In this short paper, we give an overview on how this major trend is unfolding and, specifically, how it affects cities. We take the following starting points: • Digitalization is a strong force that “happens” everywhere in the (urban) society. It has positive and negative effects – explored later in this paper –, which might be promoted or redressed by collective action or government intervention. Rejecting or denying it may come at high costs; • Digital technologies offer new tools and answers to address urban issues; • Digital technologies and their adoption bring a lot of new and unpredictable challenges; • Digital technologies raise several new ethical questions and dilemma’s regarding privacy, safety and security; • As in any other major societal transition, legal and institutional systems are not prepared for the digital age. Reality is always ahead of new regulation, resulting in constantly moving “grey areas” where it is unclear which rules (should) apply – think of how to deal with services like AirBnB or Uber.
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The relevance of citizen participation in regeneration projects, particularly in shrinking cities, is widely acknowledged, and this topic has received a great deal of policy and academic attention. Although the many advantages of citizen participation in regeneration projects have been identified, its current forms have also received considerable criticism. In short, this criticism boils down to the conclusion that the ideal of citizen participation is not put into practice. This paper considers why this is the case, asking whether current participatory practices enable citizens to exercise influence as political actors in urban regeneration projects. In this paper, we examine this question based on Mouffe’s conception of the political, coupled with findings from our empirical research conducted in Heerlen North, The Netherlands. We conducted qualitative research on urban regeneration in the shrinking old industrial city of Heerlen. The findings reveal two distinct perspectives on citizen participation. Professionals see the existing context of citizen participation as a reasonable and practical but, in some respects, insufficient practice. Citizens’ views on participation are organized around feelings of anger, shame, and fear and are grounded in experiences of a lack of recognition. These experiences limit citizens’ abilities to exert true influence on regeneration projects. We conclude that efforts to regenerate shrinking cities should strive to recognize these experiences so as to create conditions that generate respect and esteem and, as such, enable urban social justice.
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Across European cities local entrepreneurs are joining forces in new ways, forming collectives to stimulate business growth and innovation and to create a more attractive business environment. The value of such collectives is increasingly recognized by local governments and policy measures to stimulate these initiatives are being developed. Amsterdam hosts different collaborative initiatives, including 39 business improvement districts (BIDs).The Knowledge Mile is such a collective in which shopkeepers, other local SMEs, residents work together to collectively improve a large retail area. The city of Amsterdam is also a stakeholder. Government can fill an important role in enabling the creation of collective resource management in urban settings. However, if effective regulation is missing, citizens and governing bodies have to look for incentives to find new means of addressing governance. As such, the potential for collective management of urban commons may be greater than realized so far, as there is still a lack of knowledge in this area. In this paper, we aim to bridge this gap. By means of an embedded case study approach, we analyze the interaction between the stakeholders in their development of a green zone, the Knowledge Mile Park, in the Wibautstraat. In the coming years, roofs, facades and ground level will be changed through a collaboration of residents, entrepreneurs, researchers, civil servants and students in a metropolitan Living Lab. In this Living Lab, solutions for a healthy and social environment, climate resistance and biodiversity are jointly developed, tested and shown. In our study, we will analyze the role of the governing bodies in such initiatives, and make recommendations how collectives can become more mainstream with new kinds of institutions, without an undue burden on the community.
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Met het project ‘Smart Object Scanning met Robotics’ willen de projectpartners SICK en EKWC samen met de Hogeschool van Amsterdam (HvA) onderzoeken hoe het 3D-scannen van objecten met complexe vormen geautomatiseerd kan worden met behulp van een industriële robotarm uitgerust met een scanner erop. Het onderzoek levert een bijdrage aan het ontwikkelen van robotproductie op bestaande objecten met variabele geometrie (bijvoorbeeld afvalhout of unieke keramische werken). Daarbij is het niet alleen cruciaal om de exacte geometrie van het object te kennen, het is ook belangrijk om de ruimtelijke positie ten opzichte van de robot te kennen. Onvolledige en onnauwkeurige 3D-scangegevens leiden tot onjuiste bewerkingspaden en productiefouten. Het onderzoek wordt uitgevoerd door de Urban Technology Digitale Productie Onderzoeksgroep van de HvA, samen met SICK (leidende fabrikant in scantechnologie) en EKWC (internationaal werkplaats- en technologiecentrum voor kunstenaars, ontwerpers en architecten die met keramiek werken). Deze partners zullen de resultaten van het onderzoek gebruiken om innovatieve scan- en digitale productieoplossingen aan te bieden aan hun klanten of bezoekende kunstenaars. Het project bestaat uit de ontwikkeling van een scanmethode en het programmeren, testen en demonstreren van het ontwikkelde scanproces. Naar verwachting zal de aanpak bestaan uit meerdere scanstappen, beginnend met een ruwe scan gevolgd door geautomatiseerd geprogrammeerde meer gedetailleerde scanpaden. De resulterende puntenwolk van het gescande object wordt opgeschoond, waarbij scanfouten worden verwijderd. De laatste stap in het onderzoek is het scannen van concrete objecten die door de industriële partners worden aangeboden. Het project is een essentiële stap in de richting van industriële 3D-robotproductie, met name wanneer bestaande objecten en afvalmateriaal worden gebruikt als circulaire grondstoffen voor nieuwe toepassingen.
