Voorstee Groeiplaats: from community garden to urban farm

Voorstee groeiplaats

From community garden to urban farm

Voorstee is the umbrella foundation for green initiatives in the Brandevoort neighborhood. As one of the initiators within Brainport Smart District, the foundation is developing a city farm in The district of the future: a multifunctional center for a social and sustainable Helmond.

New location

The community garden that the foundation laid out a few years ago in Brandevoort has already been given a new location in The district of the future. Residents of Brandevoort are already hard at work in the BSD office farm. The foundation also organizes activities here such as the Pizza Garden, where groups can bake their own pizzas.

City farm

Eventually, Voorstee wants to realize a city farm. The city farm is the inspiration and connection place for residents in the field of circular living. Brandevoort residents can come here for advice and can participate in a ‘climate adventure’ to become aware of the challenge we face as a society. In doing so, the foundation wants to give the climate transition a boost. The city farm will also be a physical meeting place, social workplace and connecting factor.

Interested in the neighborhood garden? Just to have a look, or to help out yourself? Go to the Voorstee website.

OWNER PROJECT

Voorstee

PARTNERS

BSD

PROGRAMME LINES

Socia and safe district | Heatlhy district

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Voorstee

Connect SME: Cross-border collaboration

What does ConnectSME stand for?

Brainport Smart District is one of the six testing grounds in the Netherlands and Flanders that participate in ConnectSME. The aim is to stimulate innovation trajectories of SMEs and SMEs to bring their innovations to the market faster and thus maximize CO2 reductions.

In order to achieve the European climate targets, it is important that sustainable technological innovations find their way to the market more quickly. For many SMEs and SMEs developing sustainable technologies in Flanders and the Netherlands, it is difficult to bridge the so-called ‘Vallei of Death’. A significant amount of capital is often required to bring the innovative product to commercial scale, while potential customers do not yet dare to invest in the innovative products. In addition, it is important to select the right technologies that will maximize CO2 reductions in the long term.

How does it work?

With a consortium of six living labs and two clusters, the ConnectSME project facilitates demonstration projects for sustainable technological innovations in Flanders and the South of the Netherlands. The living labs provide a development and demonstration environment for innovative technologies, according to a user-oriented, open innovation ecosystem.

Selected SMEs and SMEs receive vouchers with which they receive advice and the opportunity to demonstrate and develop their innovation in this physical test environment. By removing barriers to cross-border cooperation, ConnectSME wants to improve the market introduction opportunities of innovative technologies in the border region of Flanders-Netherlands.

Who can participate?

The ConnectSME project focuses on Flemish and Dutch SMEs and SMEs.

Do you recognize yourself in the points below?

Then be sure to register:

You are active in the border region. More information at www.grensregio.eu
You develop technology that promotes CO2 reduction and climate objectives
With your technology you focus on energy or is related to it
You have already developed your innovation and are looking for a way to scale it
Your innovation is new in the border region

Read more?

Download the flyer about ConnectSME with more information or contact Martijn de Kort.

EIGENAAR PROJECT

ConnectSME

PARTNERS

Thorsite (VITO), Snowball en Green Energy Park in Vlaanderen

The Green Village (TU Delft), Future Energy Lab Metalot (TU Eindhoven) en Brainport Smart District in Nederland

PROGRAMMALIJNEN

Wijk met energie

MEER INFORMATIE

grensregio.eu/projecten/connectsme

Digital Twin by Geodan

Experience Brainport Smart District with the Digital Twin

Geodan has built a ‘Digital Twin’ of Brainport Smart District, an identical digital copy of reality.

When you make a virtual visit, you can see how the new district is going to look and truly experience and understand it. Smart 3D models based on a range of data give visitors a realistic look into the impact of the plans for the future.

Where do you position solar panels, rows of houses and cycle lanes? The Digital Twin makes ‘the District of the Future’ that BSD now still is, truly concrete.

Using the Digital Twin is a perfect example of how data is used in BSD. Geodan believes that linking data from the physical living environment to how residents experience it is crucial in order to make good choices in the layout of this environment.

The feasibility of the proposal is currently being investigated. If the outcome is positive, the proposal may well become a reality.