How can cities become safer, more inclusive and accessible — especially for children and young people? A newly released video about the CONIFER (Children, Young People and the 15-Minute City) project presents this vision and showcases how researchers and communities are working together to shape neighbourhoods around people rather than cars.
The CONIFER project aims to support cities in designing urban environments where the voices of children, young people and their communities help guide future development. Building on the concept of school streets, the project seeks to make school journeys safer and to encourage independent mobility for younger residents.
Within the project, the Mobilise Research Group at Vrije Universiteit Brussel coordinates the Civic Lab in Brussels. Here, researchers collaborate with schools, families and policymakers to explore how the 15-minute city can be co-designed in practice. Through activities such as participatory workshops and digital storytelling, the Civic Lab investigates how neighbourhoods can become greener, friendlier and easier to navigate, particularly for children.
The video offers a first look at these activities and illustrates how local knowledge, lived experience and research can come together to create child-friendly urban spaces.
The project is part of the Driving Urban Transitions (DUT) Partnership and brings together a broad European consortium of universities, public authorities and civil society organisations.
Go to the CONIFER project website