Collectively Reimagining Our Cities – Practicing Our Right to the City
We are a citizens' initiative that aspires to collectively redesign public spaces in Bolzano. The city is strongly focused on its centre, from which an entire neighbourhood is separated by a large wasteland. By inviting citizens to co-create interim uses for this abandoned area, we can revitalize these neighbourhoods and empower residents to address their own needs. In a city still grappling with hidden, historical divisions, we can create a welcoming place of community that ensures equal access
Local
Italy
City of Bozen-Bolzano
Mainly urban
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
As individual(s) in partnership with organisation(s)
First name: Marielle Last name: Scharfenberg Gender: Female Please describe the type of organization(s) you work in partnership with: local, social, youth, cultural and environmental organizations, e.g Bolzano Art Week, Forum Prävenzion, BASIS, VKE, Climate Action South Tyrol, lab:bz, lungomare, etc.
As well as education institutes e.g. eurac, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Wirtschaftsfachoberschule H. Kunter, etc. Age: 24 Please attach a copy of your national ID/residence card:
By ticking this box, I certify that the information regarding my age is factually correct. : Yes Nationality: Germany Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Via dei Cappuccini 28 Town: Bolzano Postal code: 39100 Country: Germany Direct Tel:+49 176 34393341 E-mail:mscharfenberg@unibz.it Website:https://www.aplacetobz.com/
A place to B(z) aims to empower citizens to address their own needs and make their voices heard in the discussion about what their living environment looks and feels like.
Bolzano is still overcoming its history of division and separation, thus, a shared narrative is lacking. Uneven urbanization has led to an imbalance in urban development and a lack of community spaces in Bolzano, especially for youth. In addition, there is a disconnect between the municipality and the citizens, leading to mistrust of top-down urban development.
A place to B(z) is a citizens' initiative developing alternative narratives for our city. Through open dialogue and close collaboration, we have created a cross-sector coalition of a variety of local associations and organizations. Supported by this strong network, we actively invite citizens to participate in the transformation of their city by claiming ownership of public space.
We focus on an area behind the train station that has lain fallow for over thirty years yet has great potential due to its proximity to the city center. Our goal is to create an urban common - an open space that is used and managed by the residents of the neighborhood.
Our concept for this space is defined by adaptability and the ability to host multiple transdisciplinary uses simultaneously. In this way, we can provide space for residents to experiment and gain hands-on experience, lowering barriers to participation while serving as a breeding ground for local culture. With this project, we focus on ensuring equal access to the city and promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. By providing a space for citizens to connect and create together, we can strengthen our community, and foster a sense of belonging.
This area can become an urban laboratory, demonstrating sustainable use of resources and enabling practical creativity that leads to new solutions inspiring change in other parts of the city. We can be the hub for forward-thinking projects.
Equal Access/Inclusion
Participatory City Development
Civic Empowerment
Sustainable Management of Resources
Urban Commons
The central sustainability goals of our concept are closely linked to SDGs 10, 11 & 17 and therefore are ecological, social and economic. The revitalization of an abandoned site & opening it for public use is already a political act of reclamation of infrastructure and resources. Creating an Urban Common means that residents are not only users but also managers of their resources, which creates a strong incentive for energy conservation and creative use of resources. Already our process leading towards opening is about sustainability in action, being as inclusive as possible and placing a strong emphasis on public transportation and bicycles as a means of transportation. One of our first interventions was an on-site clean-up, collecting amassed trash while focusing our attention on discovering non-human actors and local biodiversity. In addition, we conducted our events by recycling & reusing materials and using provided resources from local associations and businesses. A major part of our event, "The Art of Public Space" focused on circular economy and included several workshops and information points, such as clothing swaps, a bicycle repair station, an initiative giving away old furniture, an artwork lending project and an exhibition by Climate Action South Tyrol. We also promote the local economy by hosting flea markets for used camera equipment, clothing, and children's toys. Social sustainability is ensured by embedding our project into the social fabric of existing, local associations and organizations. In our ongoing process to better connect civil society in the city and the region in general, we are building a platform for networking among citizens, organizations, and public administration as well as business stakeholders. We concentrate on including the residents of this neighborhood in the decision-making in order for the found solutions to be accepted and welcomed in the long haul. A place to B(z) is committed to the common good and is non-commercial
