will be allowed to operate autonomous taxis in parts of Dubai.
The number of autonomous taxi services in the world can still be counted on one hand. Baidu has been offering ride-hailing services in Wuhan since December 2022, and robot taxis have been operating in parts of Shenzen since then.
Singapore was the first city in the world to have several autonomous taxis operating on a very small scale. These were developed by nuTonomy, an MIT spin-off, but the service is still in an experimental phase. Another company, Mobileye, also plans to start operating in Singapore this year.
The same company announced in 2022 that it would launch a service in Germany in 2023 in partnership with car rental company Sixt 6, but nothing more has been heard. A survey by JD Power found that almost two-thirds of Germans do not trust 'self-driving cars'. But that opinion could change quickly if safety is proven and the benefits become clear.  

What is it like to drive a robotaxi?

Currently, the group of robotaxi users is still small, mainly because the range is limited in space and time. The first customers are early adopters who want to experience the ride.
 
Curious readers: Here you can drive a Tesla equipped with the new beta 1.4 self-driving system, and here you can board a robotaxi in Shenzhen.
 
The robotaxis work by hailing: You use an app to say where you are and where you want to go, and the computer makes sure the nearest taxi picks you up. Meanwhile, you can adjust the temperature in the car and tune in to your favourite radio station.
Inside the car, passengers will find tablets with information about the journey. They remind passengers to close all doors and fasten their seatbelts. Passengers can communicate with remote support staff at the touch of a button. TV cameras allow passengers to watch. Passengers can end the journey at any time by pressing a button. If a passenger forgets to close the door, the vehicle will do it for them.
The price of a ride in a robotaxi is just below the price of a ride with Uber or Lyft. The price level is strongly influenced by the current high purchase price of a robotaxi, which is about $175,000 more than a regular taxi. Research shows that people are willing to give up their own cars if robotaxis are available on demand and the rides cost significantly less than a regular taxi. But then the road is open for a huge increase in car journeys, CO2 emissions and the cannibalisation of public transport, which I previously called the horror scenario.  

Roboshuttles

In some cities, such as Detroit, Austin, Stockholm, Tallinn and Berlin, as well as Amsterdam and Rotterdam, minibuses operate without a driver, but usually with a safety officer on board. They are small vehicles with a maximum speed of 25 km/h, which operate in the traffic lane or on traffic-calmed streets and follow a fixed route. They are usually part of pilot projects exploring the possibilities of this mode of transport as a means of pre- and post-transport.

Free download

Recently, I published a new e-book with 25 advices for improving the quality of our living environment. Follow the link below to download it for free.

Join us on 15 December for our annual ThingsCon event powered by CLICKNL. Participate in interactive sessions, be inspired by the keynotes, and view the thought-provoking projects in our exhibitions. And most of all, meet each other!

True to ThingsCon mission, we focus on a theme that we feel resonates with current developments and discussions that explore and promote the development of fair, responsible, and human-centric technologies for the IoT and beyond; our current working theme is <em>‘Un</em>/i<em>ntended Consequences’</em>. Read more on our website.

Friday 15 December will be our main conference day. With a mix of: interactive sessions, inspiring keynotes, pitches from the community and an inspiring design exhibition.

• Opening and closing keynote by Maria Luce Lupetti (TU Delft) and Bas van de Poel (Modem)
• 12 interactive sessions in two rounds
• Short project pitches
• Exhibition with the best design student work and case-studies from practitioners.
• Meet fellow participants during lunch and breaks, ending with drinks

Find more details on the program page!

In an autonomous car from SAE level 4, perception equipment – the eyes and ears – and software take over human brain functions. This requires accurate maps, laser, radar, lidar and cameras. The lidar, which means 'detect light and range', works in conjunction with the car's cameras. This system pulses laser waves to map the distance to objects day and night, up to up to 100 meters with an accuracy of a few centimeters. The price of all this equipment is between €150,000 and €200,000. The lidar is a high-cost item, although this system is becoming increasingly cheaper due to industrial production. Together, these tools build a four-dimensional image of the environment, and all functions of the moving car are controlled using stored software and communications in the cloud.  

Google/Waymo

Google's X-lab began developing an autonomous car in 2009. In 2016, the company had already completed more than 1.5 million test kilometers and spent $1.1 billion on the development of an autonomous car. The company previously used a self-developed model ('the firefly', see photo). The company then deployed converted Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids, and these will be exchanged for fully electric Jaguar I-Pace cars.
In 2016, Google's parent company Alphabet parlayed autonomous car developments into a new company called Waymo (derived from "a new way of mobility").  

General motorcycles/cruise

Cruise was founded in 2013 with the intention of developing a self-driving car. In 2016, General Moters acquired the company for an amount of $500 million. To date, the company has completed 700,000 test miles in San Francisco's urban environment with no fatalities.

Uber

In 2016, Uber began working with Volvo to develop an autonomous car that could serve as a taxi. The company had acquired software manufacturer Otto for a net $600 million. The company predicted that there will be 75,000 self-driving cars on the road by 2019. That became zero. During the test phase, the company experienced several accidents, including one with a fatal outcome. In addition, Waymo became a target of data theft, a case that was decided in Waymo's favor by the court. Uber therefore had to pay damages of €250 million (in shares). This led to the departure of Uber founder Travis Kalanick. His successor, Dara Khosrowshahi, has put the development of an autonomous car on the back burner. It was recently announced that Uber has signed a contract with Waymo to use this company's autonomous cars in the future.  

