Politics of proximity without proximity. Perspectives on local participation in (post-)pandemic times

Participation often takes place where citizens know they can immediately change something. Ada Colau postulates the ‘politics of proximity’ as strategic advantage of cities and sees it likewise as their duty to deliver on that promise. How does participation take place when spatial proximity in times of Covid-19 is not possible or only on a very limited scale? We invite three perspectives of (civil society) urban initiatives to an open discussion:

Sophie Bloemen directs the Commons Network and consults the city of Amsterdam with regard to welfare orientation. The next big Fearless City Conference will take plase in 2021 in Amsterdam.

Malisa Zobel works at the Humboldt-Viadrina Governance Platform in Berlin amongst others on the establishment of local development councils by politics, the private sector and civil society organisations, that consult cities and communities in order to create sustainable policy proposals.

Xavi Ferrer is part of Barcelona en Comú and was co-organiser of the conferences Fearless Cities. The initative started in Barcelona in june 2017 and promoted a global network of progressive cities, that forsters a new role of cities in international governance.

We ask in a digital Open Space: What do we learn from radical municipalism for local-transnational participation and how do we deal with this in a post-pandemic future?

+++++

Registration until 11th of August 2020: https://www.zukunftfueralle.jetzt/kongress/anmeldung/

Moderation und Organisation: Daphne Büllesbach und Melanie Kryst, @HVGP_Stadt

Digital Event: 29th of August 2020 // 11.00-12.30am and 3.00-4.30pm

Language of the event: English