It happens here. Discover how to make a city together!

Can you plan do-it-yourself culture? How do you design a street with the entire neighbourhood? And how do you renew a city without losing the old one? Discover how to make a city together at ‘It happens here.’.

’It happens here.’ is a 30-day long manifestation that celebrates initiative, experiment and interaction in urban planning. With an exhibition and a diverse programme in the monumental Amstelkerk in Amsterdam.

Discover how citizens, pioneers, countercultures, architects and city planners are making the new city together. By giving space to self-building and unplanned renewal and by recognising the value of what is originally there, inhabitants remain owners of ‘their’ city.

Part of the exhibition was presented last year in South Korea at The Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, now having its premiere in the Netherlands. For the occasion, the theme 'Free space' has been added. Next to the exhibition there is a topical programme on three Thursday nights - with speakers, interventions and workshops.

The "treasure box" in The Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, Seoul, South Korea, 2019

The Ng’ambo Atlas presentation showcases Ng’ambo’s rich cultural landscape, revealed through story-telling, community mapping and historical research, undertaken as part of the development of the Local Area Plan for Ng’ambo. The Plan guides the area’s transformation into the new city centre of Zanzibar Town and was developed by the Government of Zanzibar, the City of Amsterdam and African Architecture Matters.

’It happens here.’ is an initiative of Stadsherstel Amsterdam, African Architecture Matters, Space&Matter, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and the City of Amsterdam.

The space between the beaten tracks is where it happens. Come by and wander through the stories of the collective city.

We happily welcome you in the Amstelkerk from October 19th to November 15th.