In our complex society, diversity in knowledge and expertise is needed to solve metropolitan issues. Many different experts have to work together to explore what the city needs, what can be done and how it should be done. In short, if we want to have an impact on the city and develop evidence-based policy, then research is indispensable. This interaction and collaboration between practice and theory, between policy and implementation, is of great importance for the future of the city.
In Amsterdam and the region there are now more than 25 structural partnerships between various knowledge institutions, government organisations, companies and citizens. In 18 academic workplaces in the social, physical and digital domain, universities and colleges, the municipality and the city collaborate intensively on the major challenges of the city. This is done from different disciplines and using different types of knowledge, from traditional to fundamental theoretical. Sharing knowledge, facilitating that people working on the same subject can find each other in time and building bridges to politics and policy are necessary conditions for this.
