The Smart Citizens Lab helps people to explore tools and applications to map the world around us. Along with citizens, scientists, and designers, we deal with themes ranging from air quality to the conditions of bathing water to noise pollution.
The fast uptake of FabLabs and Maker Spaces is creating new opportunities for citizen-driven innovation in domains ranging from open hardware to digital fabrication, community informatics, and participatory sensing. In the past five years, the broad availability of open hardware tools, the creation of online data sharing platforms, and the easy access to maker spaces have fostered the design of low cost and open source sensors that communities can appropriate to engage in environmental action. By collectively measuring and making sense of environmental phenomena citizens can become aware of how their lifestyle affects the ecosystem and be inspired to adopt more sustainable behaviours and demand collective action.
In the Smart Citizens Lab we help people to explore tools and applications to map the world around us. Along with citizens, scientists, and designers, we deal with themes ranging from air quality to the conditions of bathing water to noise pollution. By facilitating collective action, the city will turn into a more healthy, social and beautiful place to live & work.
The Amsterdam Smart Citizens Lab was initiated by Waag Society and Amsterdam Smart City. Waag Society runs the Amsterdam Smart Citizen Lab in cooperation with the City of Amsterdam (CTO), HvA, RIVM, SenseMakers, Alterra, AMS, Amsterdam Economic Board, Fablab Amsterdam and Waag's Open Wetlab. This initiative is internationally supported by Fablab Barcelona, Microgiants, FutureEverything, the EU Joint Research Center and Dundee University, amongst others.
The Amsterdam Smart Citizens Lab continues to run and will refine its methodology in the EU project Making Sense (separate entry). It is open to new entrants from all walks of lives, and institutions to uptake and sustain its solutions.
The Amsterdam Smart Citizens Lab has had successful editions in 2014. 2015 an 2016, and stood at the start of the international project Making Sense. Key to its success are its use and development of open, fair and inclusive technologies; its wide and deep, lasting collaborations, and it's large group of participants and supporters.
Power to the people? Jazeker! Actief burgerschap, gemeenschapszin – het is helemaal in. Mensen zijn toe aan verandering en willen een stem hebben in de dingen die belangrijk voor ze zijn. De grote uitdagingen van onze tijd vragen om grote oplossingen en daar willen we onderdeel van zijn. Meer en meer krijgen we dat samen voor elkaar, buiten de gebaande paden, in vernieuwende organisatievormen, of op eigen initiatief – niet langer aan de zijlijn, maar midden in het speelveld. Van samen je eigen droomwoning maken tot het testen van ons collectief vermogen om te delen.
Ontmoet de doeners en makers die de maatschappij terugpakken om de wereld vooruit te helpen. Op 29 januari organiseren A Lab en Vandejong de 5e editie van Curious about... We duiken in nieuwe organisatievormen, nieuwe woonvormen, nieuwe zorgvormen en nieuwe natuur. Er zijn succesverhalen en hobbels op de weg. We ontrafelen hoe geld onze samenleving beïnvloedt, krijgen inzicht en handvatten om onze idealen te verwezenlijken, we leren hoe een initiatief niet wordt overgenomen door kapitaal en hoe niks zorgt voor meer... Bekijk het volledige programma en meld je gratis aan op a-lab.nl.
My name is Pınar Ebe-Güzgü, a PhD student at İzmir Katip Çelebi University, Turkey, currently conducting research at the University of Twente. My doctoral research focuses on social justice and disadvantaged groups in the context of smart city applications, with a particular emphasis on the mobility of elderly people (defined by WHO as people over the age of 65).
As part of my research, I conduct in-depth interviews with residents (aged 65+) of Amsterdam, caretakers of elderly individuals, and those working on (or with expertise in) smart city initiatives. The goal is to explore the mobility experiences of 65+ people in Amsterdam and develop policy recommendations to enhance social justice in urban management.
If you would like to share your experiences, your participation in this research would be invaluable. All interviews will be conducted at a time and format that suits you.
Thank you for your time and consideration. Your insights will greatly contribute to our understanding of how smart city applications impact the mobility and quality of life of older individuals.
