------PRESS RELEASE Eindhoven, 5 October, 2016 ------

Age of Wonderland presents: Big data. Big DADA? Cross-border cooperation in the run-up to Dutch Design Week

Once again this year Hivos, Baltan Laboratories and Dutch Design Foundation are organising the incubator programme Age of Wonderland for Dutch Design Week (DDW). This third edition embraces the theme big and open data. The fellows – designers and other creative thinkers and makers from Chilli, Guatemala, Indonesia, Iran and Tanzania – share their insights regarding this theme. What are the possibilities, limitations and pitfalls of the digital data available today? The fellows started a residency in Eindhoven in Eindhoven at the end of September, seeking collaboration with Dutch creatives, scientists and commerce, including the Design Academy Eindhoven, designers Joris de Groot and Isis Boot. During DDW, these residencies will manifest in an elaborate programme of exhibitions, work in progress, workshops and a seminar.

Age of Wonderland Age of Wonderland is a multi-year programme by Hivos, Baltan Laboratories and Dutch Design Foundation that wishes to stimulate global social innovation through the exchange of knowledge and co-creation between European designers, researchers and artists and those from Africa, South America and Asia. Each year six international fellows visit the Netherlands for two intensive residencies with as a highpoint a public presentation of their projects and experience and exchange of ideas and knowledge during Dutch Design Week. Ageofwonderland.nl

Martijn Paulen, director Dutch Design Foundation, about the collaboration: "With the 'Age of Wonderland' project we want to stimulate transnational knowledge-sharing to develop new perspectives for global social and ecological challenges. Through the meeting of the various cultures, surprising and innovative solutions occur each year. It is worthwhile for our design community to see how scarcity and creativity go hand in hand in some countries.”

2016: empathy, natural (disasters), infrastructure and social cohesion In this edition of Age of Wonderland, cooperation and the exchange of knowledge will take place between social geographers, artists, courses, academies, scientists, writers, engineers and programmers. They ponder over issues like: How can virtual reality help to create empathy? Can a mobile radio station function as a databank for anticipating natural disasters? Is big data an effective tool for improving the infrastructure and social cohesion in a city? How can ancient Maya knowledge be unlocked digitally? Students from the master’s Information Design at the Design Academy Eindhoven are involved in these challenges. They reflect on the projects and integrate them where possible in their own research projects. Read more about the cooperation in the appendix.

Age of Wonderland & Ja Ja Ja Nee Nee Nee radio This year, Age of Wonderland will launch an online and live radio station in cooperation with Ja Ja Ja Nee Nee Nee radio. Arif Kornweitz and Michiel van Iersel will produce various live shows with interviews, presentations and reviews during Dutch Design Week, dedicated to the fellows’ projects. www.jajajaneeneenee.com. Dutch Design Foundation Dutch Design Foundation (DDF) is optimistic and believes in the problem-solving abilities of designers for advancing the world. Which is DDF offers designers opportunities, support, publicity and a platform. DDF organises Dutch Design Week and Dutch Design Awards, but is active far beyond the Netherlands. Throughout the year they organise debates, lectures, exhibitions and meet-ups. Putting the best and most promising designers in the spotlights, and introducing their ideas and designs to the world. www.dutchdesignfoundation.com.

Note to the editor, not for publication For any press inquiries please contact Susan van Daal, Project Manager at Dutch Design Foundation, T: 0681814643, E: [email protected] www.dutchdesignfoundation.nl.

The registration for press accreditation DDW16 is officially open! Click here to register. Appendix: fellows and collaborations

Ali Eslami Researcher Ali Eslami (Iran) uses virtual reality to highlight the tragedy of victims of war that reach us through our daily news. His goal is to increase people’s awareness of the reality, which is not uncommonly overshadowed by Big Data. Age of Wonderland links Eslami to theatre maker and visual artist Dries Verhoeven (Netherlands), to explore together the impact of virtual presentations on the public. http://alllesss.com/

Paz Bernaldo Development-aid worker Paz Bernaldo (Chilli) works in the sole public park in Melipilla (a city to the south of Santiago) on a living laboratory. As part of her investigations, she explores the opportunities that Big Data offer as an instrument for social innovation. In Age of Wonderland Bernaldo researches with designers Isis Boot (Netherlands) and Marta Sierra García (Spain) if and how Big Data can play a role in the structuring of people and urban landscapes.

Iman Abdurrahman Reporter and producer Iman Abdurrahman (Indonesia) is developing a mobile radio station in the form of a rucksack that can collect data to predict natural disasters like tidal waves and volcanic eruptions on time. For Age of Wonderland, Abdurrahman is entering a collaboration with designer Joris de Groot (Netherlands). Together they will design a prototype that is completely solar powered. De Groot works closely with industry. He experiments with existing methods to make new materials.

Ng’winula ‘Unu’ Kingamkono Consultant Ng'winula 'Unu' Kingamkono (Tanzania) collects data about traffic situations and the transport system in Dar es Salaam. He uses the information, for example, to draw the attention of local authorities to their responsibilities – and, in doing so, improve the infrastructure of this African metropole. Unu will continue his research throughout Age of Wonderland. He will be assisted in this by the students from Fontys FutureMediaLab and the master’s Information at the Design Academy Eindhoven. http://www.thinkerstech.com/

Branly López Director of Cuidad de la Imaginacion Branly López (Guatemala) sees the knowledge of the old Mayan culture in the form of open (and free) cosmic data. He is researching various ways to unlock information from the Mayan calendar. During the Age of Wonderland, López will form a team with artist and mathematician Masha Ru (Russia) and Tzolkin calendar expert Tjitse Boersma (Netherlands). While they visualise the data from the Mayan calendar, writer Louwrien Wijers (Netherlands) and cognitive neuroscientist Jacob Jolij (Netherlands) research the brain activity of a large group of people during meditation. According to López, people can connect with the cosmic data through meditation. http://www.ciudadimaginacion.org/

Budi Prakosa Industrial engineer Budi Prakosa (Indonesia) develops software to enable anyone to build their own database – and so exchange data simply. During Age of Wonderland, Prakosa will use his knowledge and skills for all the participants (or: co-fellows). He will do this in-situ through developing user-friendly database software for their projects. http://lifepatch.org/