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Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 1)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 2)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 3)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 4)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 5)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 6)
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Living Lab Buiksloterham: Anneke Bokern (Thumbnail)
Anneke Bokern
Almere, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht

Anneke Bokern is an architecture journalist and writer based in Amsterdam. Born in Frankfurt, Germany, she studied History of Art and Architecture in Berlin. She moved to the Netherlands in 2000 and has been writing about architecture and urban development for German and international publications including Bauwelt, Baumeister, Topos and DETAIL ever since. She is also the author of several books on Dutch architecture.

Her passion for Dutch building culture led her to found architour in 2004 and co-found the Guiding Architects Network, making her one of the pioneers of professionally guided architecture tours in the Netherlands.

She develops programmes, curates tours, and leads groups in English, German, and Dutch, and continues to write and publish on Dutch architecture.

anneke-bokern.com

Living Lab Buiksloterham: Paul Vlok (Thumbnail)
Paul Vlok
Almere, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht

Paul is an experienced architect and lecturer. Born in Utrecht, the Netherlands, he graduated from TU Delft with an honours degree in Architecture in 1995.

In the years that followed, Paul worked for several Dutch architecture firms, contributing to projects in urban extensions and renewal areas. His work has consistently focused on housing and urban planning.

Since 2018, Paul has been a partner at architour. He develops and organises programmes and leads tours in English, Dutch and German. He also teaches at the Amsterdam Academy of Architecture.

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Tour in Amsterdam:
Living Lab Buiksloterham

Amsterdam likes to profile itself as a city of the future. In order to achieve this, progress has to be made in the field of sustainable architecture and city life. Collectively developed zero energy neighbourhoods and new urban concepts, such as the Circular City, contribute to the search for new approaches to sustainability.

Buiksloterham, located in Amsterdam-Noord across the IJ from the city center, is a pioneering area for sustainable architecture and urban development. Once an industrial zone, it is now being transformed into a model circular district where waste, energy, and resources are managed in closed loops. This innovative approach positions Buiksloterham as a living laboratory for future-proof urban design.

The development of Buiksloterham combines energy-neutral buildings, collective housing projects, and experimental urban concepts. The district is an incubator for new ideas, showcasing a range of architectural scales and styles, from large-scale housing blocks to floating homes.

On this tour, you’ll visit the new developments, and find out about their innovative architectural and sustainability concepts.

  • Duration: 3 hours

  • Transport: walking

  • Services: experienced local architect as guide

  • Languages: Dutch, English, German or French

  • Group size: max. 25 participants per guide

  • Cityplot (Studioninedots and DELVA landscape, 2016-2025)
    Transformation of a former industrial area into a new car-free housing district for 550 inhabitants

  • Hybrid-timber housing highrises 
    Patch 22 and Top-Up (Tom Frantzen, 2016/2021) and Stories (Olaf Gipser, 2022)

  • Self-build homes (2011-2020)
    Colourful mix of self-designed row houses

  • Republica (Marc Koehler Architects, 2024)
    Micro-city on a service platform

  • Schoonschip (Space & Matter, 2018)
    Floating neighborhood of 46 houses interconnected by a Smart Grid system

architour is led by Anneke Bokern and Paul Vlok. We currently have a team of 18 guides, based in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and Eindhoven.

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Guiding Architects
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 7)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 8)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 9)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 10)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 11)
Guiding Architects, tour: Living Lab Buiksloterham (Fig. 12)
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