If you are interested in participating, please reach out to me via the email address below:
p.ebe-guzgu@utwente.nl
Best regards,
Pınar Ebe-Güzgü
Nog nooit was het zo makkelijk om je DNA te laten testen, op afkomst, verwantschap en op gezondheid. Je staat daarbij je meest persoonlijke data af, zonder controle te hebben over wat er met die gegevens gebeurd. Gelukkig kan het digitaliseren van DNA binnenkort ook anders - op zo’n manier dat we een bruikbare database voor de samenleving bouwen, terwijl jij controle over je eigen data behoudt. Tijdens Waag Open op donderdag 12 december duiken we in de waarde en in de risico’s van een digitale DNA databank. Maak kennis met de eerste testpersonen en ontwerp zelf mee!
Kijk voor meer informatie op waag.org.
Datum: Donderdag 12 december
Tijd: 19:30 - 22:00 uur
Locatie: Waag, Nieuwmarkt 4, Amsterdam
Elke eerste donderdagavond van de maand opent Waag haar deuren! Kom langs om te discussiëren en te doen. Want we gaan niet alleen in discussie over maatschappelijke thema's en de toekomst – je leert daarnaast ook altijd iets praktisch. Iets dat je altijd al hebt willen uitproberen, zoals de 3D-printer in het FabLab, of juist iets dat je nooit had verwacht, zoals uitpluizen hoe DNA in elkaar zit in ons biotech-lab. Waag Open vindt plaats in de maakplaatsen op de eerste en tweede verdieping van het historische Waaggebouw op de Nieuwmarkt.
Hi Andy ,
Thanks for your message. We have quite some experience in low cost air quality monitoring. We recently did a pilot called Urban AirQ (https://waag.org/en/project/urban-airq) where we tested our own sensor kit. (measuring NO2, PM, Humidity, Temperature) https://www.fablabs.io/projects/bora-sensor-kit
We also connected the Bora sensor to the smartcitizen.me platform, but at this point they're not online anymore, since the pilot is finished. In the project Making Sense we are capturing all of our learnings (hardware, software, community engagement) and will present results after the summer. Feel free to contact me at gijs [at] waag [dot] org
My best, Gijs
Low cost AQ monitoring
I am interested in low cost Air Quality monitoring options, and was interested to see Amsterdam uses the Smart Citizen platform and equipment (link below), however I am unable to get any response via their website and everything seems to have gone "off air". Does anybody know what is the status or alternative options.
https://smartcitizen.me
Many thanks
Andy
@samlloyd Sam... Am I the only one interested here in how Amsterdam would like to tackle the most critical issue earth citizens are responsible for? Keep me posted!
Beste Gijs,
Thanks for your reply. My interest was peaked by the "mapping" technology. Really like using the crowd.
Now that I have read a bit more, I am of the opinion that this is more about collecting data than developing or using mapping tools. Still cool just not sure my need to map public spaces falls within the scoop of the project.
Warmest regards,
Jim
Hi Sam,
My apologies for this late reply. You can always send me an email and ask me anything on the project! My mail adres is gijs [at] waag [dot] org
best, Gijs
Hi Jim Bowes,
My apologies for this late reply. You can find more information about the Smart Citizens Lab here: http://waag.org/en/lab/amsterdam-smart-citizens-lab or download our publication on how to engage with citizens in starting a bottom-up citizens science projects in environmental sensing. http://waag.org/en/news/amsterdam-smart-citizens-lab-publication
If you have any more question let me know through gijs [at] waag [dot] org
best, Gijs
I'm a postgraduate student researching the ways Amsterdam is adapting to climate change. Would it be possible to speak to someone involved in this project to discuss further the unique perspective you may have on this subject?
How can I learn more about this program?
I am working on a project to help cities communicate with their citizens using natural-media (low tech outdoor communication). Mapping solutions will be an important part of how we operate. Natural-media allows for high targeted messages. However, cities demand control over where messages are placed and what those messages will be. I have used Google maps for years but it has limitation r should I say they are great maps with locations but that is just one part of what could be.