Tesla

Until recently, the use of lidar was not possible due to the high costs for car manufacturers that opt for accreditation at SAE level 3. Tesla therefore equipped its cars exclusively with radar, cameras and computer vision. The latter means that all driving Teslas transmit camera images of traffic and the way in which motorists react to 'the cloud'. The company has been developing these images with artificial intelligence for years. It prides itself on the fact that its cars have rules of conduct for every conceivable traffic situation.
The development of the Tesla was accompanied by high expectations but also by many accidents, some of which were fatal. Last year, Tesla made available a beta version of the FSD ("Full Self Driving") software package for a price of $15,000. However, the company had to recall as many as 362,000 cars under the authority of the Traffic Safety Administration because this package was encouraging illegal driving. It looks like that these issues have been resolved and some experts have suggested that Tesla will be able to qualify for accreditation at least at SEA Level 3. This still has to happen.  

Ford and Volkswagen

These companies threw in the towel in 2022 and unplugged Argo, a company that was supposed to develop an autonomous car to provide SAE level 4 taxi services. Instead, both companies announced focusing on the SAE levels 2 and 3, like most auto makers.
 
According to analysts at AlixPartners, the industry has invested $100 billion in developing car automation by 2023, in addition to $250 billion in development of electric cars. I will discus the profitability of these investments later.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝗿 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿 / 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗮 𝗖𝗮𝗿
This experiment created by Tessa Steenkamp, questions what the camera car in your city sees, that you can’t see? Come explore the journey its data travel, and how they are used. Which functions do you think are a good idea – and where do you think is the limit? More info here

The experiment is organized by the HvA 𝙃𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙑𝙖𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙎𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨 research team. Human Values for Smarter Cities is a 4 year research project on how to make smart city technology understandable and contestable through civic participation.

The experiment is hosted by 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 on 𝗗𝗲𝗰 𝟭𝟱𝘁𝗵 at Het Nieuwe Instituut. This year's theme: ‘𝗨𝗻/𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀’, explores and promotes the development of fair, responsible, and human-centric technologies for the #IoT and beyond. The event is organized by ThingsCon and powered by CLICKNL.

𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 here 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲!

𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗨𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 
In this workshop, Tom van Arman will guide you through some concrete citizen-by-design applications, toolkits and techniques to keep your smart city projects safe, insightful and inclusive to all. In this hands-on workshop, we will examine the Scan-Car. What is its purpose? What what does it do today? What can it do tomorrow? Teams will collaborate and speculate how the Scan Car can fit a citizen-centric future city. More info here

The workshop is organized by the HvA 𝙃𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙑𝙖𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙎𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨 research team. Human Values for Smarter Cities is a 4 year research project on how to make smart city technology understandable and contestable through civic participation.

The workshop is hosted by 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 on 𝗗𝗲𝗰 𝟭𝟱𝘁𝗵 at Het Nieuwe Instituut. This year's theme: ‘𝗨𝗻/𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀’, explores and promotes the development of fair, responsible, and human-centric technologies for the #IoT and beyond. The event is organized by ThingsCon and powered by CLICKNL.

𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 here 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲!

𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱/𝘂𝗻𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀
In this workshop we will look at unwanted consequences, based on two existing urban technologies: a parking scan car service and an online reporting platform for local issues. We will use a canvas and our imagination to work on recommendations to repair the existing systems and/ or structures where these consequences originated. Hosted by Mike de Kreek
More info here

The workshop is organized by the HvA 𝙃𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙑𝙖𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙎𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝘾𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨 research team. Human Values for Smarter Cities is a 4 year research project on how to make smart city technology understandable and contestable through civic participation.

The workshop is hosted by 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 on 𝗗𝗲𝗰 𝟭𝟱𝘁𝗵 at Het Nieuwe Instituut. This year's theme: ‘𝗨𝗻/𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀’, explores and promotes the development of fair, responsible, and human-centric technologies for the #IoT and beyond. The event is organized by ThingsCon and powered by CLICKNL.

𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 here 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗛/𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲!

The Intelligent Cities Challenge (ICC) is one of the European Commission’s largest city support initiatives supporting European cities in their green and digital transitions. ICC delivers knowledge and support services to cities and their local economies to address two major challenges: making the transition to a net-zero economic model, while enabling social inclusion and sustainable development for every EU citizen.

Cities learn how to address these challenges through Local Green Deals: integrated, multi-disciplinary action plans to lead the green and digital transition across sectors from the built environment, urban mobility and renewable energy systems to tourism or small retailers. Cities become members of a vibrant network, gain access to advisory services, innovation and sustainability management techniques, cutting-edge technology and training and get inspiration and advice from peers and mentor cities.

Building on the success of the previous edition of the ICC programme (2020-22) and Digital Cities Challenge (2017-19), the ICC will now enter Phase 2!

