The Bijlmer was one of the great experiments of the 1970’s in the Netherlands. In the South-Eastern outskirts of Amsterdam a city of the future arose with all the ingredients of large scale modernist housing estates: grade separation of traffic flows, buildings in the green, modern modular housing blocks with a uniform appearance… After years of social and economic problems, the area developed an image as one of the worst places to live in the whole country an beyond. 

In the meantime many things have changed. De Bijlmer in recent years saw a renaissance and has left its old image behind. Students of the Amsterdam Academy of Architecture worked on proposals how the area can further improve and become a showcase of climate adaptation while turning into a new centrality of the city. 

I had the honour to take place on the table to discuss the findings of the students and my own insights into the potential of the Bijlmer.