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- Convenors:
-
Daphne Reguiesse
(Ca' Foscari- CSH New Delhi)
Donatella Schmidt (Università di Padova)
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- Format:
- Panel
Short Abstract:
This panel explores the potential of “unwriting” in urban planning—rethinking top-down city narratives through grassroots, citizen-led participation. It emphasizes engaging diverse urban populations and newcomers to co-create more inclusive and equitable urban spaces.
Long Abstract:
The panel “Unwriting Urban Spaces” focuses on the transformative power of grassroots participation to reimagine urban environments and influence public policies through the concept of “unwriting.” Drawing on de Certeau’s (1984) idea of “space as co-production” and l Castells’ (1983, 1996) insights into “space and place-making,” we examine how community-driven practices can challenge the dominant narratives inscribed on urban landscapes by power structures.
This discussion will emphasize the diversity of urban flows—migrants, students, and other newcomers—often overlooked in planning processes. Through Martinotti’s (1993) concept of “city users,” we question how these groups can be recognized as co-producers of urban life, bringing unique perspectives and contributing to a more inclusive urban vision.
We draw inspiration from existing urban ethnography, including the works of Setha Low (1996), who emphasizes the importance of social justice and public space, and AbdouMaliq Simone (2004), who delves into the everyday survival and tactics of city dwellers in the Global South. These ethnographic approaches reveal the complex social dynamics in urban contexts and serve as critical references for understanding how participatory practices can help reshape urban spaces.
Participants are invited to share best practices for fostering genuine public participation and to address barriers that hinder engagement, particularly for marginalized communities. How can the process of urban unwriting provide a voice for all, rather than privileging an elite few? We encourage contributions that explore discursive and reflexive urban practices, considering how unwriting may foster social justice, inclusivity, and cultural diversity within our cities.
Accepted papers:
Session 1Paper Short Abstract:
This paper investigates the grassroots efforts of three Metro Manila-based environmental groups to “unwrite” national and local government development and environmental discourses that are antithetical to environmental protection and climate change preparation in urban spaces. It discusses how they are “unwriting” official narratives and practices by promoting relevant legislation, drumming up community participation through the use of social media, and fostering cooperative action between national and local governments, civil society, and the public in protecting Metro Manila from climate change.
Paper Abstract:
This paper investigates the grassroots efforts of Metro Manila-based environmental groups to “unwrite” national and local government development and environmental discourses that are antithetical to environmental protection and climate change preparation in urban spaces.
The looming climate crisis exposes urban spaces' fragility to the negative effects of the rapidly changing climate. Densely populated urban spaces are most vulnerable to the heat island effect, flooding, rising sea levels, and the health and socioeconomic effects of all these intertwining factors.
Many major cities in the developing world often give primacy to urban development over environmental concerns. In Metro Manila, only 12 percent of green spaces remain with the rapid urbanization of the megapolis. While laws are in place to create and protect forests, tree parks, watersheds, and wetlands in urban spaces, few local government units prioritize this. Most city executives emphasize infrastructure and economic programs to address what they perceive to be the most pressing needs of their constituents, ignoring that the worsening climate change situation could spell disaster to the larger community.
This paper examines the efforts of environmental groups to drive interest among local government officials and the public to build, preserve, and protect the last bastions of green spaces in Metro Manila. It discusses how they are “unwriting” official narratives and practices by promoting relevant legislation, drumming up community participation through the use of social media, and fostering cooperative action between national and local governments, civil society, and the public in protecting Metro Manila from climate change.
Paper Short Abstract:
Examining advocacy advertisements in the Seoul Metro, this paper explores how citizens 'unwrite' commercial urban spaces in contemporary South Korea. Drawing on Lefebvre's 'right to the city', the research analyzes how fandom and civic groups challenge top-down spatial control through strategic public communication interventions.
Paper Abstract:
Urban advertising spaces are typically dominated by commercial interests and unavailable for regular dwellers' spatial expression. The Seoul Metro, the subway service in South Korea's capital, however, has witnessed various attempts to place advocacy advertisements by individuals and civic groups, who thus 'unwrite' the hegemonic rules of urban communication. Drawing on Lefebvre's concept of the 'right to the city', this paper examines how these advocacy advertisements by individuals and civic groups problematize subway users' exclusion from commercialized urban surfaces, challenging top-down spatial control through citizen-led reimagining of public spaces.
