This paper explores how the so-called Bilbao effect and Barcelona Model are diffused internationally through what may be called urban policy tourism: short trips made to Bilbao and Barcelona by policy-makers to learn from their regeneration in the past 15 years. The paper reveals for the first time the substantial extent of this practice and contextualises it within a wider phenomenon of urban policy transfer and the international ‘motion’ of urban policies. Although both models are internationally known for a set of elements, this research shows that in fact the messages mutate and shift as they circulate through the policy circuits. Ultimately, however, the popularity of the Bilbao and Barcelona models suggests a process of global urban policy convergence.

http://contested-cities.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/2011_US_SGonzalez_Bilbao-and-Barcelona.pdf

Bilbao and Barcelona ‘in Motion’. How Urban Regeneration ‘Models’ Travel and Mutate in the Global Flows of Policy Tourism:

http://www.faculty.umb.edu/pjt/epi/Mehdipanah13.pdf

An evaluation of an urban renewal program and its effects on neighborhood resident's overall wellbeing using concept mapping.

The Latin America megacities and sustainability panorama is an effort aimed to understand the complex urban processes and to discuss urban risks under sustainability criteria. In order to define research agendas as well as for policy design purposes, a closer look at the challenges of metropolitan areas in Latin America requires an identification of common urban trends in the region. Although metropolitan cities and regions in LAC present common problems and challenges, the intensity of specific aspects related to sustainability changes from one city to another. The present report discusses the main sustainability issues and challenges that have arisen in six selected Latin American metropolis: Bogota, Buenos Aires, Lima, Mexico City, Santiago de Chile and Sao Paulo. It contains a review of a comprehensive set of indicators in these six selected metropolitan cities. The information was gathered via indicator-based data that was provided by national statistic offices, sub-national governmental institutions, international organization and scientific research publications among others. Comparability of detailed information depends on available data. More than100 different indicators belonging to the dimensions of "human life", "natural resources" "social resources", "equal opportunities" and "productive potential" were used. Clear differences between the main cities can be identified in most of the different analyzed sustainability indicators.Based on trends and achievements, in the final part of the report these six cities are discussed as separate cases, focusing on specific challenges for each city, in terms of policy implementation in different aspects of metropolitan development. Environmental, economic, social and governance issues are discussed for these six metropolitan cities in Latin America.

/pdf/regional-panorama-latin-america-megacities-and-13rg21lxor.pdf

Regional Panorama: Latin America. Megacities and sustainability

Llibre d'actes: Congres Internacional de Psicologia Ambiental, que inclou el XII Congres de Psicologia Ambiental (PsicAmb) i les VI Jornades Cientifiques de l'ArpEnv. Barcelona, 22-25 octubre 2013.

Espacios híbridos, espacios humanos, para un futuro “viable”: revisitando la psicología ambiental

espanolAnte el escenario de crisis global en el que nos encontramos, nuestros patrones urbanoterritoriales requeriran profundas transformaciones hacia una urgente transicion socioecologica. El reto que deberemos afrontar sera considerar como oportunidad el punto de inflexion que supone la propia crisis para que nos lleve a tiempo a modelos radicalmente diferentes, sobre todo de la vida urbana En ese sentido, consideramos que el urbanismo jugara un papel clave, que solo sera posible con un replanteamiento de instrumentos y criterios para transformaciones urbanas hacia la sostenibilidad social, economica y ambiental La rehabilitacion y regeneracion integral urbana, con criterios ecologicos, apunta a ser uno de los ejes centrales de la sostenibilidad a corto plazo, donde la escala barrial sera un ambito de oportunidad para desarrollar politicas locales y construir modelos de gestion urbana sostenibles. Otro eje sera abordar un cambio metodologico, que tenga en consideracion la experiencia de las personas en las decisiones urbanas, y la creacion de mecanismos para la gestion concertada y participativa de la ciudad, donde el espacio publico sera determinante. El desarrollo de la Tesis plantea como corresponderia renovar el urbanismo desde una perspectiva de accion transformadora; y como contribuir a la construccion conceptual y metodologica para la transicion hacia un modelo urbanistico alternativo. En particular, el estudio se centra en la regeneracion integral del espacio publico desde la perspectiva del urbanismo ecologico, del urbanismo participativo y del urbanismo emergente. Parte de la hipotesis de que es preciso encontrar vias de encuentro entre las iniciativas por la sostenibilidad desde la base como el Movimiento de Transicion y el Decrecimiento, y las iniciativas institucionales que, de arriba a abajo, plantean un nuevo urbanismo sostenible, participativo e integrado. EnglishIn the scenario of global crisis we are facing, the urban and territorial patterns will require from deep changes towards an urgent socioecological transition. Our challenge is to identify as an opportunity the turning point this crisis represents, and to seize it to implement radically different models without further delay, with focus on urban life. Accordingly, we strongly believe that urbanism will play a key role, and this will only be possible by rethinking urban transformation instruments and approaches from a perspective of environmental, economical and social sustainability. Rehabilitation and integral urban regeneration, including environmental approaches, aims to be a pillar for sustainability in short term; neighbourhood scale will emerge as an opportunity space to develop local policies and to build sustainable models of urban management. It’s equally fundamental to address a methodological change, which considers both the experience of citizens in urban decision-making and the creation of mechanisms for a concerted and participatory city management, where public space will be a determining factor. The thesis posits how urbanism should be renewed from a perspective of transformative action; and how to contribute to a conceptual a methodological construction for the transition towards an alternative urbanistic model. In particular, the focus of the study is on the integral regeneration of public space from the perspective of ecological urban planning, participatory urbanism and tactical urbanism. The starting hypothesis is that it’s needed to connect social initiatives for sustainability, with a bottom-up approach, as the transition and degrowth movements, and the institutional initiatives, with a top-down approach, which raise the foundations of a new sustainable and collaborative planning with an integrated approach to the urban development.

