2018 has proven to be a key year for our institute in a number of areas:
- We moved to a new building in the up-and-coming innovation district of Marineterrein Amsterdam
- We began the second year of our MSc MADE program in September
- We scaled up our research portfolio and data science activities
Our role in driving innovation to create urban solutions with impact
We aim to develop a deep understanding of the city and a true sense of the urban metabolism, and its infrastructural, logistical, participatory and co-creative components. More specifically, our research, innovation and educational activities focus on applied technology across themes such as energy, circularity, food, data, climate and mobility. A thorough understanding of all of these areas can then drive the design and integration of solutions that will meet metropolitan challenges and help create a more prosperous society.
Research and Valorization
In 2018, we further anchored our focus and drive for excellence through innovation. We set our agenda, and achieved further involvement, visibility and gains for our key-stakeholders. As always, we started with Amsterdam and its citizens. But we are also committed to expanding our solutions to metropolitan areas across the globe.
In 2018 we re-designed our research activities around six core areas: Smart Urban Mobility, Urban Energy, Metropolitan Food Systems, Urban Data and Intelligence, Circularity in Urban Regions, and Climate Resilience. This re-design has brought more focus to our activities. It has also raised our profile and improved impact. At the end of 2018, our overall project portfolio consisted of 101 research projects, a wide variety of academic and public stakeholders, and over 150 private partners, representing a total value of €56M.
Expanding our educational program and activities
2018 was also an important year for AMS Institute’s educational program, as a second cohort of MSc MADE (Metropolitan Analysis, Design and Engineering) students joined the first cohort. The number of students of the 2018 cohort doubled compared to the year 2017 - when the program began – and we fully expect enrolment to continue to grow in 2019. Both groups demonstrate the qualities that fit AMS Institute: they are critical thinkers, with entrepreneurial interests, skills and initiatives, and an open-minded approach to finding effective solutions for metropolitan challenges.
A strategic move to Marineterrein Amsterdam
At the end of 2018, AMS Institute relocated from our home base at the Royal Tropical Institute to the thriving and innovative Marineterrein area. This is a strategic move, and it will help us realize our ambitions. We began retrofitting the former military building into our new office in mid-2018 to create an inclusive environment and breeding ground for academics, public and private partners, and citizens. Here, all parties are able to come together to exchange, research, develop and test new approaches to the many challenges metropolitan areas are facing. Our new location – with a community that supports collaborative approaches and includes all relevant stakeholder groups – immediately proved itself. It has helped boost our activities to a next dimension…and this is only the beginning.
The full report on our 2018 activities can be downloaded here.
Our statement of account required by the Standards for Remunaration Act (in Dutch WNT), can be read here (document only available in Dutch).