The research tracks how a fad for fandom subway ads to congratulate K-pop idols on their birthdays evolved into broader advocacy efforts by non-fans. In the 2010s, advertisements emerged on polarizing issues—critiquing women's discrimination, addressing inter-Korean relations, and supporting sexual minorities—generating intense public debates, occasionally even escalating to street protests, regardless of whether they were placed or rejected. By analyzing placed and rejected advertisements, evolving Metro guidelines, and the resulting controversies, the paper illuminates the ongoing negotiations between public and private interests in neoliberalized South Korea. These citizen interventions reveal the complex politics of urban communication, demonstrating how urban residents can challenge corporate control over public spaces and reimagine urban spatial possibilities through strategic 'unwriting' of commercial urban surfaces.
Paper Short Abstract:
The purpose of this proposal is to focus on the processes carried out by inhabitants of informal settlements in the northeast of the city of Montevideo, reflecting on the strategies through which these inhabitants seek to influence public housing policy in Uruguay.
Paper Abstract:
Starting from the field work of my doctoral thesis, I have been working on the expansion processes of the city of Montevideo towards the metropolitan northeast. Several informal settlements, located in this area, find strategies to influence the application of urban public policy to achieve improvements in their quality of life, such as improving roads, incorporating public lighting, access to public transportation, improvement of squares and public spaces, and as a last resort, processes that allow them to regulate their situation and transform themselves from precarious occupants of their homes into owners.
These processes are not only part of technical planning, but most of the time they have their origin and their counterparts in the neighborhoods where these improvements take place. Many times they arise as complaints, demands from a neighborhood commission, which is organized for such purposes by the inhabitants. These commissions generally have a strong base of local territorial management, with the formation of networks of neighbors, which come together, generating a network, where power relations include some and exclude others, but through which they generate movements that allow improvements to be made.
Seeking to exchange and reflect on these processes and how they develop, I present this proposal.
Paper Short Abstract:
By showcasing examples of refugee participation in everyday life of Zagreb (Croatia) on the one hand, and analysing public policies on the integration of refugees on the other, the paper juxtaposes how refugees engage with the urban transformation and the City's vision of integration.
Paper Abstract:
The paper deals with the relationship between refugee-led participation in the everyday life of the City of Zagreb (Croatia) on the one hand, and public policies related to refugees on the other.
While approaching the city through a concept of encounter (Gulin Zrnić and Škrbić Alempijević 2019) and taking into account the concept of migrant city-making (Çağlar and Glick Schiller 2018) the presentation offers a brief insight into how refugees in Zagreb are using public spaces, thus being co-producers of urban life and participants in the transformation of cityscapes.
At the same time, in the past three years, the city authorities have passed several strategic documents in which they emphasized and acknowledged the importance and role of public administration and local self-government in the process of integration of refugees and other migrants. Among other things, based on those documents, the city government opened the "One Stop Shop" meant as a place of welcoming and offering much-needed information and support to both refugees and foreign workers in Zagreb. Moreover, the City of Zagreb plans to revitalize one abandoned local market by opening Zagreb's first intercultural social center in its place.
Based on ethnographic research among people with contemporary refugee experience who are living in Zagreb and the analysis of public policies, the author juxtaposes how the City government defines integration, who is their target audience and what actions are planned to facilitate urban integration of refugees with how refugees themselves use and transform urban landscapes within their everyday lives in Zagreb.
Paper Short Abstract:
COVID 19 illustrates how the official prejudice against Africa’s large urban informal sector was carried over in the aggressive top-down measures enforced to contain the pandemic in African cities. This misguided approach caused considerable harm, and has raised serious human rights and equity concerns for future healthcare in Africa.
Paper Abstract:
Conventional town planning in Africa tends to view the continent’s large informal sector as ‘a chaotic jumble of unproductive activates’ that should be removed through forced eviction and repression. But this sector supports local livelihoods and income, and helps to alleviate poverty and provide some degree of social protection. The initial information about COVID19 and its control were based on data from high and middle income countries. Sadly, the aggressive measures adopted to contain the pandemic in Africa did not sufficiently take into account the local cultures and social economy of the region, and therefore affected informal sector workers and informal settlements disproportionately. Most informal sector workers depend for their daily earnings on constant movement and interaction outside the home, and were therefore exposed to constant harassment by the police and other state officials who enforced COVID restrictions on movement. Informal settlements are usually overcrowded, with limited access to water and sanitation needed to comply with COVID protocols for social/physical distancing, hand washing, etc. Informal sector operators were not carried along in COVID control policies, and had only limited access to the palliatives provided by government and humanitarian organizations. With hindsight, many more people died from damage done by stringent COVID policies than from the virus! We argue that for the future government officials, who aspire to international standards of urban modernity, and adopt the prescriptions of the global community, must learn to strike a balance between the ideals of international standards, and the reality of local conditions and requirements
Paper Short Abstract:
Drawing on the author’s participation and interaction in heritage walks around ruins and monuments in the old city of Hyderabad; the paper examines the regeneration of symbolic landscapes and heritage trails as an emplaced experience of rapid urban restructuring and city development.
