From Tacoma to now: keeping momentum through continuity - and practical ways members can contribute on BLOXHUB Square.

Tacoma was never meant to be a one-off. What we tested there - how to convene local actors, combine Nordic expertise, and move from scoping to early experiments - helped clarify what can travel across city contexts.

Tacoma also sharpened something essential: international city collaborations are built on continuity. They move through phases of active delivery and quieter periods of relationship-building, alignment, and shared learning. Keeping that continuity is what allows real progress when timing and readiness align.

The Nordic working approach

Rather than exporting “solutions,” the Tacoma work centred on a Nordic working approach to collaboration - a way of structuring partnerships so local ownership stays intact while international expertise adds value. In practice, this meant creating one clear entry point, building shared ownership early and staying focused on real-world testing instead of perfect plans.

You can think of the approach as three linked habits: collaboration, integration, and experimentation - bringing the right actors into the same process, connecting themes (buildings, streets, mobility, public life, governance) so initiatives reinforce each other, and starting with steps that can be tested now and improved with evidence.

Over time, this has become what we refer to internally as the BLOXHUB City Model: not a fixed template, but a repeatable structure for cross-border city partnerships that can adapt to different places and priorities.

What the approach enables

For cities, the value is less about a single “project” and more about access to a broader ecosystem and a way to work across silos. A collaboration structured in this way can create one entry point into relevant expertise, support a more holistic view of challenges that span sectors, and provide a practical path from scoping to testing before scaling.

For the BLOXHUB ecosystem, it creates clearer and earlier engagement with real city needs: exposure to decision-makers and local partners, deeper insight into constraints and processes, and stronger learning through co-creation with other specialists in a real-world context - not just in a workshop setting.

From Tacoma to a broader US collaboration

We are already working with the City of Kirkland (Washington State), adapting the approach to their local context.

Tacoma has also helped shape a wider network of actors across the Pacific Northwest with an interest in Nordic urban solutions. In the current phase, our focus is on keeping this network connected and useful - sharing learnings, surfacing concrete needs and supporting targeted introductions when there is clear relevance and timing.

Germany as the next focus area in the pipeline

Germany is our next focus area in the pipeline for city collaboration. We have initiated a collaboration in Hamburg, and the coming months are used to build shared context, clarify priority themes and prepare for collaborative scoping.

Rather than promising fast project starts, we are working to ensure readiness: maintaining relationships, documenting learnings, and aligning member capabilities with emerging city needs, so we can move effectively when next steps are scheduled.

Square in this phase: how we maintain continuity

On Square, we keep collaboration lightweight and practical. We post when there’s a concrete update or a specific ask, so members can contribute without meetings or heavy coordination.

Typical ways to contribute (often in 5–10 minutes):

• Targeted introductions - connect us to a relevant city actor, expert, or organisation.

• Short case shares - a few bullets on what you tried, what worked, and what you’d do differently.

• Quick feedback - risks to watch, questions we should ask, or tools/methods you recommend.

We log inputs and follow up when there’s a direct match to an active city dialogue or next step.

Want to get involved?

Use our Square groups as the entry point:

• US City Collaborations - follow updates linked to Tacoma, Kirkland and related dialogues and respond to member asks when posted.

• Germany City Collaborations - stay close to early learnings from Hamburg and signal your interests and competencies for upcoming scoping.

For coordination or partnership questions, contact Sofie Lynge Jespersen at [email protected]