Rotterdam -- changes within changes | Nico Prins | TEDxRSM

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. His talk was about the changes in Rotterdam and Port of Rotterdam during its 700-year existence and echoed throughout his life experiences, in order to discuss the unchanged spirit of people who create the history and how.

Nico was born in 1955, he is the 2nd of 6 brothers and sisters

After two marriages he is really happy now already for 22 years with his current his partner, no kids.
Nico Prins, born in 1955 and raised in Rotterdam area, always on the south bank of the river. He lived in places from Brienenoord bridge up to Maasvlakte 1
education: primary and secondary school without any problem, but lost interest during law study and dropped out at the age of 21
after that worked all kind of jobs like market salesman, taxi driver, civil servant, industrial cleaner.

At the age of 25 started working in the chemical industry as a process operator for a big company. Left the job after 11.5 years

worked as a tugboat skipper for a year and then started working in the environmental sector as operator on a polluted-soil-cleaning plant. Did this job for three companies, always was asked to come to the next job, but ended this career because this was not the environment he was looking for and expected when he started working for environmental purpose.



After that he started as a storyteller which he is still nowadays.



Doing this work he ended up in Heijplaat, a small village between the big harbors on the south side of Rotterdam. This place is in transition from old shipyard and village attached to the shipyard, to a Campus RDM Research, Development and Manufacturing. A part of the 100 year old village is getting redeveloped into a modern, state of the art spot for living and working in the 21ste century. Nico started living in the village just before the time the first blocks of houses were demolished, but the plans were there to do so. He was attracted to the changes to be. He works there since then now ten years ago and is one of the active inhabitants of the village in de transition, chairman of the association of inhabitants.



Interesting is his way of living. He just lived like everybody else until his late twenties, rented a cheap thing when he was he studied en worked all kind of jobs after that. When he started working for the chemical company, he bought a house.... which he sold after three years because of having no faith in the world of mortgage and security and started living on boats. He did not have a steady place, he was a drifter for 13 years. When he started in Heijplaat he lived for years in a demolition area as a city gipsy, but in stead of just put some furniture in the house, he invested in the place and created genuine breeding ground for new ideas and developments within the area.

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