Paper Abstract:
This paper emerges from my research on the politics of making heritage sites in urban spaces. Focusing on the theme of ‘place-making’ against the more significant historical backdrop of monuments and ruins, the paper asks how one thinks of the conservation and materialization of urban space as a particular moment in urban development. Cities are associated with developing and rebuilding material landscapes. Service economies and capitalist expansions increasingly affect and structure the city’s built space. How important are the city’s ruins for the city’s future? While the representational politics underlying architecture preservation finds reiteration in identity and nation formation debates, the continuous making of built space and how people inscribe meanings to their social world in their everyday lived practices are understated. The paper builds on the author’s participation and interaction in heritage walks to ruins and monuments in the old city center and its neighborhood in Hyderabad, India, to understand the burgeoning trend of heritage walks in the city as a response to the staggering city renovations. Equating the flaneur (Walter Benjamin) to urban heritage walkers, the paper examines the regeneration of the symbolic landscapes and heritage trails as an emplaced experience of rapid urban restructuring and city development.
Paper Short Abstract:
The presentation intend to give an account of what type of public places characterrized the socialist town, what functions were assigned to them in the plans, and how it was overridden in practice by the use of small gardens and garages.
Paper Abstract:
In Hungary, the construction of Leninváros (now Tiszaújváros) began in 1953. Built according to socialist urban planning concepts, the city, with its modern high-rise buildings, characteristic spatial organisation, airy structure and numerous green parks, was intended to be an ideal place for the socialist lifestyle, emphasising collectivism, the struggle for social equality and an active social life. However, the public spaces designed for recreation did not meet the needs of the residents. They preferred to spend their free time in small gardens and garages on the outskirts of the city. These quasi-private spaces made it possible to extend the small living space provided by the flats in the prefabricated buildings, to break out of the monotonous estate-like environment, and to provide space for activities that had not been taken into account by the city's designers, moreover they had a community building/creating effect. In my presentation, based on interviews, I describe how the small gardens and garages helped residents, often from rural backgrounds, to make the socialist city more liveable. I also analyse what functions they had other than growing vegetables and storing cars; the difference between their use by women and men; how their role changed after the regime change and how they are used today.
Paper Short Abstract:
Arguing for greater recognition of the dynamics of people-place relations in urban planning, this paper explores the intertwined roles of sensory engagement and narrative practices in fostering place attachment and belonging in Reykjavík's inner-city neighbourhoods.
Paper Abstract:
Urban planning in older inner-city neighbourhoods tends to be dominated by a patrimonial regime, where officially sanctioned histories, aesthetics, and value judgments align with gentrification-driven urban development. Attempts to introduce citizen-led participatory models have often proven to be largely nominal, ultimately validating the authorised heritage discourse. Drawing on a case study conducted in Reykjavík, Iceland, this paper argues that top-down approaches to the management of urban heritage are counterproductive to fostering place attachment and a sense of belonging in the city, particularly in terms of inclusion and equity.
Using a people-centred mixed-methods approach, the study explores the intertwined roles of sensory engagement and narrative practices in people-place relations in Reykjavík’s inner city. The methods include walk-alongs, audio-visually recorded in-situ group sessions with a photo-elicitation component, and solitary self-led walks using audio-visual recording glasses, followed by interviews. Rather than prioritizing officially designated heritage sites, the study focuses on urban spaces to which participants are personally drawn, highlighting the sensorial and mnemonic dynamics that emerge through emplaced engagements and their role in fostering place attachment.
Drawing on phenomenological propositions of embodied and emplaced experience, and more-than-representational theories of pre-cognitive sensory perception, the study foregrounds the affective and experiential dimensions of people’s engagement with the materiality of the historic urban landscape. Arguing that recognition of such issues is pivotal to fostering inclusive and equitable urban spaces, the paper calls for greater attention to the sensorial and affective aspects of people-place relations in urban planning and heritage management.