Amsterdam as a Mentor City

Like previous years, Amsterdam has been selected to join the support programme as a mentor city. The city will play a leading support role by guiding the 64 core cities as they embark on their two year journey to create impactful strategies and develop innovative solutions that will place the cities at the forefront of the green and digital twin transition through Local Green Deals. A nice compliment, allowing the Amsterdam Region to share their experiences and learnings from setting up Local Green Deal initiatives over the past years.

The Intelligent Cities Challenge Strategy City Lab: Accelerating the Twin Transition (November 2023)

On 23 and 24 November 2023, over 200 people - a mix of Intelligent Cities Challenge (ICC) core and mentor cities, political leaders and representatives from European institutions gathered for the first time in-person to discuss the status quo of Twin Transition. Through examples and best practices, attendees had the honour to hear from over 30 speakers as they shared insights into collaboration methods, Local Green Deals, climate ambitions, digital transitions and more across the course of 20 sessions.

Amsterdam Smart CIty's Leonie van den Beuken travelled to this gathering in Brussels as one of the representatives of the Amsterdam Region. She summarized her trip as follows:

This EU program helps cities from north to south, east and west to connect, share and learn. A much needed interaction, as we all try to improve the quality of life of our citizens. We all struggle with the ever rising cost of living. And we all want to get our cities to become more sustainable.

None of this comes easy, but we all know that local collaboration plays a key role. Building local coalitions between government, businesses and citizens is one thing, but how do we make sure these so called coalitions of the willing actually become coalitions of the doing?

Some of the learnings we shared from the Amsterdam Region are; the need for political support and the importance of trust and respect.

• Local political leadership will inspire and guide society and entrepreneurs to invest and contribute. However, make sure pilotical support doesn’t evolve into political ownership. When that happens, societal parties and businesses tend to step out the coalition.

• Take the importance of trust and respect seriously. You need to show long term commitment, take time to create understanding between parties. Take competition between participating SME’s serious and define together how to handle this together. Create a workflow in which smaller parties are allowed to participate less intense but sill feel incorporated.

We'll keep you up to date on our participation in future gatherings and results from ICC Phase 2. Want to know more? Check https://www.intelligentcitieschallenge.eu/

At this time, every car manufacturer plus hundreds of startups are working on developing artificial intelligence for driving automation. This should enable communication with the car’s passengers, sensing and anticipating the behavior of other vehicles and road users, communicating with the cloud and planning a safe and fast journey. I will write later about the investments made to achieve this goal.
The development of car automation became visible when Google was the first to start a project in 2009. The activities that technology companies and the automotive industry carry out start from two different visions of the desired result.

Maintain the existing traffic system

The first view assumes that automation is a gradual process that will result in drivers ability to transfer control of the vehicle in a safe manner. It is provisionally assumed that a driver will always be present. That is why taking over control is no problem under specific conditions, such as bad weather and crowded streets. Tesla, an outspoken supporter of this vision, has therefore been talking about its autopilot for years. This came under heavy criticism because the number of functions that were automated was limited. Partly because of this, the so-called autopilot could only be used on a limited number of roads and under favorable conditions.
Most established automotive manufacturers primarily have in mind the higher segment of automobiles and announce they will only make relatively cheaper models suitable for this purpose at a later stage. Maintaining the current traffic system is paramount. The car industry wants to avoid at all costs that people will eventually stop buying cars and limit themselves to ride-hailing in autonomous vehicles.

Moving towards another traffic system

The latter is exactly the intention of the companies that adhere to the second vision. These primarily include non-traditional automotive companies, with Google (later Alphabet) in the lead. What they had in mind from the start was to achieve SAE level 4 and, in the long term, SAE 5 level, cars that can drive safely on the road without the presence of a driver. Companies belonging to this group advocate a completely new transport system. In their opinion, safe driving at SAE level 3 is impossible if the driver is not constantly paying attention. They believe that in the event of a 'disengagement signal', taking control of the car takes too much time and will result in dangerous situations. In addition to Google, Uber (in collaboration with Volvo) also belonged to this group, but now appears to have dropped out. This also applies to Ford and Volkswagen. General Motors is betting on two horses and aims to maintain accreditation at SAE level 4 with its subsidiary Cruise, although Alphabet's subsidiary Waymo has by far the best cards.

Important message for the readers

From next year on, the frequency of my articles about the quality of our living environment will decrease. I admit to an old love: Music. In my new website (in Dutch) I write about why we love music, richly provided with examples. Maybe you will like it. Follow the link below to have a look.

The term 'self-driving car' is used for a wide variety of technical support systems for car drivers. The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) has distinguished six types, as mentioned in the tabel above. This classification is recognized worldwide.

At SAE level 0, a car has been equipped with various warning systems, such as unvoluntary deviation from lane, traffic in the blind spot, and emergency braking.

At SEA levels 1 and 2, cars can steer independently or/and adjust their speed in specific conditions on motorways. Whether drivers are allowed to take their hands from the steering wheel depends on national law. That is certainly not the case in Europe. As soon as environmental conditions make steering and acceleration more complex, for example after turning onto a busy street, the driver must immediately take over the steering.

A properly functioning SAE Level 3 system allows drivers to take their eyes off the road and focus on other activities. They must sit behind the wheel and be on standby and are always held responsible for driving the car. They must immediately take over control of the car as soon as 'the system' gives a ('disengagement') signal, which means that it can no longer handle the situation. There is currently no car worldwide that is accredited at SEA-3 level.

