UPCOMING COURSES

During this thematic block, we’ll dive into the Anthropocene – the geological era marking the dominant human impact on the Earth systems. Climate scientists have predicted that if we continue at the current pace with climate measures, we will still end up on a planet that is between 2° and 3° hotter at the end of this century. In these weeks we will map out the predicted effects of a 2,5°C temperature rise on the Netherlands, on the City of Rotterdam and on a number of very specific places in the city. After exploring these effects, we will then use our collective knowledge and that of our guest speakers and scientific literature, to imagine how we can mitigate the negative effects of global climate change and what is needed to make life livable in a city that suffers its consequences. – This block is part of our 12 week programme This is Tomorrow, but also offered as a stand-alone course. More info here

A four-day design and build studio, creating a spatial scenario for an Urban Oasis with the artist collective Observatorium – a studio for public art and place-making. We will look at historical examples and develop new scenarios for inhabiting an ever-warming city. Eventually we will develop a collective scenario for an Urban Oasis to be build as a temporary installation in the surroundings of the Independent School. The studio takes place on 25 May and 6, 28 & 29 June 2024. Regular tickets are available for 200 euro. Student tickets are available for 175 euro. Get them here

Because of the port and its connection with the rest of the globe, Rotterdam has always attracted people from all over the world. Nowadays over 170 different nationalities call the city their home. The population has become so diverse that Rotterdam has become part of a worldwide family of Majority-Minority cities – meaning that more than half of the population has a migration background. And, not just the number of nationalities has increased: as generations pass, also the diversity within the different migrant groups has become increasingly complex and as anthropologist call it: Superdiverse. In this workshop we will be working together with sociologist Linda Zuijderwijk, Crimson, photographer Florian Braakman and others. You will learn and develop methods for interviewing people, to record locations and conversations, to interpret what we see and to retell it in pictures, maps and stories, with the aim to get a deeper understanding of the Superdiverse makeup of the population.