Self-organized initiatives: a planners’ subversive tool for fragmented urban spaces

Igor Tempels Moreno Pessoa

doi:10.1080/13563475.2021.1883419

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article investigates whether self-organized initiatives are able to undermine the underlying dynamics of spatial fragmentation in Brazilian metropolises by promoting social connections between groups that are extremely diverse. Since self-organized initiatives not only promote spatial connections but also social connections between different groups, the central question here is: To what extent can self-organized initiatives promote social connection in the public spaces of highly fragmented and unequal urban contexts? The analysis was based on data collected from 22 in-depth interviews with members of self-organized initiatives, experts as well as field observations during some actions of the initiatives. The interviews were conducted in Brasília, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo during two months of fieldwork. The results show that the self-organized initiatives studied were capable to mitigate conflicts and to create social connections. Nevertheless, it is still unclear how strong and long-lasting these social connections are.

Highlights

This article investigates whether self-organized initiatives are able to undermine the underlying dynamics of spatial fragmentation in Brazilian metropolises by promoting social connections between groups that are extremely diverse
The results show that the self-organized initiatives studied were capable to mitigate conflicts and to create social connections
The results show that self-organized initiatives can create new social ties even in public spaces with patent social inequalities

Summary

Introduction

Opportunity-led development has created a disconnected urban patchwork where walls and inequality reign. The barriers in fragmented cities go beyond the physical ones. Breaking down invisible walls and connecting spatially disconnected areas does not necessarily erode the social inequality behind them or promote social connections. The walls in Brazilian metropolises are social (Cortes 2008). The result is that traditional urban policies often fail to confront the spatial fragmentation in Brazil. It is common to observe bottom-up, informal and self-organized initiatives in such fragmented contexts. These initiatives are abundant and range from housing construction to upgrading public spaces

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