Our main goal is to actively invite citizens to participate, thus our key objective is welcoming and broadcasting approachability. In our communication with the public, we use DIY elements such as hand-drawn pictures, tape, and stickers to reduce barriers to contacting us and joining the project. Readability and clarity were key in the selection of all design elements. In order to reach a wide part of society, we document our actions on our website, Instagram, WhatsApp, and through exhibitions in public spaces. In addition, we have developed various interventions aimed at playful and spontaneous interaction with our surroundings, e.g. telescopes at the gates of the site, interactive research posters in public spaces or custom-built models of the area that can be adapted to people's visions. Since the area is still mostly closed to the public and hidden behind high walls, we want to bring the idea of the area to the streets of the city. Through a variety of posters, stickers, and chalk drawings, we continuously draw attention to the project. Not only do we strive to bring the area to the people but also the people to the area. We organize walks to the site and, when possible, tours of the area. At these events and our community meetings, we focus on creating a sense of community, inviting residents, listening to their stories, and encouraging discussion rounds. We pay attention to co-creating interesting events that resonate with citizens as people. Music and food play a key part in this, cooking and eating together or listening to live music creates a sense of belonging, which leads to participation. To be truly sustainable a project must first grow strong roots in society for the solutions found to be accepted and continued. We are creating the foundation for addressing a wide range of challenges at the local and regional levels. The toolset we have developed for communicating with the public and activating neighborhoods can be adapted and reused for other projects
As a citizens’ initiative, we strive to be as inclusive as possible, as we need the participation of a broad range of residents to find the best possible solution for everyone and to combat gentrification & segregation. Therefore, our research process was strongly focused on diversifying our target groups. We attended neighborhood council meetings, talked to people on the street, interviewed neighbors, connected with a variety of local associations, conducted several public space interventions, and built an online presence to reach even more people. Our interventions were always conducted in three languages (Italian, German & English) to overcome language barriers. Special emphasis was placed on an engaging and playful design to actively invite people to participate. This mix of approaches allowed a variety of people to be involved in the process, such as shift workers, non-digital natives, and young people. In the process of creating an Urban Commons, we formed a working group of residents, business owners, and other supporters, to delegate tasks, assign responsibilities, and co-create events together. Thus, we learn how to work as a movement and use our collective power to reshape our neighborhood. Our meetings take place both online and in real life to aid participation and are held in the space of a different local association each time. We issue open invitations to all our events and actively invite citizens through posters, postcards, and online marketing. Because we are actively non-commercial, all our events are free and promote our vision of a city with equal access where everyone feels like they belong. Given the challenges we faced in our process, we are forming a collective of local initiatives, to consult and support each other, thus combining efforts to use our collective power to create alternative narratives for our city. Due to its nature, the area behind the train station is barrier-free and can therefore be used by people with walking disabilities
Our path to creating an Urban Commons in this abandoned train station area was accompanied by detailed research about past uses, the history of the area, and the connections citizens have with the site. In numerous interviews with residents and shopkeepers in the area, we heard many stories about former uses of the site but also realized that many consider it a non-place. We, therefore, launched a campaign to raise awareness of this place, highlight its potential and provoke action. On several occasions and with different media we asked citizens to share their visions for this area. Through our citizens' initiative, residents had the opportunity to participate in planning and organizing events for the area.
Opening this area and creating an Urban Common will create an active, non-commercial meeting space for the local community, especially accessible to groups such as youth and people affected by poverty. Due to its size and location, this area can develop into a cultural place where large events, concerts, and other night-time activities take place, reducing the pressure on the city center. The collective development and management of this area will have far-reaching benefits for the urban society, as it will be a real-life example of community action for the common good. Showcasing this alternative narrative for the city by providing a place of connection will eventually become a source of identification for citizens, linking them with the city on an emotional level and providing a nurturing environment for local culture. In addition to the physical meeting space, there will be a digital platform to aid collaboration between associations and citizens. By providing people with an open, free space to experiment, A place to B(z) can become the hub for a variety of local projects and their supporters. The area can be a testing ground for forward-looking ideas and assist projects not only in the city but across the region.
For the first temporary openings of the area, we relied on the support of the Free University of Bozen, Bolzano Art Week, and the municipality to hold talks with the current owner, the National Railway Company.
Our events were co-designed by local and regional associations, companies, and citizens. Their support ranged from actively participating in workshops and exhibitions to providing their resources, e.g. The co-carts from Lungomare, electricity from a neighborhood association, music and art from citizens initiatives, food and drinks from local businesses to public furniture and other equipment. We continuously participate in workshops and meetings hosted by associations across Bolzano to further engage the public in creating these urban commons. We are in contact with similar projects and initiatives at the national level that supports us with their expertise. E.g. BASIS Vinschgau-Venosta, who have already gained some expertise in the revitalization of unused areas and support us in our process with their knowledge and network.
