RSAN/SDIN workshop
autumn day/najaarsdag

“Knowledge Creation and Neighbourhoods”

keynote by: Prof. Dr. Oliver Ibert, Freie Universität Berlin

location: Deprez building, near Tilburg CS, Lange Nieuwstraat 172-174

start 10:00, finish 17:00

€50 (€40 for RSAN members)

City neighbourhoods differ widely from one another, to the point where severe poverty and social deprivation may literally be just a few steps away from wealth and affluence, and where socio-culturally diverse cosmopolitan high grounds may neighbour inward-looking enclaves of ethnic minorities or lower working class white communities.

In general, cities seem to favour knowledge creation, because of their diversity of knowledge inputs, their diverse markets and outlets for new products and services, and their physical connectivity to global knowledge. However, knowledge creation only happens in a select number of privileged places within cities. This is because the knowledge workers involved in knowledge creation form distinct social and professional communities that occupy distinct physical places within the city. They work in universities, research centres and office buildings, they meet at airports, hotels and bars, they have a preference for high-end cultural and leisure amenities and they live in upscale residential areas. These are the physical places where knowledge creation happens.

This is sufficient reason to problemize the interaction between social space and physical place; the interaction between the professional communities and networks of knowledge workers and the physical places where they meet. The spatial scale on which knowledge creation happens may be smaller than the cities and regions of the “innovative milieu” and the regional innovation models. Clearly, with their diversity of neighbourhoods cities cannot be seen as integrated and coherent innovation systems. On the other hand, knowledge creation hot spots cannot exist without the less favoured neighbourhoods. To an important degree, that is where the “service workers” who “run” these hotspots, as cleaners, restaurant workers and security staff, live. This raises important questions regarding the interaction between social space and physical place for knowledge creation. What makes a place a knowledge creation hot spot? Can cities manipulate this? How are hot spots connected to global knowledge? But is also raises pressing questions on the relationship between knowledge creation hot spots and less favoured neighbourhoods. How do borders emerge between hot spots and the rest of the city? Can these borders be made more permeable? How much economic exchange (people’s jobs) exists between hot spots and less favoured neighbourhoods? What social and cultural functions do hots spots perform for the city in general?

It may be that, for knowledge creation, cities depend on a mosaic of attractive places within and beyond the city in order to attract knowledge workers. But at the same time, this trans-local mosaic must be integrated in a local web of economic and social city life if it is to remain vibrant.

You are warmly invited to submit an abstract to the organizers, Roel Rutten (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and Martijn Smit (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

More information at: http://www.rsanederland.nl/en/bijeenkomsten/30-october-rsansdin-workshop-autumn-dag-najaarsdag/