Content | InTRODUCTION
- Idea
- Network
- Conference
- Investigation
- • Labour market and work places
- • Mobility and transport
- • Public life and urban space
- • Housing and neighbourhoods
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Does the gradual disappearance of public space have an impact on our concept of the city? Public space is a complex notion. New York and London, in their voluntary endeavours to revitalise former derelict spaces, have progressively defined which users they envision will use future embellished spaces that look public but in fact are under control; either from private security guards (i.e. waterfronts, commercial malls), or from publicly hired security employees (semi-public parks), or by regular police officers. The problem does not arise from the transgression of laws, which would lead to sanctions, but from the very identity of people considered undesirable categories and which may generate a stop and search, or even a ban of spatial use. Such a process can be observed in Shanghai, where obvious public spaces like the Bund along the river, or the public gardens, are inviting many kinds of flâneurs to stroll, among a pleasant diversity and density of people. However, maybe less apparent, control is nevertheless present, emanating from two sources: from undercover policemen in charge of order who mix with the crowds, and from society's internal social control system, which emerges when those who do not ‘belong’ are spotted by other citizens. Freedom yes, but under surveillance...
01 | What is the potential for cities to promote ideals of public life such as fairness, openness and civic engagement in the current post 9/11 world context? What are the major risks that social disorders and external threats present for dense urban public spaces? What are the effects of increased privatisation and the control of the public life in urban communities?
02 | What are the factors lead to the public and private sectors and local communities to engage in the co-production of safety? Does this collaborative engagement occur in all cities equally or does it assume a stronger shape in some places more than others? What conditions differentiate these cases?
03 | How dependent are cities on decision-making processes at higher levels of government such as the national and supra-national scales? How can they promote a built environment that reflects local identity with a construction sector with increasing participation of transnational developer firms and signature architecture being the norm for large-scale projects around the world?
04 | How can we envision the role of urban space as a support for vibrant public life? How can it contribute to the consolidation of an urban citizenship and the flourishing of civic pride and engagement?
