WeMakeThe.City is the festival that makes cities better. From 17 until 23 June, the entire Metropolitan Area of Amsterdam will revolve around contemporary urban challenges and their solutions. Visit high-profile conferences, inspiring meet-ups, mind-breaking hackathons, amazing exhibitions or pay a visit to one of the countless city makers. We invite everyone to make cities more liveable, sustainable, just, climate proof, accessible and safe.
Especially for our non-Dutch speaking community members, below our suggestions for an inspiring Smart City week.
On weekdays you can be inspired and informed by countless thematic urban and metropolitan conferences, hackathons, area expeditions and workshops, in which more than 500 speakers share their vision on the development of cities. Hundreds of city makers open their doors during the weekend to show you how they make their street, neighbourhood or city a greener, better and more social place.
Amsterdam Smart City, Amsterdam Economic Board, AMS, De Waag, the City of Amsterdam and Pakhuis de Zwijger are the initiators of this festival.
Especially for our non-Dutch speaking community members, below our suggestions for an inspiring Smart City week:
Sunday 16 June
Amsterdam City Challenge
During the 24-hour Amsterdam City Challenge, students and young professionals work non-stop on innovative solutions for urban mobility and energy challenges. The challenge starts on Sunday 16 June at 12 noon. Organized by AMS, Climate KIC, Metropolitan Region Amsterdam, the City of Amsterdam, Amsterdam Smart City and WeMakeThe.City. And the good news is.. You can still sign up to join!
Monday 17 June
State of the Region
700+ key players and change makers will discuss the future of the region. State of the Region makes visible what the combined power and capacity of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area is. The mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, will declare this year’s State of the Region. This year the emphasis is on the results of being well connected.
Opening Night
Who is the 'We' referred to in 'WeMakeThe.City', and who benefits from the city that is being developed? A thriving opening night with a.o. the Mayor of London's Good Growth by Design advocate Indy Johar (project00.cc, the Young Foundation); lector Inclusive Education at The Hague University of Applied Sciences, Aminata Cairo; and international water expert Henk Ovink (Dutch Special Envoy for International Water Affairs, Sherpa UN High Level Panel on Water, Rebuild by Design).
Tuesday 18 June
Future Cities
An exhibition that will take you to the urban heart of five of the world’s most exciting emerging cities: Kinshasa, Lima, Yangon, Medellín and Addis Ababa.
Metropolitan Conference: Getting around Smart
On this day of the Metropolitan Mobility Conference, we ask ourselves: who’s driving the digital revolution? Together with experts on data and mobility from all over Europe, we discuss the latest developments.
Metropolitan Conference: Complete turnover
The day on which circular economy is the central topic during WeMakeThe.City.
On this day we will meet Kate Raworth, the founder of the Donut Economy, and Marieke van Doorninck, deputy mayor for Spatial Planning and Sustainability and all applicants of circular projects for the Innovation and Implementation Program Circular Economy 2019 (City of Amsterdam).
Market place: Circular economy
Lively market place where circular initiatives in the Amsterdam Metropolitan area can meet, with a soapbox session for innovators and financers.
Wednesday 19 June
Urban conference: Cities of Digital rights
The internet has become indispensable in our daily lives. It is where we meet, learn and shop. It is also an essential tool for achieving equality, justice and fairness. But who is behind the buttons? Where are digital rights under pressure and how do we safeguard civil rights?
Thursday 20 June
Learn everything about Amsterdam Smart City. Walk with us on innovation district, the Marineterrrein, get to know about some inspiring innovative projects, meet our partners and celebrate the opening of our new Smart City Lab!
The Bicycle Architecture Biennale (BAB) is a prestigious showcase of cutting edge and high profile architecture that facilitates bicycle uptake around the world. After a successful first edition, inspiring thousands of visitors in 2017/18 to imagine new possibilities for urban living, the BAB will return in June this year.
Metropolitan Conference: Campus Amsterdam
Campus Amsterdam was founded in 2018 to stimulate knowledge sharing between these diverse knowledge districts, but also to support knowledge creation and to facilitate crossover collaboration on today’s societal challenges. Learn from Tampere (Finland), Groningen and Eindhoven during the Metropolitan Conference: Campus Amsterdam.
Friday 21 June
Urban conference: Upclose and Liveable
Your environment has a great impact on your life expectancy; where you were born, where you go to school, where you build a network. The City of Amsterdam wants retain a liveable and inclusive city. The City of Amsterdam organizes 'Up Close and Liveable', a global conference on social agendas for cities and metropoles.
Keynote: OluTimehin Adegbeye (Lagos/Nigeria) on “Who belongs in the city?”
A range of other interesting international speakers from all over the world on topics like: Access to Housing, Water Resilient Cities, Urban Health, Education for Equality, Homes for the Homeless, Digital Human Rights, Managing Tourism, Climate Justice and the Social City Index.
Duco Stuurman, Municipal Director Social Services, City of Amsterdam is happy to welcome you.
Workshop: Urban Living Lab Summit
Experts and practitioners present their knowledge and activate the participants in co-creative workshops, showing and experiencing if and how to use Living labs for solving urban challenges.’
Party: New Amsterdam Night
Party!! On the longest day of the year, we celebrate the Amsterdam of tomorrow: an Amsterdam for, by and of everyone.
Saturday 22 June
Floriade Almere 2022 Expositie
Almere will host the 7th International Horticultural Expo in the Netherlands. For six months, the Floriade ‘Growing Green Cities’ will focus on the cities of the future. Visitors will have a unique and meaningful experience: during the expo, they will be invited to ‘Explore, Touch and Change’. This expo will mark the start of a new, circular city district in Almere, a city close to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Almost everything built for the exhibition will be a permanent part of the legacy of Almere. The structures will remain and become part of the community for future activities.
Learn everything about Amsterdam Smart City. Walk with us around innovation district, the Marineterrein, get to know about some inspiring innovative projects, meet our partners and celebrate the opening of our new Smart City Lab!
Tour city oases De Ceuvel / also on Sunday
De Ceuvel is a city playground for innovation, experimentation and creativity where we aim to make sustainability tangible, accessible and fun. At De Ceuvel there is always something fun and quirky going on and everybody is welcome. If you want to get to know this special place better, learn more about the origins and background of De Ceuvel and the various sustainability techniques, come to this tour!
Program and tickets
View the current program on wemakethe.city to determine where you want to be and buy a weekend, day pass or passepartout. This pass gives you access to the reservation system where you can decide what your week will look like.
