Future City Game

Future City Game is a team-based process designed to create new thinking and actions to improve quality of life in cities. It enables people to find solutions to the long-term challenges facing cities. It is played during a two-day event by city inhabitants from diverse backgrounds, representing various disciplines and led by a trained games-master. The aim of the game is to generate the best idea on how to improve the quality of life either in a specific area within a city, the city as a whole, or in response to the common challenges facing cities around the world.

For more details click here.

a) Future City Game Master Training (16-18 September 2008, Kraków) - this event aimed to train Future City Game Masters who would be able to deliver the game in their own areas. Participants include British Council contacts from Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Lithuania, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Slovenia.

b) Future City Game Łódź (22-23 October 2008) - in this first Future City Game in Poland three groups of participants representing city authorities, academia, local community, business and various creative industries competed to work out the best solution to the challenges Piotrkowska Street will face in 10 years’ time. The idea that won envisages future Piotrkowska as a green, ecological promenade allowing inhabitants and tourists to relax on public benches among trees and loans cultivated by the local community.

c) Future City Game Poznań (19-20 March 2009) – The subject of the first FCG in Poznań was “Bringing Śródka district in Poznań back to life”. Five teams, each consisting of a Śródka district inhabitant, owner of the nearby tenement house, City Council representative, artist, architect and a leader, competed for generating the best idea for revitalising this socially and economically deprived part of the town. Partners of the game were Poznań City Council and Pro Design company. The game also had its media partner: the “Architektura” magazine.

Here you can read more about this game and its outcomes.

Our partners in Poznań:

d) Future City Game Gorzów Wielkopolski (17-18 June 2009) - The game focused on one of the main streets in Gorzów - Bolesława Chrobrego, a pedestrian area with only one mode of transport – an old-fashioned, charming tram. Players were working on finding the best ideas for renovating, re-arranging and enlivening this promenade. The discussing and competing ones were the street residents, architects, urbanists, sociologists, aldermen, artists, designers and students.

All winning ideas were quite simple and realistic, possible to implement. City representatives attended final presentations (some of them also took part in the game), after which it was announced that Gorzow has just started working on "brand strategy" and the authorities would be very much interested in co-operation with players and consulting them while changing Gorzow’s reality, using ideas from the game.

The game was co-organised by Gorzów City Council and Higher School of Business in Gorzów Wlkp. (Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu w Gorzowie Wlkp.).

Here you can read more about this game and its outcomes

Our partners in Gorzów Wielkopolski:

e) Future City Game Gdańsk (29-30 June 2009) - The aim of the game in Gdańsk was to generate the best ideas for revitalizing two selected courtyards of historical buildings in the beautiful Old Town of Gdańsk. The game involved 30 individuals divided into five groups.

The winning project entitled “Mussel” aims to create an attractive path through the courtyards. According to the winning team every single courtyard should emphasize its historical and touristic value, as well as introduce high quality arrangement of public space. The ideas included: a concept of creating a special platform for taking photos of the neighboring basilica tower, creating a theme café in the remaining underground bunkers, but also organizing a competition for the courtyard’s name, introducing a festivity of cake or a summer cinema.

The summary of the game was attended by the President of Gdansk – Pawel Adamowicz.

The game was wrapped up with a concert of a local band (Loco Star) on one of the courtyards.

To find out more please visit Creative Cities website.

Our partners in Gdańsk:

Urban Ideas Bakery

Urban Ideas Bakery will provide a method for young professionals to work together to develop and put into practice solutions to urban challenges across Europe. It will provide a model for debates to take place in a number of selected cities where groups of specialists will work together on specific problems put forward by the city authorities in consultation with the Future City Game teams and the city’s inhabitants. The project will be launched in autumn 2009.

For more details click here.

Exploratory Activities

Exploratory Activities provide a forum for ongoing debates on the role that creativity, entrepreneurship and innovation play in urban development, together with practical examples of creative events developed by and for people living in cities.

For more details click here.

a) Creative Cities Competition – the on-line competition for best photographs and videos on creativity in the city. The winners were announced on March 15, 2008. creativecompetition.britishcouncil.org

b) What Makes Cities Creative? (16-18 March 2008, Warsaw) - Creative Cities workshop for 30 ‘urban innovators’ and city partners from the participating countries were examining the people, places and practices that make cities creative places. Organised in Warsaw, March 2008, and led by Charlie Leadbeater, Creative Cities project consultant www.charlieleadbeater.net

c) Wiersze w Metrze – is a EUNIC-Warszawa cluster project promoting contemporary European poetry from 13 countries. It includes: poems exhibited / To date it included such activities as: the display of poems in the Warsaw underground, author meetings, Spoke’n’Word Festival, “Haiku for Warsaw” competition and educational programme. For more details click here.

d) Andrew Shoben Presentation (24th April 2009; organized by SAR – Advertising Agencies Association)

In Paris in 1993 Paris Andrew Shoben established the Greyworld agency. He wanted to create installations in public spaces, making use of the surrounding objects which people usually ignore in their daily lives. By making these objects ‘do’ unpredictable things, he intends to gently interfere with people’s intimate sphere. Andrew builds up spaces that offer passers-by the possibility of joining in and participating in the installation, and – by the same token – co-creating the installation's message. Greyworld works have been shown worldwide and the opening of each of them (some by important figures, like ‘The Source’ by Queen Elisabeth II) is a spectacular event, broadcast by TV stations globally. Andrew Shoben's projects have received many awards, e.g. the BAFTA Interactive Art Award and the D&AD Award (repeatedly).

Andrew Shoben’s show took place at the Silver Screen Mokotów cinema as part of the Festival of Commercial Art'09, whose keynote was creativity in urban spaces. It was preceded by a presentation of the Creative Cities project. Andrew briefly presented to the audience the history of Greyworld by showing its subsequent projects which have gradually won the agency an ever greater renown. The artist also told listeners how his creative group works today and described the agency's current projects, demonstrating their functioning on actual physical objects, as well as illustrating them with short films. The whole presentation was an interactive discussion with the artist, during which the audience commented on the works presented and exchanged ideas with Andrew on how such art affects life in cities.

e) NEW DIRECTIONS 2 - International Music Industry Meeting 15-16 October 2009, Centralny Basen Artystyczny, Warsaw, Poland

The first edition of the conference focused on international music industry and career opportunities for new and upcoming artists. The last event brought together people of various achievements and experience in the music industry, experts and newcomers who had just started their music journey. This time we will be focusing on the influence that inner city festivals and music events have on the urban structure. How they add up to the brand of the city? What is their role in activating the creative sector?
Music industry experts, music entrepreneurs, council officials and representatives of European structures will showcase their achievements and share their expertise. Our guests will show mechanisms and procedures of marketing and promotion which proved to be successful in their countries. The event will involve elements of creative economy. By approaching arts as business this innovative sector can both sustain individual artists and support development of European cities. This will also serve as a  networking platform for music entrepreneurs involved in the British Council’s International Young Creative Entrepreneurs Award scheme.

Meetings will take the form of subject sessions with European speakers. The conference is intended as a forum open for debate and platform of sharing good practice. Delegates will see the examples of how local and international music industry can contribute to the development of European cities, their attractiveness and functionality.

Organisers:

British Council with Good Music Productions

Supporting institutions:

Adam Mickiewicz Institute

Warsaw - European Capital of Culture 2016