Urbanismo en transición. Producción y gestión social del espacio público

A pessimistic analysis, even catastrophic, prevails in studies of global urbanization. For example, the Reports of the UNDP-Habitat or the Worldwatch Institute, or the articles and presentations in intellectual fora. This does not mean that the transformative and integrative potential of cities is not recognized. The positive discourse about citizensliberties that the urban revolution, currently in process, makes possible forms part of our culture. These are the two sides of this reality. Many cities, European and American, have promoted regeneration of their central areas that, in many cases, deal with almost an entire municipality, with a revaluing of the compact, heterogenous city characterized by the quality of public space. However the urban developments, the metropolitan regions, multiply inequalities over the landscape, generating spaces that are physically fragmented and socially segregated. The current urban revolution is frustrating. The political, urbanistic and cultural challenge today is to 'make the city' in all regions characterized by urbanization.

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Revolución y contrarrevolución en la ciudad global: las expectativas frustradas por la globalización de nuestras ciudades

Tomando el ejemplo de Barcelona, el articulo realiza algunas reflexiones generales acerca de las transformaciones en la ciudad como resultado de grandes proyectos urbanos que a la par de la intervencion fisica, modifican notoriamente su caracter En el trabajo se sostiene como hipotesis que a expensas de un urbanismo de inspiracion globalizante que homogeniza y segrega, la ciudad va mutando en nuevos espacios de desposesion para los ciudadanos Al correr de los tiempos actuales y bajo el influjo de los nuevos proyectos, su caracter historico como espacio de intercambio y apropiacion, va cediendo lugar a la tendencia a la banalizacion urbana, la segregacion social del territorio y el aumento de las desigualdades Un segundo topico se vincula con la respuesta de la ciudadania frente al problema Aqui se sostiene que por la via de la denuncia y la critica; como de la organizacion y la accion, los ciudadanos comienzan a construir y consolidar nuevos escenarios para la reapropiacion del territorio, de su identidad y de su cohesion socio-cultural Finalmente, en la conclusion se sintetizan algunas de las propuestas expresadas a lo largo del trabajo, y se reflexiona sobre los desafios que tienen por delante las administraciones locales y los ciudadanos en la produccion de un nuevo urbanismo centrado en el derecho a la ciudad

/pdf/un-futuro-urbano-con-un-corazon-antiguo-4ak3qhtsyp.pdf

Un futuro urbano con un corazón antiguo

Housing is more than housing. It is the place to live together, to increase the workforce and to build affective bonds. Housing is also one of the conditions to access de facto to citizenship. For many inhabitants, housing is something less than housing. The territorial marginality, which is also social, generates an exclusionary dynamic: formative difficulties, to live in a human environment that shares deficits of all kinds; lack of relationships with different people who can provide clues, contacts, information and recommendations; to feel excluded from the professional, academic and cultural media. The inhabitant in these cases cannot exercise as a citizen, he cannot exercise his formal status (if he has one). In our current culture, it is obvious that everyone has a right to housing. But for many it is not. The end of many social housing politics does not have as main objective the well-being of the population and the right to housing, but the private business and the complicity of complicit and perverse public policy (whatever the initial propaganda intentions). The city as housing is a continuous process, which cannot be left in the exclusive hands of leaders, professionals (architects, town planners, etc.) or promoters and builders. And even less of the banks and landowners. It is organized citizenship that must promote and guide urban dynamics. In this process it must conquer the socially legitimate but not formalized rights or the ones that are, but in fact the majority or broad sectors of the population cannot exercise them, as is the case of a decent and integrated housing in the city.

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Jordi Borja

Papers

Revolución y contrarrevolución en la ciudad global: las expectativas frustradas por la globalización de nuestras ciudades

Un futuro urbano con un corazón antiguo

La vivienda popular, de la marginación a la ciudadanía

Notas sobre ciudades, gobiernos locales y movimientos populares.

Formas y escalas emergentes de las democracias contemporáneas. Miradas desde la sociedad vasca