Welcome to the website of the historical conference of GHD Ubbo Emmius!
On the 3rd of October 2025, the Conference Committee of GHD Ubbo Emmius will be hosting our annual day-long historical conference.
This year, the conference is titled "When Dreams Decay: Utopia and Dystopia through Architecture." It will explore the connection between ideology, the lived space around us and how those themes function and converge in service or disservice of humanity.
Architecture is an everpresent part of our lived experience, after all. Throughout history, it has both formed and been formed by socio-political environments and cultural norms. During this conference, these expressions of identity throughout history will be explored and celebrated.
The aim of this theme is to find a connection between the significance of the architecture of the past and the expectations of the architecture of the future. What shaped the built environment of the past and what underlying principles will shape the built enviroment of the future? How can examples of dystopian or utopian architecture aid us in understanding the history in which they were built?
Architecture has been a pillar of importance to the construction and maintenance of national identities, and has been a gateway to the spatial expression of social- and individual agency.
We invite you all to participate in this multifaceted experience on October 3rd!
Warm regards,
Conference Committee "24-25
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About the Conference
The historical conference will take place on Friday October 3rd in Lab050 in Groningen. We will welcome you at that location in the Erlenmeyerzaal between 09:00-9:30 AM for a walk-in with coffee/tea. The program will start at 9:30 AM, and the conference will end around 17:00 PM.
The day-program is filled with three plenary lectures (45/60 min. each), with about 15 minutes after each lecture as room for questions. Furthermore, there will be two workshop rounds (45 min. each) where you can choose from three workshop options. The day will conclude with a discussion where all lectures will field any final questions from the audience.
Coffee and tea will be provided throughout the conference in scheduled breaks, and a delicious lunch, provided by Lab050, is included. After the conference, we would love to see any willing participants joining us for drinks and further discussion on the broached subjects!
Tickets cost €12,50 for Ubbo members and €15,00- for non-Ubbo member (lunch included!). You can order your ticket via www.ubbo-emmius.com, or use the link above.
Visit our Instagram account for the most recent updates about the conference.
Tickets
Ticket prices are €12,50 for Ubbo members and €15,00- for non-Ubbo members.
Day Program
09:00: Walk-in
09:30: Word of welcome
09:45-10:45: Lecture 1
10:45-11:00: Drink/Coffee Moment
11:00-12:00: Lecture 2
12:00-13:30: Lunch
13:30-14:15: Workshop Round 1
14:30-15:15: Workshop Round 2
15:30-16:30: Lecture 3
16:30-17:00: Questions and Closing Word
17:00-18:00: Drinks
Speakers
Marinke Steenhuis
As a cultural historian, dr Marinke Steenhuis (Groningen, 1971) works on strong narratives about areas in which historic analysis and future programming come together. With her office SteenhuisMeurs (HOME | Steenhuismeurs) she was responsible for, amongst others, the analysis of the Binnenhof Den Haag (2019) Metropolitan Region Amsterdam (2019), Green Heart Metropolis (2021), Eemsdelta (2022) and Hogeland (2025).
Marinke uses a systemic view in her current projects as a mediator in agricultural areas where nature and farmland are interconnected. She is author of many books and films on urban history and identity, landscape architecture and water related public works. She was member or chairman on juries or Quality teams as Afsluitdijk, Paleis Soestdijk, Hembrugterrein, Waterloopbos, Beemster, Beauty Esthetics Committee Municipality of Rotterdam, Q team Nijmegen Waalfront & West, jury Koepelgevangenis Breda.
Speaker no. 2: To be revealed.....
Speaker no. 3: To be revealed...
Workshops
Debate the sustainability of personal property
Divided into two teams, you and your group will debate eachother on the topic of sustainability - specifically of personal property. One half of the group will assume the pro-sustainability position, while the other group will debate as the opposition. Both groups will first have to dig into some sources on the topic: think of heatpumps, solar panels, but also gas stoves and building material. After research, the two groups will join to a debate that will be regulated by persons knowledgable on the topic. Are you ready to play devil's advocate? Or simply interested in learning more about this topic? Then make sure to sign up for this workshop once you are able to do so!
Workshop no. 2: To be revealed...
Workshop no. 3: To be revealed...
Chair of the Day
Tino Mager
Dr. Tino Mager is employed by the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen as Associate Professor of History and Theory of Architecture and Urbanism. Additionally, he is the president of ICOMOS Germany, which is an organization that deals in sites of heritage.
Dr. Mager is an expert on the theme of this year's conference, and will therefore assume the position of Chair of the Day on October 3rd. He will introduce each speaker and oversee the intersectionality of the lectures.
Location
The conference will take place at Lab050
Tickets
Ticket prices are €12,50 for Ubbo members and €15,00- for non-Ubbo members.
Past Conferences
2024: Threads of Identity: The Close Relationship between Clothes and Counterculture
2023: Terra (In)Cognita: Mapping the Past, Present and Future
2022: A Culinary Exchange: Food History through Time and Space
2021: The Long Century of Transformation: From Nation-State to a Federative Europe? (1848-Present)
2020: The Arab Spring: A Narrative of Fighting and Framing (cancelled due to Covid-19)
2019: Continuity and Discontinuity in Chinese History
2018: Capturing Calvinism: Calvin’s Conquest of the Dutch Community
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