Mobility Moshpit 25
✨ Hello pioneering minds!
The Lab of Thought wants to challenge the way we think and act about mobility and the spaces we live in. We love to question the narratives that have shaped our motonormative mindset and explore alternative ways of seeing, thinking, and doing. Curious? Let's go!
FROM STREET TO PLACE: EXPERIMENTS IN ROETERSSTRAAT
During the Week of the Just Street, Roetersstraat will transform into a testing ground for reimagining urban life — shifting from a space of movement to a place of value. A wide range of street experiments will invite residents, students and visitors to explore what a more liveable, people-focused street could look like.
As part of this, student teams have taken part in the Create Your Own Campus challenge, developing bold ideas for real-world interventions. Three finalist projects have now been selected, each offering a different vision for how the street can be used, shared and experienced.
Now it’s your turn to take part: vote for your favourite, join the jury session, or experience the interventions firsthand during the week!
👉 VOTE BY LIKING YOUR FAVORITE
(feel free to vote more than once)
Candidates
DO WORDS SHAPE OUR STREETS? A NEW EXPERIMENT
Why do plans for greener, safer streets so often face resistance? At the Lab of Thought, we believe language plays a crucial role. The way projects are framed — from “traffic flow” to “road closures” — can influence how people perceive and respond to change, often reinforcing car-dominated norms rather than opening up new possibilities.
Building on insights from Mobility Language Matters and recent research on motonormativity, we are launching a cross-cultural experiment in Portugal and the Netherlands. Participants will evaluate the same street design, presented with different labels — from efficiency-driven to social or environmental framings — to understand how language shapes public support.
Your support will help fund this research and make the findings openly accessible.
👉 Support the project here
RECOGNISING SAFER STREETS: ROAD SAFETY AWARD 2026
The Lab of Thought has been awarded the Belgian Road Safety Award 2026 as part of the Child Norm Coalition. The prize, presented at the Flemish Road Safety Congress, recognises collaborative efforts to place children and young people at the heart of mobility policy.
The coalition brings together over 25 organisations, knowledge institutes and public authorities, working towards a simple but powerful principle: every decision on infrastructure, policy or street design should consider its impact on children. This approach translates into practical guidelines and tools that help local governments create safer, more inclusive environments.
It’s an encouraging sign that child-centred mobility is gaining recognition at a policy level.
👉 Learn more here (Dutch)
A FRESH LOOK: THE LAB SHOP RELAUNCHED
The Lab of Thought webshop has been refreshed with a cleaner design and improved browsing experience. The updated shop makes it easier to explore publications, tools and materials that support more thoughtful conversations about mobility and public space.
Alongside a clearer structure, the new version highlights key resources — from books and research outputs to practical tools for practitioners and advocates. Whether you’re looking to dive deeper into mobility narratives or bring new ideas into your work, the shop is now better equipped to guide you.
Take a look and explore what’s new.
👉 Visit the shop: https://thelabofthought.co/shop
Thanks for reading!
If you're not already subscribed, click here.