As part of the Creative Embassy program and the collaboration of the cities of Amsterdam and Munich a field lab program is started on 11 October 2021 with the signing of the Letter of Intent in Munich. The first field lab that will be established as part of the initiative is one on “Cities of Things”. We started the preparations in 2020 and organized a couple of preparing workshops with both Dutch consortium partners and German interested parties.
We shaped the first possible topic for the field lab; the shared resources neighborhood hub. More details will follow.
As part of the starting consortium partners are from Amsterdam: Springtime, Sophisti, Space&Matter, INFO, Sue, NorthernLight, Akka Architects, Waag, IJsfontein. And from Germany Munich Urban Colab.
Read about the signing in Munich in this press release. And read this report on the day.
‘Cities of Things’ themed field lab (Munich-Amsterdam)
One of the defining changes in our relation to technology with connected products and data sensing is that machine intelligence has started to play a role in the functioning of objects and services. It influences how mobility services are shaped in cities, how we distributing goods and even producing food.
Digital intelligence promises to contribute to social structures, make efficient and sustainable sharing programs possible, and more. On a human scale, it impacts our relationship with technology.
The cities of Munich and Amsterdam will investigate these questions – in an open dialogue with the citizens. The platform to work together will be a field lab: The City of Things field lab MUC-AMS.
In this objected field lab program existing knowledge from research is combined with the experience of the creative companies with different backgrounds from urban design, product design, and interaction design, combined with technological expertise from makers. Shaping the program through a co-design with citizens and rapid prototype to learn and iterate towards a showcase for the future smart and healthy, and sustainable city.
Part of the Creative Embassy Munich-Amsterdam
The field lab Cities of Things is part of the overall cross-country program ‘Creative Embassy Amsterdam-Munich program’ – which started in 2017. This overall Creative Embassy Munich-Amsterdam program is continued on the 11th of October 2021 with the signing of a Letter of Intent by the municipalities of Amsterdam and Munich and different supporting partners. The field lab Cities of Things is the first field lab in this program.
Dutch and German partners in this Creative Embassy program are developing a vision for the field lab Cities of Things MUC-AMS. This vision could inspire to formulate a roadmap for German-Dutch field lab projects.
Building a field lab program roadmap
We aim to develop a field lab in both Amsterdam and Munich cities.
- Together with companies, government, knowledge institutes and the citizens, the specific challenges and goals are defined and further partners in both cities are identified and connected;
- Jointly we will develop a way of working which is cooperative for both countries;
- We aim to shape a scalable Cities of Things HUB concept
that combines the elements of shared mobility, local food production, energy production and is governed by the neighborhood community supported by an intelligent system; - The field lab program works towards different prototypes that can connect to the HUB system;
- In cooperation with the cities of Amsterdam and Munich, we decide upon a suitable location in the cities that can be a great field lab test location;
- Part of the development forms a co-design program within the neighborhood(s) to shape the community services and objects and deepen our insights for people-oriented solutions;
- The cooperation will be an iterative process that could become a blueprint for other neighborhoods and cities;
- The field lab cooperation aims at valuable results and next steps for both business and knowledge partners in both countries Germany and The Netherlands.
Join the initiative or know more?
Are you interested in joining the field lab Cities of Things MUC-AMS?
Please get in touch with Iskander Smit at iskander@citiesofthings.nl, Cities of Things Foundation, The Netherlands.
For more information on business between The Netherlands and Germany, contact Carina Weijma, Topsector Creative Industry, Business Development Manager for Germany carina@creativeholland.nl
We are looking forward to meeting you!