This level of control is not sufficient for driverless taxi services. Automotive and technology companies such as General Moters and Alphabet have been working hard to meet the requirements of the higher levels (SAE 4). Their expensive cars (up to $250,000) have automated backups, meaning they can handle any situation under specified conditions, such as well-designed roads, during the day and at a certain speed. Under these circumstances, no driver is required to be present.

SAE Level 5 automation can operate without a driver in all conditions. There is currently no vehicle that meets this requirement.

The variety of options in this classification explains why the term 'self-driving car' should not be used. Cars classified at SAE level 1 and 2 can best be called 'automated cars' and cars from SAE level 3 onwards can be called autonomous cars.

The state of California introduced new rules in 2019 that allow cars at SAE 4 level to participate in traffic. Very strict conditions apply to this. As a result, Alphabet (Waymo) and General Motors (Cruise) have been allowed to launch driverless taxi services. All rides are monitored with cameras to prevent reckless behavior or vandalism.
 
<strong>Last week, you might have read the last in a series of 25 posts about improving environmental quality.  Right now, I have finalized an e-book containing all posts plus additional recommendations.  If you follow the link below, you can download the book (90 pages) for free. A version in Dutch language can be downloaded HERE**</strong>

Wil je optimaal profiteren van data?

Ben jij volop bezig met datagedreven projecten? Wil je leren hoe je het maximale uit data kunt halen en hoe je de uitdagingen kunt tackelen? Dan mag je ons Data en AI Seminar op 30 januari absoluut niet missen. Dit event gaat verder dan enkel inspiratie; het biedt je concreet praktische tools om data effectief in te zetten. Onze experts delen waardevolle inzichten, best practices en direct toepasbare tips om jouw organisatie te laten excelleren in de datagedreven wereld.

Voor wie is dit event?

Ben jij de drijvende kracht achter digitale transformatie in jouw organisatie? Sta je voor grote veranderingen en zoek je praktische tools die direct inzetbaar zijn? Ons seminar op 30 januari 2024 is speciaal ontworpen voor managers en besluitvormers die willen excelleren in de wereld van AI, analytics en data. Ontdek hoe je deze krachten kunt inzetten voor een tastbare impact in jouw organisatie. Ook professionals die hun kennis willen vergroten op deze baanbrekende onderwerpen zijn van harte welkom. We bieden inzichten en praktische tools die jou een voorsprong geven.

Wat kun je verwachten?

Vier inspirerende sprekers nemen je mee in het succes van datagedreven werken. Ze delen waardevolle inzichten en praktische tips om je op weg te helpen. Dit evenement biedt ook uitstekende mogelijkheden om te netwerken en ervaringen uit te wisselen.

Programma en locatie

Het programma is samengesteld uit een openingssessie en drie sprekerssessies.

Natuurlijk sluiten we de dag gezamelijk af met een hapje en drankje.

Datum: 30 januari 2024 
Locatie: Royal HaskoningDHV, Amersfoort (Laan 1914 35, 3818 EX) 

My fifth round at World Smart City Expo in Barcelona brought a blend of familiarity and fresh perspectives. Over the past few years I have grown increasingly skeptical of what I often call “stupid” smart-solutions like surveillance systems, sensored waste bins and digital twins which dominate the Expo.  I’ve learned that these solutions often lock cities into proprietary systems and substantial investments with uncertain returns. Amidst this skepticism, I found this year’s activities to be a hub of insightful exchanges and reconnection with international peers. Here's a rundown of my top five learnings and insights from the activities I co-organized or engaged in during the event:

1. Generative AI Potential: Visiting the Microsoft Pavilion offered a glimpse into the transforming potential of Generative AI. Microsoft showcased a new product enabling organizations to train their own Generative AI models using internal data, potentially revolutionizing how work gets done. Given the impact we’ve already seen from platforms like OpenAI in the past year, and Microsoft's ongoing investment in this field, it's intriguing to ponder its implications for the future of work.
2. BIT Habitat Urban Innovation Approach: I was impressed to learn more about Barcelona’s practical urban innovation approach based on Mariana Mazzucato vision. Every year the city defines a number of challenges and co-finance solutions. Examples of challenges tackled through this program include lowering the number of motorbike accidents, and improving the accessibility of public busses in the city. The aim of the approach is not to develop a new solution, but to find ways to co-finance innovation that generates a public return. This governmental push to shape the market resonates as a much-needed move in the smart city landscape where gains are often privatized while losses are socialized.
3. EU Mission: Climate Neutrality and Smart Cities: Discussions at the European Commission’s pavilion with representatives from the NetZeroCities consortium highlighted the need for standardized CO2 monitoring in cities. Currently, methodologies vary widely, making comparisons difficult. Practically this means that one ton of CO2 as calculated in one city might translate to zero or two tons of CO2 in another city. While meeting cities at different stages on their climate journey is crucial (ie some cities might only monitor Scope 1 & 2 emissions, while others will also include Scope 3), a key priority for the European Commission and NetZeroCities should be to implement more standardized and robust approaches for measuring and monitoring CO2 emissions, for instance using satellite data.
4. Sustainability & Digitalization Dilemmas: Participating in SmartCitiesWorld’s sustainability roundtable revealed several challenges and dilemmas. A key issue raised by participating cities is that sustainable solutions often benefit only certain segments of the population. Think for instance about the subsides for electric vehicles in your city or country – they most likely flow to the wealthiest portion of the population. Moreover, the assumption that digital and green solutions always complement each other is being challenged, as city representatives are starting to understand that digital solutions can contradict and undermine energy efficiency and neutrality goals. Ultimately many of the participants in the roundtable agree on the need to focus much more on low-tech and behavioral solutions instead of always looking to tech innovations which in many cases are neither affordable, nor effective in achieving their stated goals.
5. Drum & Bass Bike Rave: Despite the interesting sessions and conversations, it’s an event outside the Expo that emerged as the highlight for me.  Two days before the Expo I joined Dom Whiting’s Drum & Bass On The Bike event, with thousands other people taking to the streets of Barcelona on bikes, roller bladders and skateboards.  Whiting first started playing music on his bike to counteract loneliness during the Covid-19 pandemic, and since then he has become a global sensation. This was by far the largest and most special critical mass event I have ever participated, and the collective experience was electrifying. To paraphrase H. G. Wells who is thought to have said that “every time I seem an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race”, I can similarly say that seeing thousands of people bike and jam through the streets of Barcelona provided me with a glimpse into a hopeful future where community, sustainability and joy intersect.

