In the framework of the International Social Housing Festival in Amsterdam, we will present the first research results of our project 'City of Comings and Goings'.
The way countries handle the current refugee crisis and the locations where refugees are being housed reveals a wider problem concerning the flexibility and absorption capacity of cities. Isolating the refugee crisis as a temporary situation ignores the permanence and regularity of migration. Our cities are increasingly defined by the dynamics of temporary inhabitants: expats, refugees, international students, and migrant workers moving in and out. How may cities better adapt to a phenomenon that has always shaped and defined urban development and will continue to do so in the future? – a question we will try to answer by sharing the first results of our project 'A City of Comings and Goings’. This way we want to stimulate the exchange of knowledge, and to create a common action agenda that will help prepare towns, cities, and regions for structural migration.
The event will start with an introductory presentation, followed by four presentations on Aarhus (Denmark), Prato (Italy), Vienna (Austria) and London (UK), in which our international researchers will discuss the current migration challenges in these cities and the specific spatial solutions that are being offered. The event will conclude with a panel discussion, in which Dutch professionals from different backgrounds will react to the presentations and consider what lessons can be learned for the Dutch situation. The panel will also reflect on what migration means for cities more generally, and how architecture and planning can contribute to migration challenges . Experts include: Achmed Baâdoud (Amsterdam Nieuw-West), Perry Hoetjes (Stadgenoot), Payman Hanifi-Moghaddam (Seedz Rotterdam), Desirée Uitzetter (BPD), Hassnae Bouazza (journalist), Francine Houben (architect Mecanoo), Cihan Bugdaci (Gentleman A.R.T.), Goof van Dormolen (VWN) and Michelle Provoost (Crimson)
Our session will be followed by a presentation of the research project 'Amsterdam Arrivals', set up as part of the International Social Housing Festival project. It explores the ‘arrival space’ of the city of Amsterdam. Arrival space is defined as a directly accessible accommodation for newcomers to Amsterdam, which may include refugees, workers, students, etc. The three research groups will present their outcomes and there will be a discussion on how the proposed strategies may be implemented in Amsterdam.
Both events are combined under the title ‘Migration and Mobility in Cities in the West’ and will take place at het Schip Museum in Amsterdam on Sunday, June 18th from 13:00 – 17:30.
More detailed information on the program and speakers as well as registration via: socialhousingfestival.com
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