CrAFt Sandbox Pilot: The Green Mile in Amsterdam

Once a busy avenue coursing through the heart of Amsterdam, the Stadhouderskade had become synonymous with traffic chaos, noise, and polluted air by 2023. It was a street ruled by cars, trucks, and speed, leaving scant room for pedestrians, cyclists, or the nurturing of nature.

However, beneath the asphalt and congestion lay a historical treasure. This street once formed a vital defence wall in the 17th century and was the verdant Green Belt encircling Amsterdam. This history served as the inspiration for a visionary idea—to resurrect the Green Mile and reclaim the street as a haven for nature and people alike.

A consortium of six diverse organisations, including household names like Heineken, the iconic Rijksmuseum, architectural firm UNStudios, the Dutch National Bank, Blendingbricks, and the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, united under the banner of the Green Mile Foundation.

Their goal was ambitious yet simple: to metamorphose the Stadhouderskade into a green, sustainable, safe, and vibrant thoroughfare for all life forms.

The primary challenge was to navigate a path through the maze of differing organisational structures between the Foundation and the municipal authorities. While both shared common goals, their distinct structures often led to prolonged discussions and patient deliberations, slowing progress.

Another hurdle was engaging the local community in the transformation process. The Foundation ardently believed in citizen inclusion but recognised the difficulty in achieving meaningful participation. The endeavour was about more than bottom-up initiatives in a top-down setup. Still, it was also about creating a sense of ownership and ensuring the unheard voices of nature and animals were heard alongside the human perspective.

Under CrAFt, the collaboration between students from the University of Applied Sciences and the Green Mile Foundation aims to explore the essence of a sustainable and inclusive street using the principles of the New European Bauhaus. We are emphasising the role of art and education in igniting this change, as we believe that art can connect people, offer new perspectives, and enrich the dialogue between the different stakeholders.

By insufflating art and education into the project, CrAFt aims to help create the conditions to include perspectives that still need to be heard, and the Green Mile Foundation can develop itself further into an open, responsive and inclusive community. Its mission to create a sustainable public space is invaluable to Amsterdam and beyond.

If successful, the Green Mile Foundation’s vision to create a sustainable public space would not only benefit Amsterdam but also serve as a beacon for urban development globally.

Under CrAFt, several students at the University of Applied Sciences are working on the Green Mile in STEAM Teams. Students from the minor Climate Proof Cities work on designing climate-proof areas, cities and buildings from a technical perspective. They cross their ideas with students Social Work (BA) researching the homeless community on the Green Mile, striving to create more empathy and awareness. Assisted by artists from the Rietveld Academy, these students aim to include groups often left behind, making a sustainable, inclusive and esthetic transition on the Green Mile.

The students are working on the Green Mile between September 2023 and June 2024.

Written by Maria Kapteijns, Researcher in Coordination of Metropolitan Issues at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, and Jose Rodriguez, European Cultural Foundation.

Video and images by Design UNStudio. Copyright Plomp.