Overall, I experienced this edition of the Smart City Expo as a melting pot of diverse perspectives and a valuable opportunity to connect with international peers. However, I do have two perennial critiques and recommendations for next year's event. Firstly, the Dutch delegation should finally organize a "Climate Train" as the main transport for its 300+ delegates to and from the Expo. Secondly, I advocate for a shift in the Expo's focus, prioritizing institutional and policy innovations over the current tech-driven approach. This shift would better address the real challenges cities face and the solutions they need, fulfilling the Expo's ambition to be the platform shaping the future of cities as places we aspire to live in.

Scrolling endlessly? Get off your screen and join us for an evening of insights and inspiration with remarkable speakers at our upcoming meetup event! Mike Lee of Stichting Appsterdam will revisit the crucial topic of ethics in app development, shedding light on principles for the future. Joris de Leeuw will share some useful techniques to avoid our constant digital distractions. Mohamed S Bah, founder of City Rights App, will share creative solutions for migrant challenges through podcasting and storytelling. Social designer Anna Noyons of (ink). social design will discuss designing products that bring out the best in people. Emiel Poot will explore the balance between human nature and the digital landscape. See you there for a night of discovery and connections!

AGENDA:

• 17:00 Welcome drinks - Welcome drinks to break the ice and network a bit with fellow attendees.
• 17:30 Opening and Welcome - Pinch / Appsterdam
• 17:45 Kick-off Speaker - Mike Lee - Mayor of Appsterdam. Mike will be revisiting his 2013 flagship talk “Ethics Made Easy”. How does this talk still hold up ten years later? What has changed, what principles should app makers consider going forward?
• 18:10 Joris de Leeuw - focus trainer at Diep Werk Doen. With his company Diep Werk Doen Joris trains knowledge workers how to better concentrate on their work and resist the constant lure of apps, calls, email and media. His method teaches the principle of attention by design; how we can reshape our own thoughts and behaviours to become more productive and less restless and distracted. He will give a talk on a few of the most recent insights in the field of focus and productivity. Website: https://www.diepwerkdoen.nl.
• 18:30 Mohamed Bah - City Rights App and City Rights Radio. Mohamed is the founder and host of the City Rights Radio and co-founder of the City Rights App. With his platforms he tries to find creative solutions to problems faced by migrants. Concerned with the dangers of negative stereotypes and its impact on the already marginalized community, he uses podcasting, and storytelling to reframe migrant representation in media.
• 18:40 Food is served
• 19:10 Anna Noyons - Anna is a social designer and the founder of (ink). social design. Anna will give a talk about designing services, products and systems that bring out the best in us, people.
• 19:30 Emiel Poot - De Jonge Strateeg & Appsterdammer - Emiel will delve into the balance between our human nature and todays digital landscape. We all have a fundamental need for social connection, but how have our instincts adapted to digital relationships, communication, and sense of belonging? Join us as we navigate the fascinating synergy between our wired brains and the virtual networks that have reshaped the very essence of human interaction.
• 20:00 - Closing and networking drinks.

🚶‍♀️ How walkable is Amsterdam? 🚶‍♂️

🏘️ Ever wondered how pedestrian-friendly is your neighbourhood?
Do you feel encouraged and safe to walk in your surroundings?
Do the streets have too much traffic 🚦 and not enough trees 🌳?

I am thrilled to introduce to you the newest sibling of CTwalk: CTstreets Map!
CTstreets is a web tool that highlights how walkable Amsterdam is 🚶‍♀️ 🚶‍♂️

It uses openly available data sources and provides information on how walkable neighborhoods, walksheds (5 and 15-minutes), and streets are.

CTstreets was developed through a participatory approach in three main steps:
📖 We studied the literature and made a list of all the factors that are most commonly found to impact walkability.
💬 We asked urban experts who work in Amsterdam to prioritize the identified walkability factors while considering the characteristics and citizens of Amsterdam.
💯 Based on our discussions with the experts we created overall walkability scores, and scores per theme (e.g., related to landscape or proximity) and visualized them.

