Future Studio Oostkop – The Place to Design Your Own Future Future Studio Oostkop – The Place to Design Your Own Future

In the Future Studio, students, tutors, researchers, local residents, civil servants, architects and many other experts have contributed to lively discussions on a range of topics, through the medium of design-based research at street, neighbourhood, city, regional and national levels. Issues explored have included the future of mobility and healthcare in the city, green spaces in neighbourhoods, regional water security and spatial planning at the national level. Participants have worked on life-size installations of the Flemish-Dutch Delta, detailed diagrams of border areas shared with Germany and Belgium, and collages depicting their dreams for the future of Rotterdam.

Anyone is welcome to use the space. The only conditions are that you adopt a design-oriented approach to thinking about the future and are willing to share some of your findings. We would also appreciate it if you could make use of the archives of the Nieuwe Instituut. They contain many excellent ideas about the future.

During the New Currents workshop on Water Preparedness, held in February 2025, a multidisciplinary working group explored the potential of activist, bottom-up decision-making in this increasingly important field. Led by Yasmeen Lari, Marina Tabassum, and Alankrita Sarkar, the group discussed three case studies from Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Flemish-Dutch Delta. The group presented alternative, often informal, ways to engage communities at both local and transnational levels, focusing on negotiation and collaboration. The workshop was organised by Delft University of Technology, the Deltametropolis Association and the Nieuwe Instituut as part of the New Currents research project and with support from the International Visitors Programme.

During the Rotterdam on the Drawing Board workshop, part of Museum Night 2025’s Visions of the Future event, visitors were asked to create a spatial vision for the future of Rotterdam. Based on five themes – the port, reconstruction, the night, green spaces, and high-rise buildings – participants created collages depicting their dreams for the future. Historical and speculative images from the National Collection for Dutch Architecture and Urban Planning and the AIR archive were made available as inspiration. The workshop was organised in collaboration with the Board of Government Advisors.

In April 2025, the Transgression of European Border Regions discussion explored ways in which these regions could encourage greater cooperation across Europe. The focus was on the transformation of borders in terms of not only physical geography, but also governance, policy and spatial planning. During the event, policymakers, politicians and designers reflected on both the challenges and opportunities of working in border regions and considered how these areas could contribute to a more connected and united Europe. The session was organised by the Deltametropolis Association.

In May 2025, a group of Master’s students from the Urbanism programme at Fontys University of Applied Sciences began working in the Future Studio, as an alternative way of gaining practical experience. This initiative enables them to address urgent spatial issues within their professional field in the Netherlands. Based on the theme Migration: A Sense of Belonging, students are developing research scenarios and case studies that explore the spatial aspects of migration and community integration.

In the coming year, we will continue with the Future Studio Oostkop project. You will find information on public events and workshops in the calendar. If you would like to use the space yourself, please register at oostkop@nieuweinstituut.nl

Future Studio Oostkop emerged from the exhibition Designing the Netherlands: 100 Years of Past and Present Futures, which was on display at the Nieuwe Instituut from 2023 to 2024. A collaboration between the Board of Government Advisors and the Nieuwe Instituut, this exhibition inspired the public, designers and policymakers to develop a new vision for the design of the Netherlands.

Future Studio Oostkop is an initiative of the Board of Government Advisors and the Nieuwe Instituut, in partnership with AIR, IABR, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, the Creative Industries Fund NL, and the Deltametropolis Association.