The following project shows how an optimised workplace design can allow a company to reassess its vision, align its departments, create unity within its partners and boost the impact it makes in the world.

Co-designing the future of “One KIT”. 
The KIT Royal Tropical Institute¹, situated in Amsterdam,  is an independent centre of expertise, education, intercultural cooperation and hospitality dedicated to sustainable development. Based in a national heritage site in Amsterdam, KIT focuses on key areas where it can make a difference: Gender, Global Health, Intercultural Communication and Sustainable Economic Development.

Over the years, KIT has gone through numerous relocations, and its department distribution throughout the historical building it occupies was less than optimal. For this particular reason, KIT wished to enhance the interaction and interconnectivity between and within its departments, as well as with its guest tenants. After in-depth conversations with the community, the need to create a unified ‘One’ KIT and a unified house of SDG (Sustainable Development Goals²) was discovered. This would be established within KIT’s core team and with its guest tenants.

A strong collective and individual identity

To create a clear identity, AKKA has altered the internal infrastructure of KIT by relocating its departments physically within the building. For KIT’s core team, a centralized working area was created, and within the same floor shared common smaller spaces were designed to foster interconnectivity between all the inhabiting organizations. The space was designed to clearly communicate its functionality through its interior items and color palette. The color palette does not only complement the visual corporate identity of KIT, it also communicates clearly the distinction between KIT private spaces and common areas, thus strengthening and embodying the corporate identity and space functionality simultaneously.