Samenvatting

In a design and research studio of the Amsterdam Academy of
Architecture six students investigated between September and December 2020 the
transition to that post-fossil era, we visualized the expression of the post-fossil city of
the future, we explored systems and solutions that we cannot yet imagine. This little
book shows their results and discoveries.
This studio on the post-fossil city combines design and research. It is about learning
students ‘to think’ – in other words, to train them to discover, develop and test ideas,
solutions and plans in a well-founded way. This thinking process is crucial to exploring
a far and unknown future. By researching, writing and designing students will form
their thoughts and theories on the post-fossil city of tomorrow. In that sense the
studio was a continuous laboratory, a collective search for what the city of the future
is or should be. It was an ongoing process of experimenting, testing, inventing,
switching, reflecting, starting over. In other words, making an unknown future
imaginable step by step.
The idea was that by thinking (and researching, writing, doing, designing) a narrative
was built up, a well-argued foundation of a personal vision on the post-fossil city of
the future, a healthy balance between intuition and legitimacy, between free thinking
and realism – based on knowledge of relevant developments and techniques,
perspectives of others, inspiring references (historical and current) and ultimately
creativity and imagination. Note: it is good to emphasize that in this laboratory we didn’t look for new forms of
energy production. We explored how a world without fossil fuels influences our
lifestyle (at home, at work, in the public space – in our daily urban systems) and what
this means for the appearance and design of cities.
Research and design by students: Miks Berzins, Floor Hendrickx, Maro Lange, Siân McGrath, Martynas Solovejus, Valerie Smalen