Amsterdam empowers youth to shape their digital future
What happens when young people design their own digital world? During Dutch Design Week, the City of Amsterdam showcased how design plays a key role in creating a safer and healthier digital environment for youth. Together with young Amsterdammers and experts, the municipality is developing innovative interventions and projects, such as Playing the Algorithm and ATTACHED, where young people actively contribute to shaping a more positive digital space. Design lead Leonore Snoek explains how this approach fosters a better online future.
Can you tell us more about the Online Living Environment for Youth programme and why the City of Amsterdam chose to participate in the Dutch Design Week?
Why is collaboration with young people and their communities so valuable in the Connect design lab?
Through Connect, we give young people the space to shape their digital futures. Based on the principle “nothing about us, without us”, we work with young Amsterdammers aged 8 to 23, along with their parents, caregivers, and other stakeholders. Design and co-creation play a crucial role: through making, we learn and continuously experiment. Not only is this a lot of fun, but it also delivers tangible results, which were showcased this year at Dutch Design Week through the ATTACHED exhibition and the “Playing the Algorithm” installation.
Could you tell us more about your project ATTACHED?
ATTACHED delves into the lives of six Amsterdam youth, exploring their complex relationship with apps and digital platforms. Growing up in a world saturated with technology, they grapple with questions like: How do you find a healthy balance between the digital and real worlds? When does a digital connection become addictive rather than enriching?
They share their feelings of attachment to their digital devices but also the challenges that come with this connection. What makes the project unique is that we didn’t just interview these young people. Together with studio idiotēs and photographer Maria Bodil, we sought an artistic way to visualise the relationship we all have with the digital world. Each portrait reflects how the digital relationship is experienced—do you feel in control, or does it sometimes take over completely?
These young people look back on their childhoods and wonder, how did we let ourselves get so caught up for so long? One quote that stayed with me is, “It really happened to us.” That’s why we explored these themes further through co-design workshops to create a manifesto—a call for change. Amsterdam’s youth are calling for platforms that help them foster healthy, authentic, and meaningful connections, both online and offline. They envision a world where technology enriches their lives rather than controlling them.
You can view the publication and call for change here: ATTACHED (in Dutch). For more about the project, visit: ATTACHED – Innovatie
You’re also showcasing another project, the Playing the Algorithm installation. Could you explain what this installation is about and its goals?
This project stems from a collaboration between the design agency Het Verbond and the Connect design lab. In ATTACHED, we saw how deeply young people are connected to technology. In Playing the Algorithm, we aim to show how we can free ourselves from constant digital stimuli.
During a design workshop with first-year secondary school students, we heard a clear message: “Don’t go on TikTok.” This taught us that we need to make deliberate choices about the technology we expose young people to as they grow up.
Playing the Algorithm brings this vision to life. The installation challenges young people to outsmart algorithms. You win the game by daring to think outside the pre-programmed parameters. It’s about reclaiming control in a world increasingly shaped by algorithms. We keep playing, thinking creatively, and giving young people a space where individuality is celebrated.
What do you see for the future of Connect and Playing the Algorithm?
Both projects exemplify how design can address complex societal challenges. On one hand, we use imagination to tell stories and convey ideas, and on the other, we work on interventions to make the digital world safer and healthier.
ATTACHED will travel as an exhibition to various locations in Amsterdam, allowing us to collaborate with even more young people on building a youth movement for a safe and healthy digital world. Eventually, we hope to take this to Brussels to present our call to the European Union.
Meanwhile, I see Playing the Algorithm evolving from a game and installation into a toolbox or educational resource for schools and parents. It can teach topics like: What is an algorithm? How do I recognise AI-generated content? And how do we reconnect without relying on a phone? Detach, don’t panic!
Finally, how important is the voice of young people in designing a healthier online world?
It’s essential. Young people experience digital challenges daily and are best positioned to know what works and what’s needed. By incorporating their ideas and experiences, we can co-create solutions that truly resonate with their needs and perspectives, making a real impact.
The City of Amsterdam is committed to building an inclusive, safe, healthy, and innovative digital city for youth. Want to learn more? Visit: Programme Online Living Environment for Youth – Innovation or contact us at: connectlab@amsterdam.nl.
Leonore Snoek
Leonore Snoek is lead designer at Connect, part of the City of Amsterdam’s Online Living Environment for Youth programme. She enjoys designing projects that contribute to positive change in society. Previously, she worked as a social designer at Ink social design and the Civic Service Design studio of NYC-opportunity.