Abstract Summary
Amsterdam Zuidas Even though the definition of 'innovation districts' leaves room for different interpretations, we see that many innovation districts have a fairly modernist spatial layout. When we think of Paris La Defense, Canary Wharf London or Amsterdam Zuidas, we don’t think of messy cities. Or do we? The Zuidas in Amsterdam can be traced back to Berlage's monumental Plan Zuid (1914). It became a prime location for (international) companies in the 1990s, with the ABN Amro headquarters as a landmark. In fact, an early 'transit-oriented development', but otherwise a rather isolated monofunctional district. Over the last 10 years, Zuidas is changing colour, slowly becoming a more mixed-use urban district. The notion of the Zuidas is widening and now spans from convention centre RAI all the way to the Vrije Universiteit / VUMC. Blending research, valorisation, education, living and leisure together – a true innovation district is emerging. Serendipity Safari In our proposed special session, we would like to navigate the interplay of order and complexity by foot, in a 3/4 hour-long walk in Innovation District Zuidas. Because what looks like a very structured area on an aerial photograph, gives a very different impression at eye level. During this 'safari', we will explore how innovation takes shape in the public domain of the Zuidas, in the plinths of buildings, and in the in-between spaces. In doing so, we want to be open to serendipity - finding something unexpected and useful, but unintended. Serendipity is often a starting point of creative processes and innovation, and thus fundamental to a successful innovation district. But can you design a city for unexpected encounters and events? For instance, by using certain densities, mixing function, designing permeable transitions between private and public domain? Approach Our plan is to walk & wander from the RAI to the ‘central business district’, to the Rietveld Academy and all the way to the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Along the way we will have our attendees ‘bump’ into a couple of special guests, who provide specific insights to a location or theme. The Serendipity Safari will end at Zuidas information Centre with a discussion around the big Zuidas model. A city safari serves as a swift and practical ethnographic approach for acquiring insights into a location and the behaviors of its inhabitants. It’s our objective to navigate the Zuidas and grasp how urban form potentially enables innovation, to spot interaction environments and observe the ways in which these are used, and to map informal routes and anchor institutions that drive this innovation districts.
