The Netherlands is one of today's most important centres of innovation and experimentation in architecture, urban planning, industrial design, and graphic design. In this talk, Annemartine van Kesteren reflects on what is meant by the term of Dutch Design and what it is inspired by, based on her more than 20-year experience in the Dutch design.

Furthermore, times change rapidly. By 2050, 2/3 of the world population will live in cities. Climate change, environmental protection, social needs on education, health for everyone, inclusiveness, and the recent COVID pandemic call for action by all countries, as the UN stresses. How do designers on all disciplines and all scale levels comment to this call?

The world rapidly changes, just like the methods of learning. Personalised learning, problem-based learning, blended learning are some of the approaches to new ways of learning. Because of the covid pandemic, online education has become mainstream rather than optional. How can an educational building adapt to these differrent ways and be flexible to the future ways of learning?

On a larger scale, we look at the university campus and its important role in the city fabric not only for the development of human capital but also as a significant research and economical centre. How does a university campus evolve in time?

In the 21st century, never before have more people chosen to live in urban areas. As a result, more cities are planning to add high rises to their skylines. But what are the best ways to incorporate tall buildings into the urban fabric? And what should life in future high rises be like? In this talk, we will explore some of the most innovative ways in which skyscrapers can contribute to urban life, including by integrating them with transit hubs, sky plazas, and natural spaces.

We want to change your way of thinking. By shifting functions between objects, components, or spaces, we are questioning the standard design approach where form follows function. We try to achieve an endless lifespan, a circular way of using resources, where anything can become something else. We build pilot projects in architecture, interior design and public space. In this lecture, we would like to tell you more about it and introduce new concepts.

Climate change, urbanisation and declining biodiversity pose many challenges to cities around the world. We need nature-based solutions to design cities that are resilient and healthy to live and work in. In this talk, the speakers will elaborate on different aspects of planning a green city – the sustainable response to those challenges. Building a green city requires a systematic approach and involvement of all stakeholders, from the government to every urban dweller. They will give worldwide examples of how cities implement nature-based solutions. They will explain a living labs approach where the governance and design of nature-based solutions in cities can be implemented together with all citizens.

What if we no longer work with dead materials, but with living organisms? Imagine buildings that grow, breathe and heal themselves. This talk takes you beyond the limits of your imagination by turning science-fiction into reality.