Abstract
Urban transformations depend on the uses of the city by “old” and new citizens (residents, workers, migrants, refugees, students, seasonal, homeless individuals, tourists, city-users, commuters), and on their relation within urban spaces and resources, triggering regenerative opportunities, networking and empowerment processes. Considering the city and its heritage as a common good, in which each citizen could access and play for the knowledge, management, conservation and transformation of urban contexts, the contribute illustrates the results of experimental actions in Bologna (IT) finalized to test new stakeholder engagement processes and to develop new tools for participatory practices and new productions for the reactivation of the city. In the last years Bologna represents a field of experimentation for different forms of collaborative approaches with the aim to test and innovate tools and policies for the public space. The paper presents the results of specific projects linked to EU funding schemes (ROCK project) and local multi-stakeholder initiatives, such as the Bologna Design Week, which are part of the research and experimentation carried out by the research unit team. This article illustrates a model to improve the regenerative capacities of the city, by reinforcing local identity and culture, fostering participation through active engagement of all relevant stakeholders, allowing a diversity of responses of groups of actors with different roles and different strengths.
Highlights
The perception of the complexity of urban space is inevitably affected by the time-related stratification of historical meanings and archetypes that have been developed over the centuries by society (Marot, 2003)
Interpretative processes vary during time, enriching and questioning the consolidated balance of urban spaces and their life with new cultures, unexpected practices and different ways to experience and transform the city
These transformations depend on the uses of the city by recognized citizens and new citizens, and on their relation within urban spaces and Djalali, A., Gianfrate, V., Longo, D. & Vai, E. (2019)
Summary
The perception of the complexity of urban space is inevitably affected by the time-related stratification of historical meanings and archetypes that have been developed over the centuries by society (Marot, 2003). The involvement of citizens and other stakeholders in the different phases of the policymaking process is witnessed by a multitude of examples across the world (Figuereido et al, 2016), showing the growing commitment of local authorities in engaging with their communities in shaping the future of their cities together (i.e. Decidim Barcelona, Empatia in Milan, Participatory Budget in Puerto Alegre, ChangeMakerSpace in Singapore, etc), based on the belief that open and participatory governance is the key for making cities livelier, more inclusive and sustainable, while boosting urban innovation and competitiveness (Bobbio, 2019; Omar et al, 2018) Citizens, each with their own background, knowledge and expertise, represent a collective intelligence and are those that daily live and experience the city, representing valuable on-the-ground antennas providing both input in terms of evolving needs and unique insights of urban dynamics and trends (Tinati et al, 2014). This article illustrates a model to improve the regenerative capacities of the city, recognizing and matching the different roles, influences and knowledge of local actors and relevant stakeholders, to strengthen communities’ sense of belonging, cultural and creative power, and improving territorial identity
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