Lecture by Arkadiy Gershman "What is a City for People?" in Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf and the NRW Region: Throwing Money at Mistakes or Building a City for People?

Düsseldorf, Cologne, Dortmund, Essen — residents of North Rhine-Westphalia live inside a unique urban phenomenon where the borders between several major cities have long become purely nominal.

Düsseldorf is traditionally associated with wealth, glamour, and Königsallee. But behind the facade of one of Germany’s most expensive cities lie the classic post-war pains of European metropolises. At the same time, the local Rhine embankment is now considered a global icon of urban design — after all, 30 years ago it was a noisy highway that the city "heroically" buried underground in a tunnel.

But did that actually solve the problem? Did the region truly break free from the mistakes of modernism, or did it simply pour massive amounts of money over them, leaving behind endless traffic jams and cycling chaos?

On September 16, urbanist Arkadiy Gershman will host a major lecture in Düsseldorf titled “What is a City for People?” for residents of the entire NRW metropolitan area. We’ll talk about the evolution of cities and explore why different European metropolises ultimately arrive at the same solutions that completely change our understanding of comfortable living.

What we’ll cover:

• Mistakes of the past: How "fashionable" car-centric architecture of the 20th century disrupted traditional urban life, and why we are still dealing with the consequences today;

• Architectural code: The subtle, hidden methods urban planners and designers use to shape our behavior and mood every single day;

• Back to the future: Why modern 21st-century cities are actively copying the layout of cozy 19th-century European neighborhoods;

• The cycling dead end: Why conventional bike lanes have suddenly become obsolete, and why even the Netherlands is redesigning them today.

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If you want to learn how to "read" a city, understand the logic behind the changes around you, and become a truly professional citizen – this is definitely a must-attend for you. Real-world stories from all over the globe, breakdowns of relevant urban planning cases, and a great opportunity to spend an evening with like-minded people await!

About the speaker: Arkadiy Gershman is an urbanist and the creator of the "City for People" YouTube channel. He talks about how cities are structured: why some streets are comfortable and safe while others are not, how quality public spaces work, and how smart people are fixing old mistakes today. For over 15 years, he has been studying cities, developing standards, and consulting municipalities. His goal is to help people better understand their city and how to make it more convenient for living.

Language of the lecture: Russian.
When: September 16, 19:00 (duration: 1.5 hours)
Where: Palais Wittgenstein
Route on Google Maps
Tickets: from €30
Arkadiy's channel: YouTube "City for People"
Organizer: ERMI Events

Useful information: A purchase confirmation and a ticket QR code will be sent to your e-mail. If you don't see the email in your inbox, please check your "Spam" folder.
Please note: tickets are non-refundable. However, they are not registered to a specific name – if you cannot make it, you can always pass your ticket on to someone close to you.