Speaker
Description
Southern European cities have been hit hard by economic austerity, climate-related events, impact of migration flows, as well as socio-sanitary damages during the Covid-19 pandemic. In this multiple-crises context, public open spaces in Athens, Greece, become sites of transformation and resistance under an ongoing commodification, supported by a persistent 'austerity urbanism' (Peck, 2012) which reflects broader patterns of uneven geographical development (Brenner et al., 2010). Due to privatization and deregulation of planning processes since 2010 (Gemenetzi, 2021) public spaces have been impacted, while simultaneously catalyzing forms of civic engagement and collective action for social inclusion, environmental and spatial justice.
This contribution aims to analyze the socio-spatial dynamics in Plateia Protomagias (Protomagias Square) at Pedion tou Areos park in Athens and how these interconnected spaces have emerged as pivotal sites for contesting socio-spatial inequalities. Protomagias Square has been a highly appropriated space by its multiple and diverse users, especially during the years after the crises of 2010, a space where diverse elements could develop ways to coexist and create relations.
The case study focuses on the latest transformation of the square, since 2023, when almost one third of the public square was unexpectedly fenced off by Attiko Metro S.A. until 2030. This area was designated to be used in auxiliary works for the construction site of a new metro station, as well as for storage and office space of the company, further shrinking the already scarce public space and disabling the social life, especially of the more disadvantaged inhabitants of the city.
Following the mobilization of local associations and inhabitants' initiatives to reclaim their right to public space, the research examines how these urban spaces function as laboratories for grassroots initiatives that both advance social inclusion and assert collective rights to public space, manifesting what Latham and Layton (2019) conceptualize as 'social infrastructure' for civic empowerment and spatial justice. The role of urban wellbeing and care as drivers of urban planning is being addressed, acknowledging the transformative understandings of society and democracy that can leverage spaces of relations and collective time and thus improve wellbeing through solidarity bonds and increased sense of belonging and owning in a commoning sense.
Drawing further on theories of socio-spatial justice (Soja, 2010) and biopolitics framework (Foucault, 1978), the paper contributes to understanding how public spaces shape and are shaped by daily negotiations of transformative urban changes under restrictive conditions and despite facing what Madden (2022) terms "systemically induced fatigue." The study suggests that understanding of care as a social capacity directed at maintaining collective welfare (The Care Collective, 2020) and integrating restorative life-values into urban planning (Bianchetti, 2020) can create more inclusive and sustainable public spaces that serve as catalysts for social justice and collective well-being. Urban planning approaches focusing on improving city dwellers' wellbeing and creating alternative visions of urban development that prioritize collective welfare over market-driven transformations should strengthen public spaces' role in promoting equity and environmental sustainability.
References
Chase J., Crawford M. and Kaliski J. (2009) Everyday urbanism. New York: Monacelli Enfield.
Klinenberg, E. (2019) Palaces for the People: how social infrastructure can help fight inequality, polarization, and the decline of civic life. New York: Broadway Books.
Latham, A. and Layton, J. (2019) Social infrastructure and the public life of cities: Studying urban sociality and public spaces. Geography Compass, 13(7).
Madden, D. (2022) Exhausted: Cities and the Depletion of Urbanisation, City, 26(2-3), pp.432-448.
Peck, J. (2012) 'Austerity urbanism: American cities under extreme economy', City, 16(6), pp.626-655.
Soja, E.W. (2010) Seeking Spatial Justice, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
The Care collective - Chatzidakis A. et al. (2020) The Care Manifesto: The Politics of Interdependence. London: Verso.
| Keywords | public space, spatial justice, collective well-being, Athens |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | No |
