Concept Development as the Key 
to Innovative Accommodation 

The Knowledge Center at Albeda College in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, is a new accommodation concept that brought together two main participants: the Albeda College and the House of Entrepreneurs. According to Gert Jan Meijer, bringing together these groups (along with other, less involved groups) necessitated careful discussions and planning to ensure that ambitions, goals, and activities were matched and met.

The Knowledge Center, set in a redevelopment area that is home to many immigrants, aims to bridge to information and formal education for adults. It also is intended to forge a strong relationship among the residents and the businesses located nearby.

Albeda College and the House of Entrepreneurs had a variety of requests for the new space. They wanted room for lectures, meetings, an Internet café, and class space, all of which had to be squeezed into 130 square meters.

Within the space is mobile furniture and computers, which can be moved behind screens for larger activities like lectures. The space itself is simple, warm, and relaxing. In addition, it has a business-like rather than a school-like atmosphere.