Imagine cities for people, not cars
What if our streets were built around people instead of cars? What if every child could stroll or bike to school safely, with friendly neighbors cheering them on? That’s the big idea behind CONIFER, our EU-funded project that brings families, city planners and even kids together to reimagine our neighborhoods. CollectiveUP is thrilled to lead the local Civic Lab in Kortrijk, using our expertise in AI and playful gamification to make these dreams real. In CONIFER, we ask questions like “Imagine cities that are safe, accessible and fair for everyone”, and then we work as a community to answer them.
Putting kids (and people) first
Too often, city streets are designed for cars, not people. CONIFER turns that upside-down. As one project video asks, “What if our cities were designed around people, not cars?”. We want streets where walking, scootering, and cycling are the easiest, most fun options, not fighting traffic. That means making sure children, young people, parents and teachers are right at the table.
In fact, as our coordinator Sara Tori says:
CONIFER’s vision reflects the needs of those who use cities most: specifically children, young people, their carers, and teachers.
By focusing on the voices of families and schools, we’re building a city that works for everyone. One way we do this is by creating “school streets.” These are streets where the road in front of a school is temporarily closed to cars so kids can arrive safely and independently. As the team explains, closing roads at drop-off makes the journey “safer” and helps children move on their own. Imagine a morning where kids skip off the bus or bicycle down a car-free lane to school, and parents wave from sidewalks free of traffic noise. That’s the kind of child-friendly urban planning CONIFER loves to try out.
The big idea behind CONIFER is the 15-minute city. In a 15-minute city, everything you need – school, shops, parks, work – is just a short walk or bike ride away. This makes life greener and more convenient for families. As the project blog explains, “daily essentials — work, education, healthcare, and leisure — are within easy reach by walking, cycling, or public transport”. Ref
In a fair 15-minute neighborhood, there’s no need for long car commutes. CONIFER invites kids and community members to help shape those neighborhoods. Through surveys and workshops, children and parents draw maps of their streets, share where they feel unsafe, and imagine playgrounds and libraries where we now have parking lots. We use these insights to reimagine what a block or an entire neighborhood could look like when it’s designed around people’s real needs. The result? More local parks, bike paths, safe crossings and friendly meeting spots – all planned by and for the people who live there.
Getting creative and connected
One of the most exciting parts of CONIFER is how creative it is. We don’t just sit in conference rooms discussing zoning rules; we use art, games and design thinking to make city planning accessible to all ages. In each Civic Lab, kids, parents and policymakers team up in participatory workshops to sketch future scenarios. We’ll paint murals of a clean street scene, build cardboard models of green neighborhoods, or even play digital games that let you redesign your town square. The project even taps into gamification and AI! For example, the group creates playful quizzes or story-telling games that help kids share what their dream walk-to-school route looks like. We also experiment with digital tools: one team uses simple AI and data to generate pictures of what a leafy, traffic-free corner might look like in 2030. By blending creative art with data, CONIFER can craft visions that are both ambitious and realistic. This way, technology becomes a friendly helper – making planning fun and fair, not fancy and out-of-reach.
Voices of children and communities
At the heart of CONIFER are the children, young people, and families themselves. Project activities focus on the whole school ecosystem – that means kids, their parents and carers, teachers and school staff. We listen carefully to what they say about their daily journeys and needs. For instance, one part of the project involved working with community schools like TADA (a local weekend school) to co-design the neighborhood around the school in Brussels. Children explored the safest routes and even created posters about their 15 minutes experience from the school to their home. All of this input is super important. In fact, CONIFER’s goal is “to help develop cities where children and young people’s voices shape the future”. Imagine city planners using actual stories and drawings by kids to decide where to put a new park or how wide a bike lane should be! This bottom-up approach makes sure that policies aren’t just handed down from officials, but come from everyday people. And the creative methods (art projects, vision boards, digital story maps) make participation fun and engaging for everyone – not just the experts.
CollectiveUP: Leading in Kortrijk
Here in Belgium, CollectiveUP is proud to coordinate the local Civic Lab for Kortrijk and help knit together all the labs across Europe: Shaping the future of 15-min cities through youth participation
Our role is to bring our know-how in AI, participation, and gamification to the team. That means we’re working on tools to help include every child (even those who speak another language or learn differently) and analyzing the ideas that come in. We also connect with local partners – from teachers to city officials – so that what we learn here can inform real change in our city. But Kortrijk’s lab is just one piece: CONIFER spans six Civic Labs in five countries (Belgium, Portugal, Hungary, Germany, Poland).
Each lab is unique to its community but shares the common goal of a friendlier city. By coordinating these, CollectiveUP helps share best practices: a great gamified workshop idea from Brussels can inspire a session in Matoshinos; a safety mapping tool built in Kortrijk can be translated for Warsaw. We make sure the knowledge flows and everyone – cities across Europe – can benefit.
Our message is simple: the next generation is already shaping their world, and we adults should listen. If the idea of a safer street to school or a local garden where you live excites you, you’re not alone. CollectiveUP and the CONIFER team believe these friendly, human-centered cities are possible – but only if communities drive the change. Are you curious about starting a similar initiative in your city or school? Do you want to learn how to bring a 15-minute city vision to your neighborhood? We’d love to connect! Reach out to CollectiveUP – let’s chat about partnering on European projects or supporting your local urban-planning adventures. Together, we can make more city streets where people, not just cars, rule the road.
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