With an overarching theme of “open collaboration”, here are four key themes we took away from Future PropTech 2019 this May. Keen to learn (and contribute), Calvium’s Jo Morrison and Kieron Gurner spent the day among 2,000 other attendees, taking in panel debates, keynotes, case studies, workshops, round tables, networking opportunities and an 80+-strong exhibition.

Vacant car parks, dwindling crowds, anchor stores closing their doors for good and replaced by cheap and not-so-cheerful discount stores. It’s a scene that has become all too familiar in shopping centres across the UK, and has fuelled a debate over a so-called retail apocalypse. As consumer behaviour becomes more influenced…

The concept of shared, culturally significant spaces is as old as time itself. The ancient Greeks had agora, the Romans had forums, and medieval cities had bustling squares for trading. Since then, the relationships between people and place has been rethought multiple times. Now, with the rise of technology as…

January’s Let’s Get Real 2019 Conference saw speakers from across the arts and cultural heritage sector converge to discuss the intersection of digital practice and social purpose at London’s Wellcome Trust. The event demonstrated the power of digital practice for driving social change – including ‘changes to our identity, our wellbeing,…

Well-considered, attractive and useful public spaces can increase investment, property values, revenue, livelihood opportunities and much more. But how can developers and local authorities make the spaces between buildings work better? One way is to harness the power of digital placemaking: the augmentation of physical places with location-specific digital services,…