CITIES IN TRANSITION.EU 2014 - 2016
AMSTERDAM ATHENS BERLIN BRATISLAVA BRUSSELS BUCAHREST BUDAPEST COPENHAGEN DUBLIN HELSINKI LISBON LJUBLJANA LONDON LUXEMBOURG MADRID NICOSIA PARIS PRAGUE RIGA ROME SOFIA STOCKHOLM TALLINN VALLETTA VIENNA VILNIUS WARSAW ZAGREB
NEW EUROPE CITIES IN TRANSITION
Š DUS Architects, Amsterdam
BUILDING A EUROPEAN NETWORK OF CITY EMBASSIES TO ENHANCE SOCIAL INNOVATION IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT Following the economical and ecological crises of the past decade, small-scale and private initiatives are on the rise in cities around Europe. From engaging in bottom-up area development to organising health care in an alternative way, creating employment in the neighbourhood, founding (tech-) start ups, co-designing public space and realising local food production, citizens are formulating a local answer to questions concerning them as a community.
INNOVATION IN THE CITY CORPORATIONS MUNICIPALITY
KNOWLEDGE INSTITUTIONS
Cities in transition
Although seemingly birds of a different feather, the transitional movement this illuminates could be brought back to questions around democratic innovation: who owns the city? Which actors are allowed to shape its appearance? How are participatory processes executed? And how do topdown institutions relate to the civic participation movement and social entrepreneurs? Local municipalities, educational institutions, urban planning agencies and corporations are increasingly aware of this transition and in search of a constructive redefinition of their own role. We believe that social innovation emerges from an inventive coalition of top-down institutions and private initiatives.
CORPORATIONS MUNICIPALITY
KNOWLEDGE INSTITUTIONS
PRIVATE INITIATIVE
SOCIAL INNOVATION
NEW EUROPE
Cities in transition
Building a network of City Embassies
New Europe - Cities in Transition is an initiative of Amsterdam based Pakhuis de Zwijger and its platform: Nieuw Amsterdam - Stad in Transitie (New Amsterdam - City in Transition). Between 2014 and 2016 we will build a network of the 28 capitals of the member states of the European Union. A network supported by, as we like to call them, City Makers: from residents, to (creative) entrepreneurs, urban professionals, civil servants, scientists, citizens’ initiatives, SME’s, NGO’s, government, research and educational institutions. In short: anyone who is actively engaged in their urban surroundings and is shaping the city in transition. Every capital will have a City Embassy, an organisation or local platform that will fulfil a networking role among the City Makers within their own city. The City Embassies are our local partners and the main vehicle in establishing and maintaining the network. New Europe – Cities in Transition will be an open platform that focuses on exchanging and sharing knowledge and experiences between City Makers.
WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO? Based on our experience with New Amsterdam and the Dutch City Embassy network, our goal is to build a network of European City Embassies under the name NEW EUROPE - CITIES IN TRANSITION. The following activities are part of our programme:
1. BUILD AN ONLINE PLATFORM
Citiesintransition.eu is an online platform where City Makers throughout Europe exchange experience and practice. This website works as an open source community where initiators from the participating cities add content and reports from their local communities and put best practices on an interactive European map.
FIVE WAYS TO LOOK AT THE CITY THE SUSTAINABLE CITY
THE MAKERS CITY
THE SMART CITY
THE PHYSICAL CITY
THE PEOPLE CITY
DEMOCRATIC INNOVATION How do we look at a city in transition? Within New Europe we distinguish several domains, through which we perceive the transition in a city.
From New Amsterdam to New Europe
In 2012 Pakhuis de Zwijger initiated the cross-sectoral platform New Amsterdam. This platform offers a playground for experimentation by City Makers, gives visibility to innovative projects and enhances the exchange of knowledge and practice among initiators. We look for successful modi operandi and initiate productive cooperation of the bottomup movement and the top-down system. We organise debates, workshops, design sessions, excursions and online activities. Also, we publish a quarterly magazine showcasing new initiatives and expertise. Since 2013 Pakhuis de Zwijger further developed a network of City Embassies within the Netherlands, resulting in a frequent exchange among 30 Dutch cities today, with the ambition to engage a total of 45 cities by the end of 2015.
2. ENGAGE LOCAL REPORTERS
In each city we work with local reporters, who report about what is going on in the transition movement in their cities. They will scout and monitor local initiatives.
3. ORGANISE METROPOLITAN FIELD TRIPS
The network will frequently meet offline during Metropolitan Field Trips. City Makers from all over Europe are invited to participate. The hosting City Embassy develops a program with tours along bottomup initiatives, agencies involved in urban development, the local university and municipality. Each trip will entail on-site visits and a local conference.
4. CONDUCT RESEARCH
Through engaging academics and students a research project will be conducted in the participating cities. The central question in each city will evolve around the relation between the local authorities and its citizens. To what extend is local initiative supported and facilitated in each city? And against which economic, social, political, ideological backdrop does it evolve?
5. PUBLISH RESULTS
The longitudinal research project, together with the experiences and output of the on- and offline events, will lead to a publication by the end of 2016. open platform that focuses on exchanging and sharing knowledge and experiences between City Makers.
NEW EUROPE
Cities in transition
New Europe Conference 2016
During the first half of 2016, The Netherlands will host the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. By that time the network of City Embassies within the 28 capitals of the European Union is consolidated, and will meet in Amsterdam for a multiple-day conference, frequent smaller programmes and field trips. Parallel to the activities of the Council, City Makers will share their knowledge and experience. We aim to co-create a European City Makers
Agenda to generate input for the formal European Urban Agenda. The latter is an initiative of the Dutch Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, that is currently developed in close cooperation with Pakhuis de Zwijger among other partners. Our aim is to put social innovation in urban development on the agenda of the European Union, and to further empower City Makers in shaping transition in cities throughout Europe. citiesintransition.eu
TIME LINE NEW EUROPE 2012 - 2016 January 2012
Start of New Amsterdam – City in Transition
December
2012
1st Dutch City Embassy in Rotterdam
December
2013
2013
2014
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1st European City Embassy in Berlin Opening of 30 City Embassies in the Netherlands
2014
Opening of City Embassies in Bucharest, Rome, Budapest, Copenhagen, Athens
January
2015
Launch of the online platform Citiesintransition.eu
March
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to Lisbon
April
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to Brussels
May
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to Madrid
June
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to London
September
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to Stockholm
October
2015
City Makers conference in Berlin
November
2015
Opening of City Embassy and Field Trip to Paris
2015
2016
Opening of 15 European City Embassies
2016
New Europe Conference and side events
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Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam Pakhuis de Zwijger is a platform with 8 years of experience in organising and programming events on the creative industries and urban development. Our events vary from in-house meetings – 419 events in 2014 – to field trips throughout the Netherlands and Europe. In 2014 Pakhuis de Zwijger reached 52,305 participants. Our online community has grown up to 52,338 individual members in the last year, and our website counts 1.6 million unique page views. We work with over 150 partner organisations. dezwijger.nl Contact: Charlot Schans, Project leader New Europe - Cities in Transition charlot@citiesintransition.eu +31 20 624 63 80