Paper Short Abstract:
This paper investigates place attachment as experienced by residents and business owners in the Ferrovieri neighborhood of Vicenza, located in Italy's Veneto region. The study focuses on how this attachment evolves and is often strengthened when faced with external threats, such as the impending construction of the high-speed rail project (TAV), which is currently entering its initial construction phase. To explore these dynamics, participant-driven field research was conducted using semi-structured interviews combined with three elicitation techniques—video, photo, and audio recordings. Participants were asked to capture audiovisual material that symbolized their connection to the neighborhood, highlighting themes of identity, memory, and sense of belonging. The research was carried out across diverse settings, incorporating both individual and collective perspectives to analyze the interplay between place identity and perceived threats of socio-spatial transformations. The resulting data were examined through a mixed-method framework that integrated visual analysis, participant narratives, and spatial context to uncover deeper themes of belonging, resilience, and resistance to change. Findings reveal the effectiveness of native elicitation methods as participatory tools, offering new insights into how lived experiences shape and are shaped by place attachment. This approach contributes to both theory and practice: it enriches the understanding of place attachment while demonstrating practical applications for participatory urban planning and development. By giving voice to local communities, the study underscores the value of incorporating emotional and cultural, as well as sensory dimensions into decision-making processes, particularly in contexts of urban transformation projects.
Paper Abstract:
This paper investigates place attachment as experienced by residents and business owners in the Ferrovieri neighborhood of Vicenza, located in Italy's Veneto region. The study focuses on how this attachment evolves and is often strengthened when faced with external threats, such as the impending construction of the high-speed rail project (TAV), which is currently entering its initial construction phase.
To explore these dynamics, participant-driven field research was conducted using semi-structured interviews combined with three elicitation techniques—video, photo, and audio recordings. Participants were asked to capture audiovisual material that symbolized their connection to the neighborhood, highlighting themes of identity, memory, and sense of belonging.
The research was carried out across diverse settings, incorporating both individual and collective perspectives to analyze the interplay between place identity and perceived threats of socio-spatial transformations. The resulting data were examined through a mixed-method framework that integrated visual analysis, participant narratives, and spatial context to uncover deeper themes of belonging, resilience, and resistance to change.
Findings reveal the effectiveness of native elicitation methods as participatory tools, offering new insights into how lived experiences shape and are shaped by place attachment. This approach contributes to both theory and practice: it enriches the understanding of place attachment while demonstrating practical applications for participatory urban planning and development. By giving voice to local communities, the study underscores the value of incorporating emotional and cultural, as well as sensory, dimensions into decision-making processes, particularly in contexts of urban transformation projects.
Paper Short Abstract:
This paper examines how the Indian community in Padova’s Arcella neighborhood engage in grassroots, citizen-led spatial practices through events like the annual "Mahakubh Mela" (in July), challenging top-down urban planning narratives to co-create more inclusive and multicultural spaces.
Paper Abstract:
Every year, the last weekend of July, for the time of a day, the city of Padova (Italy) becomes the mirror of an Indian city, while it celebrates the "Mahakubh Mela": a collective celebration for peace.
Through a seven-years Participatory Active Research within the Indian Community in Padova, I have witnessed the profound impact of these citizen-driven interventions, extending beyond physical transformations, fostering a sense of belonging, cultivating mutual understanding, and challenging entrenched power dynamics that have historically marginalized certain communities.
This research delves into the dynamic interplay between the Indian community, local residents, and the urban fabric of Padova's Arcella neighborhood. At its core, it examines how this vibrant locale has emerged as a crucible for grassroots initiatives that actively reshape public spaces, challenging conventional narratives of urban development. The study brings into sharp focus the transformative power of citizen-led efforts like the Mela, an event that transcends its cultural roots to become a catalyst for intercultural dialogue and social cohesion. Through such initiatives, the Indian diaspora and other residents collectively engage in a process of reclaiming and redefining the neighborhood's identity.
By promoting inclusivity and amplifying diverse voices, these grassroots movements resist the homogenizing forces of top-down urban planning strategies. Instead, they offer a bottom-up approach that celebrates the rich tapestry of multiculturalism woven into Arcella's public spaces: a compelling case for rethinking traditional city development paradigms.