“Innovation Clubhouse is a catalyst for change. Our integrated concept for a living lab creates a place where athletes, researchers and the community come together to explore solutions for energy, sustainability, social inclusion and more.”
Illustrations for the Clubhouse project.
“TU Delft, KNVB and the City of Amsterdam, Space&Matter are launching the pilot project Innovation Clubhouse; a sports club that acts as a living lab where technological and social innovations are tested and further developed. Innovation is crucial for sports clubs in the Netherlands to stay future-proof. Many sports clubs face challenges such as high competition, high energy prices and outdated facilities. These problems are compounded by the changing consumption habits of new generations. Sports clubs can meet these challenges by innovating and responding intelligently to current social trends.
Researchers from TU Delft conduct research from AMS Institute, the knowledge institute for metropolitan issues in Amsterdam, particularly in the areas of sustainability, circular building, energy conservation and mobility. For example, they focus on the questions of how sports clubs can contribute to energy and heat production for the neighbourhood, how sports fields can be used as water buffers during major rainfall, and how the city’s logistics can be improved by using mostly unused parking spaces as hubs for partial transport. It also looks at how sports clubs can organise their offerings in a smarter way to better connect with unattached athletes, high school students and other target groups who currently often drop out of sports clubs.
Innovation Clubhouse aims not only to get more people moving and promote technological innovations but also to play a major role as a social point in the neighbourhood. For example, integrating neighbourhood functions, such as homework classes or a library branch, into the clubhouse can help improve social ties to the neighbourhood. Moreover, because residents from all walks of life can be found at sports parks with some regularity, the Innovation Clubhouse can be an accessible and low-threshold first step to help people with financial problems, access to employment or low literacy.”
READ MORE:
https://www.spaceandmatter.nl/work/innovation-clubhouse
https://innovationclubhouse.nl/
https://openresearch.amsterdam/nl/page/99423/innovation-clubhouse
