On 15 December, Medy van der Laan will start as the new chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR). She succeeds Ed Nijpels and takes office at a time when the Architecture Biennale is developing a new vision on its role in times of major transitions around water and energy, which we as a society are facing and which also have spatial consequences.
Ed Nijpels:
"We are delighted with the arrival of Medy van der Laan. With her diverse career and as a supervisor at various organisations, she brings with her an important network, in addition to a great deal of political-administrative experience. With her connecting, positive personality and quick thinking, she also brings an effective combination of content and process to the IABR.
It is with great pleasure that I look back on the past years as chairman of the IABR. For years, I have realised that the added value of design research, spatial design and architecture is indispensable in order to embed and address the climate challenge we are facing. The IABR has proven to be a powerful instrument in this."
Medy van der Laan:
"My passion for architecture is both managerial and personal. How we organise our country is of great importance to prosperity and well-being. The task of building hundreds of thousands of dwellings in the coming years offers an enormous opportunity to integrate the various social and spatial transformations. This can be done by stimulating smart design solutions in spatial planning and thus making us ready and resilient for the future. Personally, I like to be inspired by good design examples at home and abroad, especially contemporary architecture and urban planning."
About Medy van der Laan
Medy van der Laan is currently chairperson of the Dutch Banking Association (NVB). Previously, she was chairperson of Energie-Nederland, the sector organisation of energy companies. After having worked as a civil servant for twelve years, she became State Secretary for Culture and Media in 2003.
IABR
The International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam, IABR, is a think and do tank and biennial platform for architecture, urban design and landscape architecture. IABR makes an active and concrete contribution to the changes needed for a sustainable and fair future for mankind and the planet. By connecting designers and social partners on an interdisciplinary and (inter)national level around urgent spatial issues, and by convincingly presenting promising approaches and concrete solutions, IABR actively contributes to the changes needed for a sustainable and fair future for mankind and the planet. The visionary and communicative power, the investigative and experimental approach and the knowledge and experience of the design disciplines play a central role in this.
