4 ways in which creative professionals can work towards a liveable city

A focus on consumption in city centres and their simultaneous demise due to online retail, the failed vision of a car-friendly city with a hesitant traffic turnaround, new work requirements due to working from home: German (inner) cities are facing a variety of challenges to remain attractive in the future. Hamburg is no exception. At the German Creative Economy Summit (GCES), experts from all sectors will be looking for visions for a city worth living in - and for the role of creatives in this process.

1. Radically rethinking the city

Those who work creatively are used to alternative processes: creatives work on different topics, against traditional opening hours, with agile methods and in changing constellations. They often think differently, radically and without fear - an important skill in urban development, which is characterised by bureaucracy. "Creatives are better at dealing with uncertainty than politicians and the property industry," says panel guest Robin Höning, architect and managing director at endboss.

The interdisciplinary Studio für Raumfragen from Hanover is leading the way: With their "What if" weeks, they promote the imagination of civil society in the design of urban districts and, with their intervention for the "Theaterformen" festival, managed to turn a four-lane elevated railway in the centre of Hanover into a festival stage for a fortnight. Creative process expertise is also in demand in Hamburg: what happens to the spaces of former department stores? Who will bring life to the Gruner+Jahr site and what can be created in the former parcel distribution centre on Kaltenkircher Platz? Creative minds are sure to have (radical) answers to these questions about the future.

2. Creating, utilising and preserving experimental places

Jupiter, Gängeviertel, Kraftwerk Bille: just three examples of the innovative potential that arises when creative people are given - or take - free design space. They can then create unprecedented experimental spaces, realise new ideas for use and thus also question consumerism as the sole driver of footfall. "Public space belongs to all of us, but it doesn't always look like that," Ivana Rohr, also a member of the management team at endboss, reminds the audience at GCES and encourages them to allow creative interventions.

What these places - and their extended surroundings - should look like is clear across various panels: "We need multifunctional city centres in which living, gastronomy and third places come together," demands Reiner Nagel, Chairman of the Board of the Federal Foundation of Baukultur, for example. Karin Loosen, President of the Hamburg Chamber of Architects, adds that each city must find its own way. "City centres were developed in the post-war era according to a blueprint. Such generalised approaches to revitalisation must not be repeated." And who better than the creative industries to provide the impetus for customised ideas?

3. Building ties and creating visibility

the German creative industries generated a turnover of 175.4 billion euros in 2021, making them a driving - and yet underestimated - force. However, eleven submarkets and diverse needs make it difficult for the industry to present a united front and represent its interests, whether locally or nationwide. "We need to position ourselves as an industry with real power in order to have a say in the design of city centres," encourages Peter Kraus vom Cleff, who, as Managing Director of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association (Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels e. V.), will contribute a clear view of the needs of the retail sector at the summit. This requires professional alliances, networks and interest groups.

But that's not all: Christian Ordon, Managing Director of the LiveMusikKommission e. V., emphasises that the industry must also make its influence visible through documentation. "A cultural register, such as the one Leipzig has, is a crucial aid in showing the size, breadth and diversity of a city's art and cultural venues," he emphasises from the perspective of live music venues. Joining forces, presenting a united front and making one's own impact visible - a task that is central to the influence of the creative industry.

4. Moulding ideas into form

Photography, design, text: Creative professionals not only have visions of a city worth living in, they can also present them in an appealing way. dr Bastian Lange, city maker, scientist and head of Multiplicities Berlin, calls this approach "telling approaches". He emphasises in the on-stage dialogue that the narrative skills of creatives can make a significant contribution to giving abstract visions a concrete form. A form that can also inspire others for the built environment. "This requires commitment and people who feel responsible for their city," emphasises futurologist Theresa Schleicher. Making ideas understandable and attractive? Not just a strength of creative minds since yesterday.

Creative professionals are not the sole "saviours of the city" - but they can make a decisive contribution to shaping urban space. If they share radical ideas, create experimental places, work together to ensure their own visibility and mould their ideas into an accessible form. True to the motto: Let's join creative forces.