What is the Kiezlabor?
From an old shipping container an energy self-sufficient Tiny House was born – the Kiezlabor! Our target group: EVERYONE – young, old, with a digital affinity or not! The essential thing is that you want to meet the big and small challenges of the present with courageous ideas and sustainable visions for the future. Under the motto “Without you, we’re just a container”, the Kiezlabor brings the prototypical approach of CityLAB to the Kieze of Berlin and invites you and your neighbourhood to explore and help shape the potential of digital transformation together. The Kiezlabor is an open space that serves as a workshop area, a stage, an interactive exhibition, a networking forum or simply as a place to have a cup of coffee.
The Kiezlabor is a project of CityLAB Berlin and the Technologiestiftung Berlin, with special support from the Senatskanzlei, and is being implemented as part of the digital and smart city strategy Gemeinsam Digital: Berlin. At the same time, we do not want to claim the Kiezlabor for ourselves exclusively, but would like to share it with other representatives from civil society, science and administration.
What will happen in 2024?
The Kiezlabor is continuing its 2024 tour and will once again make various Berlin neighbourhoods unsafe this year from May to October with its own program and focus topics. After a successful 2023, in which we got off to a flying start with five locations in districts such as Tempelhof-Schöneberg, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Hellersdorf, 71 events and over 1,600 visitors, we are looking forward to new encounters, collaborations and exchanges with you! We will keep you up to date on the specific locations and program planning on this project page and in our newsletter.
We look forward to seeing you on site again soon and developing new visions and ideas for Berlin together!
Schedule
Where is the Kiezlabor right now?
What happened 2023:
At re:publica 2023 and beyond, we tested the Kiezlabor in a beta version for the first time in front of an audience! For a fortnight, we stood near the festival grounds and wanted to create a meeting spot for visitors on their way to the event as well as residents of the surrounding neighbourhoods on a daily basis.
Kiezlabor meets Tempelhofer Feld
After the first test run and the spectacular opening at our Sommerfest, Berlin’s most charming Tiny House for digital transformation took up residence in one of the most magical places in the entire city – Tempelhofer Feld! For a good two weeks, from 17 to 27 August, we set up camp in the southwest of the airfield towards Tempelhof. This time, we had a diverse programme in our luggage that focused on the challenges of climate change for urban space! Read the blog post to find out what our time in the field was like!
Kiezlabor meets Graefekiez
The Kiezlabor continued touring through Berlin! The next location was in Graefekiez in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg on the topic of “space in the city“. As part of the Berlin Volunteer Days, we invited people to exchange ideas about new mobility concepts and fair use of pavements for young and old. A special highlight was an artistically talented robot that painted with chalk! You can find our highlights from Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg here!
Kiezlabor meets Marzahn-Hellersdorf
Our grand finale and last location for 2023 was in Marzahn-Hellersdorf! From 16.10. to 21.10. we were on Alice-Salomon-Platz and had put together a varied programme with the focus on “Shaping the city together“! We wanted to redesign Alice-Salomon-Platz in a climate-friendly way together with visitors and develop new ideas and visions for the square with the help of artificial intelligence in 3D and our modular furniture system. We also wanted to explore the concept of a transfer campus together with the Alice-Salomon-Hochschule Berlin! You can read about what we experienced here!
How can I participate?
Your organization, your company, your initiative and you are interested in working with us at one of the planned locations? You need an event space, a workshop opportunity or a meeting room during the time we are with you? You have an idea for a collaborative event in the Kiezlabor, where we work out solutions for Berlin together with residents?
At this site, we will publish the topics for each location in a timely manner. Feel free to contact us with suitable proposals for events, workshops, exhibitions, participation, etc. for a specific location. We will be looking forward to hearing from you!
Contact
Anne Kruse (Transformation Manager / Urban Development & Participation CityLAB Berlin)
Press
Anna Hantelmann (Senior Communications Manager Technologiestiftung Berlin)
Tel.: +49 151 18457 242
Pia Gralki (Team Lead Communications CityLAB Berlin)
Tel.: +49 175 6995 931
