Our retreat was set in the Veluwe forest in central Holland, about an hour north-west of Amsterdam, and tucked into the most beautiful heath and forests- an impressively large wilderness area stretching over sixty kilometers from north to south. O2 was able to procure a beautiful house- Huize Vierhouten- for us all to stay in, and upon arrival Friday evening everyone began to reacquaint and introduce themselves. I was immediately struck by the friendly communal feel, and everyone’s familiarity and interest in each other. Hot soup was served, wine was opened, and we all relaxed and prepared for our first activity.

The theme of the weekend was Light. Light in a general sense, light literally, figuratively, metaphorically, and in all imaginable ways that might inspire a group of designers to think about what “lightness” means in terms of visions of a more sustainable future through design.

Our first task was to divide into different groups and present small skits that introduced the theme of light to the group. Rapid introductions and discussions ensued and soon a variety of ideas were presented. One group blindfolded all the other participants and had them hold hands, forming a long snake that emerged from the house to travel to the end of the garden. There the others, who spelled their names with sparklers in the darkness, greeted them. Another group took a different approach, staging an impromptu puppet shadow theatre with a sheet and car headlights. I don’t remember the moral of the story, but it did involve a rabbit and an alligator. And a more poetic approach by another group- an installation of candles in front of dark windows whose doubled reflections linked to that of the moon’s outside. And finally, in fire-filled finale, a teabag was set alight, its lightness and heat causing it to soar aloft. A perfect symbol for ideas in flight. All these different perspectives on light, a topic of exploration as well as a pretext for a number of different individuals to come together and share ideas, knowledge, and creativity.

The next day, Saturday, after a very cozy group breakfast, we all headed out in to the woods for a “light” hike. We hiked through the heath, through the pines, through glens and glades and shaded groves of beech, and avoided off-limit areas where deer were busy with their mating rituals. We hiked and hiked; a bit bedraggled and exhausted by the end of our 12 or so kilometers, but this provided perfect and ample opportunity for everyone to exchange stories, backgrounds, and ideas in a spontaneous way. I emerged fully oxygenated and feeling like I had a much better idea of the variety of interesting individuals present.

Next, back to Huize Verhuizen for a round of design seminars. The idea was a serious design charette about the concept of lightness materialized in different ways through hypothetical products. Again, a variety of approaches and ideas emerged from interesting discussions and exchanges. My group created a straightforward yet contradictory lamp: from lightweight metallic fabric we created a floating metal cube, whose heavy appearance contradicted its function; another group ended up with the fabulous “wi-fi pig,” a kind of wandering collective washing machine. There was also a series of informative “tell-sell” products aimed at exploring weight and its importance through several imaginary products, “Fake Weight Concepts” to be used in products that are quite light, but in which a bit more weight would be preferable. Another group presented a research oriented power point presentation about the concept of perceived weight in relation to the perceived quality in products. Although currently more weight lends a “substantial” feeling that is synonymous with quality, the presenters explained, in the future lightness will come to represent technological as well as environmental performance.

Other, ahem.. highlights of our weekend included a reading from the book “Flying Lightness: Promises for structural elegance” by Adriaan Beukers and Ed van Hinte, and watching the movie “Hollands licht,” a beautiful documentary about the special quality of light in the Netherlands, compared to light around the world. Saturday night was also unforgettable because of the live music, singing, fantastic meal of authentic Dutch ‘stampot’ and ‘rookworst’, and lingering around a beautiful bonfire until the wee hours.

The O2 retreat weekend was a fantastic opportunity to jump into the dynamic and active environmental design community here in the Netherlands. I have never experienced anything else like it, especially the feeling of being welcomed by so many new people- I am not Dutch but I am committed to staying here and participating in these initiatives, because I am convinced that this is a very special place for progressive, forward-thinking design. More than just seminars or networking, the retreat really recharged our collective batteries, sparked new friendships and working relationships, and reaffirmed the feeling of community that O2 is all about.