Beyond the Rainbow: Imagining Queertopia in Public Space

Public space is a mirror. It reflects who we are, what we value, and who we choose to see.

Across the Netherlands, that mirror still doesn’t reflect everyone equally. In 2024, reports of discrimination and violence against LGBTQIA+ people rose by 37%. Behind those numbers are lived moments — the small hesitations, the places you scan before reaching for someone’s hand, the feeling that visibility still isn’t the same as belonging.

At the same time, many people and organisations - from community groups to municipal teams - are working tirelessly to make our cities safer and more inclusive. From awareness campaigns to safer nightlife initiatives, from new design guidelines to training programmes, important progress is already underway.

Rainbow crosswalks, flags, marches, and pride parklets show how far we’ve come. They make diversity visible, and that visibility matters. But if public space reflects society, we must also ask: what does it say about us when inclusion remains symbolic rather than lived?

Which lens to use?

There are many ways to look at a city. Through a mobility lens, we see flows and networks. Through an environmental lens, we see green and grey. Through a gender lens, we notice how safety, care, and access are unevenly distributed.

And then there is the queer lens - one that doesn’t just observe difference but questions the very norms that define it. It asks: why are some behaviours seen as natural and others as disruptive? Why do some forms of affection or expression fit easily into public space, while others still feel like an act of bravery?

Each lens adds a layer of understanding. Together, they help us see the city not as fixed infrastructure, but as a living, evolving relationship between people and place.

Queering as an act of imagination

This year’s Rotterdam Pride theme, Queertopia, captures the spirit beautifully: the idea that another city is possible - one built not only on safety, but on joy, freedom, and care.

The word queer may not be everyone’s cup of tea - and that’s okay. Beyond identity, queer also offers a way of looking differently: questioning norms, challenging categories, and imagining what else might be possible.

To queer something is to tilt the frame, to step outside the usual definitions, to make the invisible visible.

In urbanism, queering public space goes beyond the symbolic. It’s about radically adding new perspectives — using creativity and imagination to reframe how space is designed, governed, and shared. It invites us to question routines, explore ambiguities, and make room for multiple ways of being public.

Queering public space is not about erasing what exists, but about expanding what’s possible - transforming visibility into belonging, and difference into connection.

Beyond the Rainbow: Our Approach to Building Cities of Belonging

At Humankind, we’ve been exploring this question for years. In 2019, we co-created the first Pride Parklet with the Municipality of Rotterdam and Opperclaes - a small intervention claiming “more space for pride.”

Now we want to go further. Beyond the Rainbow is our call to action - a new trajectory in collaboration with the city, knowledge partners, and communities.

We aim to:

• Research lived experiences: Where do LGBTQIA+ people feel (un)safe? What does safety mean to them? What would a Queertopian city feel like?

• Host a cross-domain event: Bringing together community members, policymakers, and designers to spark shared understanding and inspiration.

• Develop design-based experiments: Using co-creation, mapping, and interviews to prototype new ways public space can foster inclusion and belonging.

This process is not just about rainbow crossings or parklets. It’s about linking the social, spatial, and organizational dimensions of the city — connecting community stories to urban design and policy. Through Beyond the Rainbow, we aim to uncover what makes people feel seen, safe, and connected — and turn that into real, lasting change.

Safety will always be a foundation, but it can’t be the end goal. We need to move from protection to participation, from tolerance to belonging, from inclusion to transformation.

Because Queertopia is not a distant utopia. It’s the city we start creating the moment we imagine differently.