Buurthuis op wielen De Ontmoeting
hyper local - creativity - experiment - social work and art unite forces - asset based - co-creation - relational activism - collaborative and participative
What is it?
De Ontmoeting is a mobile, welcoming outdoor living room with fixed weekly locations in Amsterdam Noord, starting at Buikslotermeerplein, designed to invite residents to initiate and participate in experimental programs on themes that matter to them. It serves as an accessible meeting place, fostering meaningful connections between diverse residents by collectively contributing to the creation of activities. This radically participatory project operates as a mobile community center, responding to the needs and desires of the local community, and aims to create a space where collaboration and shared creativity drive the neighborhood’s social engagement.
The project focuses on community autonomy and collective representation, incorporating the concepts of pluralism, radical interdependence, and space for dissensus. By using methodologies like cultural probes, the ABCD method, and Participatory Action Research, De Ontmoeting aims to promote relational activism and social sustainability. Key themes of the project include co-creation, social participation, and creativity, all of which are central to its goal of reclaiming public space, providing a platform for residents, and generating ongoing, low-threshold access to diverse, community-driven programs.
What do we do at the moment?
wisdom tiles
One of the first events that De Ontmoeting started to deploy, where the making of wisdom tiles. De Noordas, an action and conversation group dealing with (the topic of) poverty, invited us to reflect on a meeting with the political department of Amsterdam dealing with poverty. We came up with a reflection on their powers and wisdom they hold as a first start to build a Northern wall of Wisdom for and from the North. At local events, this activy is often proposed for locals to make their wisdom tile that will be hung together with all tiles eventually in public space in the North.
wat kan jij doen?
Quilting, tile making, dancing, drawing, making nothing, making food, making everything, thinking what to make, making what we think, reading, podcasting, zine's making.
These are lots of creative ideas and some of them happen already, some of them are still to be invented, and all of them can be joined and/or initiated by you! Give us a call/mail, pass by, feel free and welcome to join this 'empty vessel' for your fantasies, ideas thoughts, plans, and so much more that we cannot even think of yet.
cooking and coffee
coffee and food are widely known connectors and enhancers of hospitality. We work together with local cooks, chefs, coffee makers, and all kinds of hungry and thirsty people where food and drinks are our collecting link.