Ignacio Marquez, from Anceu Coliving, set out on a creative journey to Atolye under the European Creative Hubs Network exchange initiative in this past September, thanks to the European Commision. The aim was to bring together the co-living environment and European project experiences of Anceu with the bustling coworking community energy of Atolye.
But first of all, what is ATÖLYE?
ATÖLYE is a strategic design and innovation consultancy that helps organisations tackle complex challenges and create lasting impact. ATÖLYE works with clients from various sectors and scales, such as corporations, startups, NGOs, governments, and cultural institutions. ATÖLYE also operates as a creative hub coworking space that hosts a community network of over 150 creative professionals who collaborate on projects, events, and learning programs.
And what does ATÖLYE do?
ATÖLYE offers four lines of work that address different aspects of strategic design and innovation:
ATÖLYE Sustainability offers services such as sustainability strategy, sustainability assessment, sustainability reporting, sustainability communication, and sustainability innovation.
During his time at Atolye, Ignacio engaged in several activities that brought these two communities closer. He shared the unique aspects of community living at Anceu that encourages creativity and future collaboration among colivers. Anceu as a rural-based coliving space is focused completely in providing a calm and supportive environment. Ignacio shared various initiatives they had undertaken over 2023 for social impact, such as collaborative mural painting with neighbours, artist residencies, and European projects utilising technology for transformative change in rural areas. He also talked about the challenges faced in rural areas of Europe, like depopulation, ageing, and the loss of culture and tradition. Ignacio shared some smart ideas to tackle these problems, for example, explaining how encouraging remote work from different businesses and creating coliving spaces like Anceu could help bring more people to rural areas. This way, remote workers could enjoy a more affordable life than in big cities while still having good work opportunities.
On the other hand, Atolye thrives on the coworking culture where diverse professionals share a workspace, often sparking innovative collaborations right at the heart of the city of Istanbul. Ignacio experienced the vibrant energy at Atolye and its community of people working together, sharing ideas, and building a community in a coworking setting. The Atolye community was equally intrigued and shared their urban-centric coworking model with Ignacio, they showed how the availability of resources and a wide network can accelerate project developments and foster a culture of innovation in massive cities like Istanbul.
Post-exchange, Ignacio and Busra from Atolye are going to hold virtual meetings to continue exploring the blend of coliving and coworking models, to continue developing the urban-rural connections. These meetings between Ignacio and Busra are about nurturing a relationship that goes beyond this one-time exchange. They are committed to exploring more collaborations, perhaps using European funding to deepen in how to build bridges between rural areas and cities in a sustainable way.
This exchange has triggered a valuable dialogue on sustainable community building, this journey has sown the seeds for future collaborations, promising a rich blend of rural and urban creative communities coming together to learn, share, and grow.