👀 Explore the web tool here:

CTstreets Map
[currently does not support mobile phones or tablets]

🔍 Learn more about CTstreets Map:

Documentation
On a more personal note, it was wonderful collaborating with Matias Cardoso to develop this project. CTstreets draws significantly from Matia's MSc thesis "Amsterdam on foot," which is openly accessible and you can read here: https://lnkd.in/eyj3dpBZ

Disclaimer:

The estimated walkability scores are heavily based on the availability and quality of existing data sources. The reality is undoubtedly more complex. Walkability can be also personal and the presented scores might not reflect everyone’s point of view. Ctstreets is practically a tool aiming to enable the exploration of factors that impact walkability according to the experts in a simple, interactive, and fun way.

What opportunities for social cohesion do cities provide?

Is your neighbourhood park frequented by a homogenous or diverse mix of people? How many hashtag#amenities can you reach within a short hashtag#walking distance? And do you often encounter people from different walks of life?

I am very excited to introduce to you CTwalk Map, a web tool that seeks to highlight the social cohesion potential of neighbourhoods while also unmasking local access hashtag#inequities. CTwalk maps opportunities that different age groups can reach within a 5 or 15-minute walk.

🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️ It uses granular population, location, and pedestrian network data from open sources to estimate how many children, adults, and elderly hashtag#citizens can reach various destinations in a city within a short walk.

🌐 It offers a simple and straightforward understanding of how the 5 and 15-minute walking environments are shaped by the street network.

➗ It estimates the degree of pedestrian co-accessibility of various hashtag#city destinations.

CTwalk Map is now available for the five largest cities in The Netherlands.

Take a look at the web tool:

https://miliasv.github.io/CTwalkMap/?city=amsterdam

... learn more about CTwalk Map at this link:

https://bit.ly/ctwalkmap

[currently does not support mobile phones or tablets]

...and let us know what you think!

Zie digitale tweelingen niet als dé oplossing voor maatschappelijke vraagstukken die in gebieden spelen. Data en modellen belichten namelijk slechts een deel van de werkelijkheid. Bij ruimtelijke opgaven, zoals het woningtekort, de energietransitie en natuurherstel, gaat het om het gesprek om te komen tot een gedeelde werkelijkheid. Zorg dat digitalisering hierbij een constructieve rol speelt.

Op de grens van Brabant en Limburg ligt de Peel. Daar komen onder grote tijdsdruk verschillende opgaven samen: transitie van de landbouw, omslag naar hernieuwbare energie inclusief netverzwaringen, woningtekort, verdroging van de Peel en de mogelijke heropening van de vliegbasis Vredepeel. Het maken van die ruimtelijke puzzel vergt samenwerking tussen twintig gemeenten, drie waterschappen, twee provincies, diverse departementen en tal van bedrijven, maatschappelijke organisaties en burgers. Daarnaast vraagt die puzzel een integrale afweging: ingrepen voor de ene opgave kunnen immers vergaande gevolgen hebben voor andere opgaven.

Voor de digitale tweeling is echter geen vraagstuk te complex, schreef Microsoft in een artikel op Ibestuur. Het bedrijf werkt zelfs aan een digitale tweeling van de aarde, met de ambitie om deze beter te besturen voor mens en natuur. Tijdens een conferentie over slimme steden in Barcelona viel de sterke aantrekkingskracht van de digitale tweeling voor beleidsmakers en bestuurders op. ‘Doe mij ook maar zo’n digitale tweeling’ leek de dominante gedachte te zijn. De talrijke pilots en experimenten met digitale tweelingen in het ruimtelijk domein onderstrepen dit.

Hype?

Er lijkt sprake van een ‘hype’: digitale tweelingen als panacee voor gebiedsontwikkeling. Deze ‘hype’ hangt samen met de toenemende hoeveelheid en beschikbaarheid van (real-time) data over onze leefomgeving, zoals lucht-, grond- en waterkwaliteit en energieverbruik. Dit is mede het gevolg van het beter en goedkoper worden van monitoringstechnieken, zoals slimme meters in huis en allerlei soorten sensoren op straat, in drones en satellieten. Daarnaast stimuleert en verplicht de aankomende Omgevingswet het gebruik van data.

Partijen gebruiken verschillende definities voor de digitale tweeling. Doorgaans verwijst de term ‘digitale tweeling’ naar het idee dat een fysieke en virtuele ‘tweeling’ met elkaar in verbinding staan door de uitwisseling van data en informatie. Data over de fysieke wereld voeden de virtuele tweeling en inzichten daaruit kunnen weer worden gebruikt om te interveniëren in de fysieke wereld. Dat helpt bij het maken van allerlei producten – van de bouw van de Boekelose brug tot de BMW fabriek – en het verbeteren van bedrijfsprocessen, zoals het onderhoud en beperking van de CO2-uitstoot van de Airbus.

