Good Neighbours aims to raise urgent questions about community-making and intimate surveillance technology. We explore how communities create spaces of belonging and alienation through mobile platforms like WhatsApp and Nextdoor as well as intimate surveillance technologies such as Nest cameras, Teslacams and Ring doorbells.

Good Neighbours has multiple components. The app-driven live performance is a location-based work that features at select arts/culture/technology festivals. The most recent edition of GOOD NEIGHBOURS (Live Performance) took place in Utrecht at the invitation of The Netherlands Film Festival from 24 September - 2 October 2021. We were honoured to be nominated for the acclaimed Gouden Kalf award (digital culture).

Our research activities take place in collaboration with various international universities, where we teach students from around the world on the topic of design for social impact. Our research also includes public workshops and collaborations with leading urban-studies scholars. We undertake site-specific research at the invitation of a city or embedded cultural festival/biennale to develop a more in-depth picture of intimate surveillance within a particular context.

How do fear, paranoia and prejudice circulate in communities through mobile technology? How are ‘our’ spaces claimed or reclaimed through technology?

A short introduction to Good Neighbours at the cultural centre Pakhuis de Zwijger in Amsterdam (2021) as part of their programme Designing Cities For All.

In recent years, neighbourhoods have become focal points for a new wave of digital surveillance. Platforms like Nextdoor and WhatsApp groups promise to connect neighbours, share local news, and enhance safety. Yet these same tools often amplify fear, suspicion, and exclusion. Doorbell cameras and other smart devices record the comings and goings of residents and passers-by, turning private thresholds into sites of constant observation.

Good Neighbours emerged from a need to critically examine these shifts. The project asks: What happens to community life when every interaction is mediated by technology designed for surveillance? How do these tools shape who is considered a 'good neighbour' and who is cast as an outsider? By bringing together artists, researchers, and local residents, we aim to open up a public conversation about the values embedded in these platforms.

The heart of Good Neighbours is an immersive, app-driven performance that takes place on the streets of participating cities. Audiences download a dedicated mobile application and are guided along a route through a neighbourhood. As they walk, they receive a mix of real-time audio, visual prompts, and encounters that blur the line between fiction and reality.

The experience is designed to heighten awareness of the invisible digital layers that overlay our physical environment. Participants may find themselves listening to a neighbour's WhatsApp voice notes, watching a Ring doorbell recording, or following a trail of geotagged posts. The performance invites reflection on how these technologies shape perceptions of safety, belonging, and trust. Each iteration is adapted to the local context, drawing on stories and concerns gathered from residents beforehand.

Beyond the live performance, Good Neighbours is a research-driven initiative. We collaborate with universities across Europe and beyond, offering workshops and courses that explore design for social impact. Students learn to critically analyse surveillance technologies and to imagine alternative digital futures for neighbourhoods.

Our research also includes public workshops and partnerships with urban scholars. These engagements produce valuable insights that feed back into the creative development of the project. By combining artistic practice with academic rigour, we strive to create work that is both thought-provoking and grounded in real-world concerns.

Good Neighbours is a multi-faceted project with many entry points. Learn more about our upcoming Activities, meet the People involved, or dive deeper into our Research findings. If you are interested in bringing the live performance to your city, visit the Live Performance page. To find out about the team behind the project, see Creators.