WorldTalks Amsterdam / Time Better Spent

With in this programme:

• Feel like your phone is your best friend? Having a hard time letting go? Designer Laura Hoek initiated the project "phoning kills the vibe” that confronts us with our telephone use in a cool and clever way. Whilst the tobacco industry is forced by government into providing warning labels for their products, phone companies lack any form of information explaining the dangers of using your mobile. With on-point esthetics and catchy tag lines, Laura makes sure we pay attention.

• Although urban gymnast and ninja warrior Wesley Kalkhoven has 23K followers on Instagram, he also believe in offline magic. His slogan ''We will never post true happiness. Because when we are happy we're are not online’ says it all. This edition Wesley comes to the rescue: he will provide us with a short stretch and phone-detox session, making sure tech is not turning us into a generation of hunchbacks.

• If you feel like making your screen time more socially impactful, check out Omapost (Grandma Mail), an app that allows you to surprise your grandparents with a postcard in no time. Founder Wilbert van de Kamp shares his idea on how a small gesture can cause a big effect. The best part: you can not only cheer up your own grandparents, but also someone else’s. By "Adopting a grandmother" (but course it can also be a grandfather), Omapost wants to create an accessible way of tackling loneliness among the elderly. Best of both worlds.

• Does boredom enrich your life? No, really, we’re serious. Think about it. Philosophy professor Andreas Elpidorou has thought about it a great deal, and he concludes that boredom is necessary and valuable. He is currently an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Louisville and specialized in the philosophical study of the mind.

• Grabbing your phone and suddenly scrolling for half an hour on social media. Often people only say afterward that they would rather have spent that time differently. On the other hand, you have enormous benefits of a smartphone, from navigation and taking photos to listening music and looking up information. The challenge is to find the right balance. Here is where Unpluq comes in, Tim Smits invented a small, yellow device that you plug into your smartphone when you want to allow ‘distracting' apps such as YouTube and Facebook.

Music by poet and musician OTION.

Get inspired
WorldTalks Amsterdam, an urban talkshow by ITA & Pakhuis de Zwijger, brings together drinks and food for thought. Every two weeks, we connect worldwide urban trends and challenges to urban daily life. From greener cities to future love scenarios and digital innovation. Discover what’s next, check out inspiring speakers & meet new folks.

WorldTalks Amsterdam is powered by Rabobank Amsterdam and also made possible by IN Amsterdam and Grolsch.