Hierdoor geïnspireerd, zien veel beleidsmakers en bestuurders de digitale tweeling als een belangrijk middel om besluitvorming – van beleidsvoorbereiding tot implementatie – te verbeteren door de gevolgen van keuzes te simuleren en te visualiseren. In het domein van politiek en bestuur is de digitale tweeling dus meer dan een technologische innovatie; het is een democratische innovatie. Dit roept de vraag op: hoe kan een digitale tweeling de besluitvorming daadwerkelijk verbeteren?

Er bestaat geen eenduidige werkelijkheid

Dat kan door de variëteit en veelzijdigheid van een gebied te erkennen. Een gebied is nooit één monolithische werkelijkheid; er spelen vaak duizend-en-een belangen en processen tegelijk. Toch is zo’n eenduidige werkelijkheid wel precies wat een digitale tweeling suggereert. En daarin schuilt zowel de kracht als het risico van dit instrument. Kracht, omdat het zorgt voor een basis voor een gesprek. En een goed gesprek is de basis voor goede besluitvorming. Risico, omdat zo’n eenduidige werkelijkheid ons kan doen vergeten dat de digitale tweeling selectief is. Hij laat slechts een beperkt aantal variabelen zien. Bovendien, datgene wat subjectief of lastiger meetbaar is, bijvoorbeeld de betekenis van een gebied voor haar inwoners, kunnen we gemakkelijk over het hoofd zien. Terwijl een democratisch proces juist ook voor die zachte waarden aandacht behoort te hebben.

Gesprekspartner

Beschouw een digitale tweeling dus niet als de gedeelde werkelijkheid zelf, maar als gesprekspartner in een breder democratisch proces. Daarbij is ook transparantie van belang over welke data wel aanwezig zijn en welke niet. En over welke modellen gebruikt worden en de aannames die daarbij gemaakt worden. Zo laat de maatschappelijke aandacht voor bijvoorbeeld de stikstofmodellen van het RIVM zien dat data en modellen niet neutraal zijn en ook niet apolitiek, ook al worden ze soms wel zo gepresenteerd. Data, modellen en algoritmes hebben namelijk invloed op hoe we problemen definiëren en begrijpen, wie daarbij betrokken worden en hoe we vervolgens handelen. Of toegepast op besluitvorming: ze bepalen welke maatschappelijke opgaven wel en niet worden opgepakt en hoe en wie wel of niet mee mag praten en beslissen.

Praktijkcases?

Dit artikel is een weergave van een aantal eerste inzichten in een project van het Rathenau Instituut naar de wijze waarop digitale tweelingen kunnen bijdragen aan besluitvorming over gebiedsontwikkeling. Hierin heeft het Rathenau samengewerkt met de Provincie Noord-Holland. Voor het vervolg van dit project is het instituut op zoek naar interessante praktijkcases.

De digitale tweeling als gesprekspartner dus. Hoe doe je dat op een verantwoorde manier? Wie kan hier praktijkcases van laten zien?

Dit artikel is geschreven door Romy Dekker (Rathenau Instituut), Paul Strijp (Provincie Noord-Holland) Allerd Nanninga (Rathenau Instituut) en Rinie van Est (Rathenau Instituut) en gepubliceerd op iBestuur. De auteurs danken Brian de Vogel, Henk Scholten, Arny Plomp, Herman Wilken, Rosemarie Mijlhoff, Jan Bruijn en Martine Verweij voor hun waardevolle inbreng in het project.

Beeld: Shutterstock

This is the 25st and last episode of a series 25 building blocks to create better streets, neighbourhoods, and cities. Its topic is happiness. Happiness is both a building block for the quality of the living environment and at the same time it is shaped by it. This is what this post is about.

A municipality with residents who all feel happy. Who wouldn't want that? It is not an easily attainable goal, also because there are still many unanswered questions about the circumstances that make people happy.
In its broadest sense, happiness refers to people's satisfaction with their lives in general over an extended period.

Can happiness be developed?

Only in a limited way. According to Ruut Veenhoven, the Dutch 'happiness professor', half of happiness is determined by character traits, such as honesty, openness, optimism, forgiveness, and inquisiveness. Five societal characteristics determine the rest. These are a certain level of material wealth, social relations, health, living conditions and self-determination. In between, culture plays a role.

Happy and unhappy cities

What about the happiness of cities, for what it's worth? The happiness of cities depends on the self-declared degree of happiness (of a sample) of its inhabitants. Scandinavian cities dominate the top 10: Helsinki (Finland) and Aarhus (Denmark) rank first and second, Copenhagen (Denmark), Bergen (Norway) and Oslo (Norway) rank fifth, sixth and seventh. Stockholm (Sweden) is ninth. Amsterdam follows in 11th place. Two of the top ten cities are in Australia and New Zealand: Wellington, New Zealand's capital, ranks third and Brisbane (Australia) ranks tenth. The only top ten cities not in the Scandinavia or Australia and New Zealand are Zurich (Switzerland) and Tel Aviv (Israel).
The bottom five cities are mainly cities that have been strongly marked by wars and conflicts: Kabul in Afghanistan, Sanaa in Yemen, Gaza in Palestine, and Juba in South Sudan. Delhi (India) ranks the fifth place from the bottom, because of the perceived very poor quality of life.
Independently from the place where they live, people who are happy are characterized by longevity, better health, more social relationships, and active citizenship.

Can cities improve their inhabitants’ happiness?

