Society is rapidly evolving, and so is our perception of work. The pandemic has shown us that we can work from pretty much anywhere. Environmental changes force us to build our cities smarter and greener, and more and more businesses move their offices to dense urban neighborhoods.

Factors like these force us to reimagine the office. This summer, five students – handpicked by Sweco and Aspelin Ramm – explored the office as a friendly neighbor. Through organizing pop-up offices in four different Oslo boroughs (Vika, Skøyen, Grønland and Økern), they met with the people living there and asked them how they felt about having an office next door.

The students uncovered both strengths and weaknesses as to how our neighborhoods and office buildings coexist. Based on experiences, interviews and data, the students propose two ways an office should interact with its surroundings: Not as an introverted spectator, but more like a lively neighborhood catalyst.

Welcome to “The Neighborhood Office” on Thursday 6 October at Gamle Munch.