All Things Urban

Apply now for This is Tomorrow, the centrepiece of our yearly education program! In this three-month course we use Rotterdam as a laboratory for research into social and spatial issues that are relevant to cities all over the world. Known for its harbour, its diverse working class population and its lively architecture scene, Rotterdam is also something of a frontline in the struggle for justice and equality in the capitalist world. At the same time, being a hub in the network of global trade, things that happen in Rotterdam have (in)direct effects in far-flung places around the world and vice versa. With This is Tomorrow we shed light on how the city functions and contributes to global issues such as climate change, migration and the right to the city and to explore how we can use research, art, (urban) design, history, and architecture to change things for the better. By both looking closely at local urban phenomena, as well as to global tendencies, we will see how the future is already here, at our feet and in front of our eyes. Through lectures, excursions and workshops, the programme offers participants the freedom to deepen their knowledge and to develop their own position towards the pressing urban issues of our time. **INTRODUCTION: LEARNING FROM ROTTERDAM** WK 1 & 2 / 07 April - 18 April 2025 The first two weeks are dedicated to understanding the visible and invisible realities of Rotterdam. Through field trips, lectures and exercises, you will explore the urban landscape while meeting various professionals from within the network of the School. **BLOCK #1 - MIGRATION: WE, THE TEMPORARY** WK 3 - 5 / 21 April - 09 May 2025 In this thematic block we will explore the lives and experiences of those who temporarily live in the city. From seasonal workers or undocumented migrants to international students and rich expats. We will investigate these temporary communities and see which role they play in local and global networks, mapping out their inner social, spatial and architectural environment, as well as the political and financial structures that have created them. **BLOCK #2 - ANTHROPOCENE: TO SEE THE WORLD IN A SOYBEAN** WK 6 - 8 / 12 May – 30 May 2025 In this block we will map and unravel the global impact of the Rotterdam port, meaning the societal and environmental impact produced by the port itself and those parties and production processes responsible for, up and down its value chain. By focusing on one specific product - the soybean - we will highlight stories that expose the often-hidden impact of Rotterdam’s global trade. **BLOCK #3 - RIGHT TO THE CITY: PROTEST IN THE CITY** WK 9 - 11 / 02 June – 20 June 2025 In this last block we will look at the public space of the city as a place for protest,regarding activism as a discipline that involves revealing facts, building narratives and creating real-world impact. We will identify an urgent issue, create a counter position, and design a strategy to challenge it while proposing an alternative solution. **REFLECT AND PRESENT** WK 12/ 23 June – 27 June 2025 Time to reflect on your findings and present the lessons learned! In the last week we will wrap up the course with some time to organise your thoughts and draw conclusions.

We invite all (young) professionals with a strong commitment to cities - regardless of your discipline - to join the laboratory environment of This is Tomorrow and develop skills that can be applied in cities around the world. The more diverse the participants' backgrounds, the more exciting and enriching the experience will be! **HOW TO APPLY?** This intensive 12-week programme fits within the 90 days period of a tourist visa to the Netherlands. It is based on a 4-day work week from Monday – Thursday, filled with assignments, lectures, workshops, field trips and conversations. The participation fee for This is Tomorrow is 1500 Euro (no VAT payable). You can apply by sending a motivation letter (1 A4), your CV (max 2mb) and examples of previous work (max 8mb/5 pages) to info[@]schoolforthecity.nl before 28 February 2025. The programme needs a minimum amount of 8 participants and has a maximum of 20 participants. Applicants will be informed before 01 March 2025 whether they have been accepted, after which a down-payment should be made of 150 Euro. For question please contact info[@]schoolforthecity.nl **Please specify in your application that you found this opportunity through All Things Urban.**

The Independent School for the City is a playground for all urban thinkers, do-ers and designers – based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It brings together critical and experimental ideas in the field of urban research, design, strategy and activism. Through a range of diverse activities, it offers a platform where urban professionals can meet to informally discuss the challenges facing the modern city. The school is an initiative of Crimson Historians and Urbanists and ZUS and is rooted in their practices of combining a critical and activist approach to the city with effecting real change through architectural and planning projects. The independent school for the City is founded on a strong belief in an incremental instead of a tabula rasa approach to city planning which blurs the lines between critique and practice on the one hand, and research and policy on the other.