A happiness-based policy provides 'resources' in the first place, such as a livable income, affordable housing, health care and, in addition, creates circumstances ('conversion factors') to support people in making optimal use these resources. For instance, through social work, opportunities for participation, and invitation to festivities, such as street fairs, car-free days and music in the street.
Municipalities such as Schagen and Roerdalen consider the happiness of their citizens as the first goal for their policy. Cities abroad that intend the same are Bristol, Seoul, and Vilnius, among others. Nevertheless, Nancy Peters (project leader happiness of the municipality of Schagen) remarks: <em>We cannot make people happy. But the government offers a frame that helps people to become happy</em>.
Together with the Erasmus Happiness Economics Research Organization (EHERO), the municipality of Schagen has agreed on 12 spearheads: meaningful work, meaningful contact, participation in social life, connection with the neighbourhood, social safety net, trust in the municipality, pride in the place where people live, satisfaction with relationships, sports facilities, quality of public space, neighborhood-oriented cooperation and the relationship between citizens and community.

The importance of participation

In the previous blogposts, many topics have been discussed that easily fit in one of these spearheads. In his book <em>The Architecture of Happiness</em>, Alain de Botton notes that the characteristics of the environment that ignite social activities contribute most to the pursuit of happiness.  In addition to the tangible properties of the living environment, participation by citizens plays is of importance as a direct consequence of self-determination.
25 years ago, residents of two streets in Portland (USA) decided to turn the intersection of those streets into a meeting place. At first, only tents, tables, chairs and play equipment were placed on the sidewalks, later the intersection itself was used at set times. After some negotiations, the city council agreed, if this would be sufficiently made visible. The residents didn't think twice and engaged in painting the street as visible as possible (See the image above). The residents agree that this whole project has made their lives happier and that the many activities they organize on the square still contribute to this.

The impact of happiness on the quality of the living environment.

But, what about the other way around, happiness as a building block for the quality of the living environment? Happy people are a blessing for the other inhabitants of a neighbourhood, because of their good mood, social attitude, willingness to take initiatives, and optimism regarding the future.  At their turn, happy people can make most of available resources in their living environment because of the above-mentioned characteristics.  Environmental qualities are not fixed entities: they derive their value from the meaning citizens give them. In this context, happiness is a mediator between environmental features and their appraisal by citizens.
Therefore, happy citizens can be found in Mumbai slums, and they might be happier than a selfish grumbler in a fancy apartment. At the same time, happy citizens might be best equipped to take the lead in collective action to improve the quality of the living environment, also because of the above-mentioned characteristics.
Follow the link below to find an overview of all articles.  

🚶‍♀️ How walkable is Amsterdam? 🚶‍♂️

🏘️ Ever wondered how pedestrian-friendly is your neighbourhood?
Do you feel encouraged and safe to walk in your surroundings?
Do the streets have too much traffic 🚦 and not enough trees 🌳?
 
Together with Vasileios Milias, we've developed CTstreets map, a new tool where you can check how your street scores in different walkability factors and what might be missing to make it more attractive for pedestrians.

👀 Explore the web tool here: https://miliasv.github.io/CTstreets/?city=amsterdam#15.18/52.371259/4.895385/0/45
🔍 Dive into the methodology and process on our info page: https://miliasv.github.io/CTstreets/info_page/

CTstreets is based on the results of my thesis "Amsterdam on Foot" where I developed a participatory approach to evaluate walkability in every street segment of Amsterdam using open data.
The categories available on the map are Overall walkability, Landscape, Crime Safety, Traffic Safety, Proximity and Infrastructure.

📍 With this tool, you can check how is the walkability per street, neighbourhood or walkshed (5 or 15 minutes) and switch between categories.

A disclaimer about the results presented: While based on the opinions of municipality workers, urban designers and advocates for pedestrian accessibility, this work might not reflect the opinion of everyone. After all, walkability is also influenced by personal factors. Furthermore, the data we used comes from open sources and it might not always be accurate / up to date. Ctstreets aims to enable the exploration of factors that impact walkability according to the experts in a simple, interactive, and fun way, and spark a conversation about how we think and design for pedestrians.

CULTUURVERANDERING IN DE BOUW

Binnen de bouw zal men in de toekomst anders moeten gaan werken vanwege de maatschappelijke opgaven als duurzaamheid, klimaat en het arbeidstekort. De bouw zal (meer) moeten leren werken met alle digitale mogelijkheden die er zijn en aankomen. Dat vereist een andere cultuur van samenwerken. Zowel binnen het bedrijf als in de keten.

Ook het tekort aan personeel zorgt ervoor dat anders zal moeten worden omgegaan met personeel. Bedrijven zullen inclusiever moeten worden, zullen ook te maken krijgen met zij-instromers en ook hier zal digitalisering ervoor zorgen dat meer gedaan kan worden met minder mensen. Dr. ir. Koos Johannes, onderzoeker cultuur & ketensamenwerking bij de HVA zal tijdens het diner zijn inzichten delen over de Cultuurverandering in de bouw. Over deze, en nog veel meer onderwerpen, gaat het komende Innovation Dinner met als thema: Cultuurverandering in de bouw.  

Wil jij meepraten over dit onderwerp? Meld je dan nu aan voor dit innovation dinner!