Call for applications – Cross-Creathon Paris-Eindhoven 2021

For the French version, please click here. 

« Sustainable Urban Design in the face of the health crisis, a potential people-centred solution? »

Are you a Bachelor/Master/PDEng/PhD student or a young professional working or studying in the region of Eindhoven or Paris (Île-de-France) with creative ideas on how to innovate and democratise sustainable urban design after the current health crisis? 

If the answer to the above is yes, then apply for our Cross-Creathon Paris-Eindhoven on « Sustainable urban design in the face of the health crisis, a potential people-centred solution? » before August 22. 

The cross-Creathon Paris-Eindhoven: context, challenge and opportunities

Paris and Eindhoven appear among Europe’s most prominent creative design hubs with a rich heritage of design traditions and innovations highlighted by the yearly Paris Design Week and Dutch Design Week , official partners of this Creathon. Urban design will be at the heart of this year’s bilateral Cross-Creathon reuniting Paris and Eindhoven on the question of how urban design has impacted our lives and our living together during and after the Covid pandemic.

The health crisis has questioned the principles of living together in public spaces and goes back to the original purpose of urban planning: ensuring public health, well-being and hygiene. Health has turned out to be an indispensable element of human relations in public spaces raising the question how urban design can contribute to find concrete and social solutions. How can urban design help us overcome crisis like these without constituting an ephemeral trend of quickly replaceable and therefore disposable solutions? How can urban design rather help in the fight against global warming by consuming less energy and raw materials while favouring the general improvement of living conditions? This Creathon aims to find innovative answers to these current socio-ecological challenges.

During the Creathon you will be asked to form small groups and to work collectively on sustainable and social urban design solutions, which can either have a physical palpable or an intangible component. This resonates with the idea that you can mobilize design to conceive objects, but also to change mindsets. Extensive recycling and upcycling of urban materials, inclusive public spaces and popularising the use of urban design are examples of social and sustainable urban design approaches. 

Two experts from both cities will be coaching you during the working sessions related to design, public health, waste reduction and sustainability. Each team will be composed of four participants, including at least one participant from France and one from the Netherlands. 20 spots are available for ten participants from each metropolitan region.

What is a Creathon?

Creathons can be described as ‘creative marathons’ or interactive workshops that bring together talented students and young professionals residing in France and the Netherlands, from different backgrounds and fields of study. The participants of the Creathon work together to deliver innovative solutions, projects or prototypes, related to a pre-formulated topic. Click here for more information about our (previous) Creathons.

In-person meet-ups*

The Creathon is divided into two stages, the first being the preparation stage on September 16, 17 and 18, in different inspiring places in Paris during the Paris Design Week. One month later, the second stage or final event will be held in Eindhoven during the Dutch Design Week on October 20, 21 and 22. All selected participants will have to attend both stages. Between September 18 and October 20, we want to ask you to continue working on your group projects next to your other activities in a flexible manner. A Zoom meeting with the coaches will be scheduled to discuss your advancements in this period.

During the first stage in Paris, the participants form small groups and work collectively on one of the challenges pre-formulated by the organisers, the coaches, and their partners. At the end of the first stage, the participants will present their project proposals to the other teams, the coaches, the organisers and to local partners to collect valuable feedback.

During the second stage in Eindhoven the focus will lie on prototyping and fine-tuning the projects based on the received feedback. At the end of the programme, all groups will present their final work in front of a jury of experts. When presenting your final proposal, you expose how to implement it with for instance a prototype, an infographic, a basic business plan or a visual presentation. The winning team members receive financial aid in the form of a mobility grant, to help further develop your group project.

The final event will be concluded with a networking event with local partners and businesses. The Cross-Creathon is organised with different local and international partners and constitutes a unique opportunity for the 20 selected participants to meet fellow students from different countries and fields of study and to improve their skills while expanding their professional network. During both stages, there will be inspirational talks given by several experts, site visits, collective working sessions and networking events. More details will follow shortly.

Practical information:

• Organisers: The Cross-Creathon Paris-Eindhoven 2021 is organised by the Institut français des Pays-Bas, the French-Dutch Network for research and higher education (RFN: Réseau Franco-Néerlandais), the Nuffic, which is the Dutch organisation for internationalization of education, Urban Lab Paris & Co, Bureau du Design, de la Mode et des Métiers d’Art / Les Ateliers de Paris, Paris Design Week, Pavillon de l’Arsenal, Collège néerlandais, Dutch Design Foundation & Dutch Design Week.
• When: September 16, 17, 18 in Paris (FR) and October 20, 21 and 22 in Eindhoven (NL), both in-person events provided that the health regulations in both countries allow for it.
• For whom:  Bachelor/Master/PDEng/PhD student and young professionals aged between 18 and 30 years old and residing in the Paris region (Île-de-France) or in the Netherlands, though specifically working or studying in the region of Eindhoven, can apply for this event. International students are also welcome.
• Language: The working sessions will be in English.
• Costs: The organisers will cover the costs of transportation (travel between France and the Netherlands and vice versa + public transport/biking (if possible) on-site), accommodation (two nights in a hotel for non-Paris residents and two nights in a hotel in Eindhoven for non-Eindhoven residents) and meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner for both stages of the programme). You are responsible for the costs of any other expenses yourselves. 
• Participation: All 20 selected participants will attend both stages in both countries. Participation in the full programme is mandatory. Any unjustified failure (absenteeism, inappropriate behaviour) will lead to exclusion from further participation in the Creathon.

*The Creathon will only take place with the full implementation of the coronavirus guidelines issued by the Dutch and French healthcare authorities. With the latest developments, all participants will need the EU digital covid certificate to travel and to participate in the programme. In line with national and university guidelines, the nature of both stages remains subject to change due to evolving Covid restrictions.

Preliminary programme: