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Becoming a Smart Society

Embassy of Data

The Embassy of Data, a multi-day programme during the World Design Event in Eindhoven, will aim to raise awareness of the possibilities and opportunities presented by data but also the threats and inadequacies. An exhibition, a varied programme of workshops and serious games, and an international conference will introduce visitors to some of the questions around data and its often invisible impact on our everyday lives. What data are being collected here? What kind of data will be stored, where, and for how long? Who is in charge? Which rules are being followed? The Embassy of Data will seek to help people understand a process that normally takes place invisibly and/or behind closed doors.The Embassy of Data concludes the multianual programme of De Staat van Eindhoven.

What questions should we ask to make the city smarter?

The Embassy of Data will aim to raise awareness of the possibilities and opportunities presented by data but also the threats and inadequacies. Cities around the world aspire to become cleaner, safer and more efficient through the use of data. To these ends, they use digital tools to process data, and increasingly also to produce it. Data collection and analysis are being put to use in the attempt to find solutions to more and more problems, including social ones. Problems often crop up with data protection and interpretation, however. What’s more, not everything can be conveyed in the form of pure data. When it comes to subjects such as loneliness and social cohesion, true “data deserts” exist. Building a smarter society, then, begins not with collecting more data but with collecting the questions that matter to the community.

Annabel Storm, Handen omlaag of ik schiet, from the series: Autoriteit op de waarheid, 2014.

Exhibition

The exhibition will help in collaboration with designer Richard Vijgen the public to understand and experience some of the issues around data and its often invisible impact on our everyday lives. The Embassy of Data will serve as the centre of an area. Within this space, we will collect as much data as we can about the visitors and the area. What data are being collected here? Where are the sensors and the cameras? Where and how is your phone tracked via Wi-Fi? Which Dutch and international companies and municipal agencies will get access to the information gathered? What kind of data will be stored, where, and for how long? Which laws apply? Who is in charge? Which rules are being followed? The Embassy of Data will seek to help people understand a process that normally takes place invisibly and/or behind closed doors.

Programme

Visiting the Embassy of Data is free:
When: 21 until 29 October
Time: 11:00 – 18:00 hours
Where: Former V&D warehouse, Vrijstraat 11, 5611 AT, Eindhoven

In addition to the exhibition, we are organizing a varied programme:

24 October – International conference: Finale: Een Stad zo Slim als haar Bewoners
22, 25 and 27 October – Crash course about data: De Macht van je Muisklik
26 October – Education programme: MapLab
28 and 29 October – Serious game: Woenseltopia

 

date
21/10/2017
through
29/10/2017
language
Dutch and English
 
location

Former V&D-warehouse
Vrijstraat 11
5611 AT Eindhoven

entrance

free

all activities
Project The State of Eindhoven
Programme lead Linda Vlassenrood

This project is part of the programme track Partner projects and the folder Research.

The multiyear cultural programme The State of Eindhoven)looks at the changing relationship between government and citizens and, specifically, Eindhoven’s twofold ambition of being a “smart city” in a participatory society.