With: Institute for Sustainable Urbanism ISU, TU Braunschweig

Openness is a central subject in recent societal debates regarding belonging, safety and resource distribution. Findings derived form multifaceted disciplines inform the meaning of openness for the development of the cities of tomorrow. Openness then becomes a characteristic of cities which acts against tendencies towards closure and totalitarianism.

“OPEN TALK” is part of the workshop “Open City Berlin”. On Wednesday evening we will discuss the three dimensions of openness – space, time, society – and prototypical concepts and approaches in the context of the city of Berlin, which can meet the multiple uncertainties in urban development processes against the background of current challenges without irreversibly obstructing future opportunities.

The project “OPEN CITY: Theories, Perspectives, Instruments” – funded by the Robert Bosch Foundation – explores the fundamental question of how “openness” can offer new approaches to urban transformation by systematically integrating it into urban development processes. An interdisciplinary team of scientists from the TU Braunschweig, the TU Dortmund and the German Institute of Urban Affairs – in cooperation with the Senate of the City of Berlin and supported by a renowned advisory board – is investigating which new approaches, strategies and tools of urban development result from bringing together concepts and approaches to the openness of the city and society.