✔️Amsterdam FCH Journey
The vision , the community(ies) and the physical and digital infrastructure(s) of the Amsterdam FCH
Amsterdam Fab City Hub Vision
The CENTRINNO Pilot team in Amsterdam comprises three complementary partners: Pakhuis de Zwijger (PDZ), a cultural center ; Waag, a public research institution exploring art, craftsmanship, and technology's role in social change; and HMC, a vocational school specializing in carpentry, furniture design, and craftsmanship. These partners share a common interest in the maker and artisan world, coupled with a commitment to innovation and a sustainable, thriving future for their city.
Certain areas of Amsterdam, particularly Amsterdam North, are experiencing rapid urban development, displacing minority groups such as makers, carpenters, and SMEs of local artisans due to real estate pressures. This displacement erodes an essential part of the city's cultural and industrial heritage. Recognizing these trends, and believing that a city aspiring to circularity and sustainability must preserve its heritage stewards, their vision for the Amsterdam Fab City Hub was to cultivate an inclusive maker "ecology." This envisioned Hub would function as a supportive platform for its members and advocate for harmonious development, integrating the area's industrial heritage and its workers into urban renewal. Key to this vision was designing and implementing actions aiming at establishing affordable spaces for makers to work, to exchanges and learn with a long-term perspective.
Another fundamental steps that contributing to make this vision a reality was the establishment of dialogues and partnership with key actors.
In particular with the Municpality, some real estate partners and a strong collaboration withh
The real estate company
The development of educational and training programme in collaboration with The HMC instityute
Along with the three years of experimentation process to lounch their FCH Initative partnership with key stakholder were established through the organisation of different actios. In the case of amsterdam key stakholder for the realisation of their Vision are the Municpality that , according to the Amsterdam team held the role of facilitating access to affordable space and design policy that will allow them to stay within the city borders in the long term , and Real Estate company.
Mapping key stakholders but also makers condition in terms of material ressources , spaces and knowledges are key steps that need to be consucted all along the process to foster their FCH Vision.
Amsterdam Fab City Hub Community(ies)
The Amsterdam team employed numerous community-building activities and tools to cultivate a robust and diverse community supporting the local FCH Initiative. For the team, a cohesive FCH communityencompasses both makers and common citizens. The vision for a circular and sustainable city integrates the needs and opportunities of both groups, and create synergies, opportunities and possible collaborations among different groups of peoples, ensuring their presence and well-being. " Keeping manufacturing sites within the city is not only benefiting employment opportunities but also creates a more vibrant and just living environment" (D4.3) .
Examples of these initiatives include:
Open workshops events that served both to find out a spatial strategy for their hub as well as engaging and connecting makers to this initiative , or
Interactive walks to connect inviting local inhabitants to meet maker companies and discuss topics of craft, circularity and how living and urban production in a city could be combined, or again Emotion Networking workshops to discuss who are the ‘real’ makers that deserve space in the city.
"Makers van Noord," a collective and itinerant exhibition in Amsterdam Noord aiming at creating bridges and synergies with makers and the local community . The event showcased ten local makers, sharing their stories on reuse, sustainability, and traditional craftsmanship. Visitors were prompted to envision their city's landscape without these essential makers—shoemakers, woodworkers, car mechanics—and contemplate the impact on the community.
Amsterdam Fab City Hub Infrastructure(s)
Developing a suitable and effective spatial strategy was a critical initial step for the Amsterdam team as they embarked on their FCH Initiative. Unlike other pilots, they faced the challenge of lacking both a dedicated meeting space and a cohesive community to launch their FCH vision.
Recognizing the importance of establishing a constant physical presence in the neighborhood from the start, they aimed to build a supportive FCH community. This presence would facilitate community-building efforts and enable members to gather, discuss, and address needs, challenges, and opportunities for co-designing their FCH model.
One key tool they utilized to ensure this constant presence was the organization of itinerant Open Workshops. These recurring events, held in various makers' workshops, were instrumental in physically establishing their FCH by engaging the community directly.
Another significant action towards defining and solidifying the Amsterdam FCH model was the launch of Maakschap Amsterdam. The creation of this virtual space served as a powerful tool to unite makers, share knowledge, and advocate for improving maker conditions through policy dialogues and recommendations while a physical gathering space was sought.
Eventually, during the project's final months, the Pilot team secured a space in the pilot area, which HMC will rent out for a minimum of two years. Named the HMC Learning Hub, it will serve as the main physical hub for the Amsterdam FCH Initiative. This space will host circular lectures, workshops for makers and citizens interested in the manufacturing industry, and will serve as the physical hub for the digital platform, Maakschap Amsterdam.
Despite having found this central location, the core FCH team embraces a distributed approach. This involves ongoing efforts to organize activities and foster partnerships with craftsmen's spaces across the area and the city at large. For example, they continue to organize open workshop events in various locations and collaborate with other initiatives to provide additional spaces for makers to rent or use when needed.
What's next ?
| Categories | |
|---|---|
City Size: | Medium with 863.202 inhabitants |
Productive Focus: | Woodwork, digital technology |
Main Partners involved: | Waag ( Research Institute, private company), Stichting Pakhuis de Zwijger ( Independent Foundation), Houten Meubileringscollege -HMC ( Vocational Education and Training Institute) |
FCH address: | A dedicated space in NDSM, Plein 27 in Amsterdam |
FCH online channels: |
Read the Amsterdam Blueprint 👇
Discover a visual document detailing Amsterdam's journey towards establishing their FCH Initiative. You will visualise their micro-missions, the practical tools they've developed, and few inspiring policy recommendations for regenerative urban models. The objective of this document is to facilitate dissemination and replicability of Amsterdam's best practices in setting up a FCH Initiative.
Last updated