Speakers
Description
This paper explores the possibility of scaling up experimental practices emerging from civic initiatives by incorporating them into participatory urban planning processes linked to the construction of wider urban/territorial strategies. The hypothesis of this paper is that in order to enable this scaling up of civic initiatives, participatory processes need to be rethought and innovated, moving from a collaborative planning framework (Healey, 1997; Forester, 1999) to the concept of prefigurative planning as proposed by Davoudi (2023).
Focusing in particular on the practices of reuse of abandoned spaces and buildings and their transformation in ‘creative hubs’, the main idea underlying this paper is that regenerated spaces can be seen as " forerunning practices" (Tedesco, 2023), where future transformations are prefigured and enacted in the present.
Using Beauregard's (2013) distinction between site, context and place, this idea is tested in terms of whether it is possible to identify different roles played by this type of reused space within participatory urban planning processes.
This theoretical framework is applied to some case studies in Italian cities that are carrying out urban planning processes for the design of new urban master plans.
In particular, within these processes creative hubs are considered to be places, but their potential to scale up innovative practices is often not considered: they are not recognized as potential triggers for broader urban regeneration strategies but are instead treated both as project sites and places where institutions can organize meetings with citizens.
On the other hand, the Italian case studies highlight the importance of planning frameworks in supporting the transition from localised experimental practices to broader visions. For those seeking to promote innovative urban change - whether as activists, designers, administrators or public officials - it is essential to broaden participatory processes to better incorporate grassroots innovation. In particular, effective scale-up requires moving away from the traditional sequential approach of plan-project dynamics. Instead, projects need to be allowed to anticipate and inform the vision of planning tools, rather than being limited to temporary experiments.
References
Beauregard, R. (2013). The neglected places of practice. Planning Theory & Practice, 14(1), 8–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649357.2012.744460
Davoudi, S. (2023). Prefigurative planning: performing concrete utopias in the here and now. European Planning Studies, 31(11), 2277–2290. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2023.2217853
Forester, J. F. (1999) The Deliberative Practitioner: Encouraging Participatory Planning Processes. The MIT Press Books.
Ostrom, E. (1990) Governing the commons: The evolution of institutions for collective action. Cambridge University Press
Tedesco, C. (2023). Pratiche di auto-organizzazione e strumenti di pianificazione attraverso le lenti dell’assemblaggio e delle trading zones. Le Manifatture Knos a Lecce. Urbanistica Informazioni, 312 (51), 75-80.
Tedesco, C. (2024). Anticipazioni. Il nesso piano/progetto e le pratiche ‘dal basso’ in una prospettiva di bottom-linked governance. In: Formato E. (a cura di) Strumenti per il governo del valore dei suoli, per un progetto equo e non-estrattivo. vol. 9, Roma- Milano:Planum Publisher e Società Italiana degli Urbanisti, Cagliari, 15-16 giugno 2023.
| Keywords | Civic initiatives; urban regeneration; participatory processes |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