Our efforts are further supported by researchers from both the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano and Eurac Research Institute.
We attended the EUniverCities conference in Innsbruck last year, where we had the opportunity to network with various projects from across the EU. We are now in contact with projects in e.g. B. Gent, Belgium, and Lublin, Poland, who continue to support us with their accumulated expertise and knowledge on a systemic level.
The project was launched by a group of young eco-social designers from Germany, Hungary, and Portugal with backgrounds in communications, products, and graphic design. The team found support from local urban planners and landscape architects. The entire process features young talent guided by experienced professionals as well as residents with hands-on expertise. Our focus on public participation and civic engagement meet our interest in urban development, revitalization of underutilized and abandoned areas, and a personal interest in being part of the transformation of our cities. This way we are growing a strong working group, allowing people to gain experience and become part of the change in their city.
This mixed focus on the social determinants of community and participation, and the revitalization of brownfields as a physical manifestation of our values as a society, point the way to a shift in our culture toward a city that is more at eye level with its residents. Incorporating disciplines such as urban farming, art, performance, music, and cooking into the process of urban development ensures people-centered design and development.
South Tyrol as a region does not have a strong history of public participation or urban commons. Due to ethical conflicts in the past, in South Tyrol, the spatial development culture is still weighed down by its historical experiences of urban development used as a weapon by fascism. New forms of co-creating the urban and rural environment we live in, can help to find a new identity and relationship between citizens and the environment, between several ethnic minorities, and also between stakeholders of the civil, economic, and political society.
This project could therefore become a unique platform and space of experimentation not only for Bolzano but for the whole region. We stand out through our utilization of the existing, both on a resource and on a social scale. Through our research, we have met a variety of actors with valuable, local expertise. Our urban commons will be characterized by the curation of these existing associations, clubs, and ideas giving them the resources and platform to blossom into potent projects and events for us citizens. ccc
For Bolzano, we are closing the gap in open-access events, with a special focus on the evening and night. Through this Urban Commons all residents, especially the youth will have a place to go be part of a project, or just be in the public space. We are creating a space where members of different groups can connect, strengthening the social fabric of this city.
By activating this area with local and regional residents, we can gradually create expertise in a variety of fields that can be transferred to other contexts in Bolzano, South Tyrol, and Europe. The knowledge we will be able to share through our network of grass-root movements throughout the continent includes tools of biodiversity monitoring in urban environments, our generated expertise in public participation processes, cooperative neighborhood development for future projects, and the creation of multigenerational, multiethnic space by multiple levels of society. Especially for other initiatives in South Tyrol but also beyond, we want to become a partner that can be approached when social or public initiatives would like to establish temporary uses in vacant buildings or brownfields. As we ourselves gathered a lot of knowledge in the establishment of our initiative, but at the same time a lot of obstacles by administrative, legal, and economic uncertainties, we would like to share this knowledge and experience so other initiatives for temporary uses can be established even faster. The temporary use of brownfields in alpine regions, which are challenged by the high pressure of development and economic speculation, will be an important instrument for strengthening the local society and economy. This process of co-creation will result in a public space that can be used by a high variety of actors, especially those that have limited access to non-commercial recreational space. Already today, one year after starting the citizens' initiative “A place to B(z)” we are part of a vast network with other bottom-up projects in other regions of Italy, Switzerland, Austria, and Germany. We exchange our experiences and learn from theirs. Moreover, we collaborate with PhD, Master, and Bachelor students that are interested in the study of our project.
While political and administrative bodies at all levels are confronted with a multitude of crises that need to be addressed, citizens tend to feel disconnected from the decision-making process that is installed from the top down. In global challenges such as the climate crisis, the Covid-19 pandemic, and conflicts of war, as well as partially global challenges such as housing shortages, public transport, ageing populations, social division, etc. it is the responsibility of local actors to implement frameworks and solutions found on a national and international level.
Many local residents do feel a strong urge to participate in finding and creating solutions to the many challenges we face as a global community, yet they lack the means to actively participate. The initiative "A place to B(z)" aims to provide these citizens with an approachable, open space that functions like a platform and forum, thus encouraging the discussion of problems and ideas, and facilitating a creative approach to local interests leading to new sustainable solutions and activities. Actively inviting citizens to become part of the solution is an emancipating experience that will promote democracy on a practical and emotional level. Furthermore, we are committed to bridging internal social divisions and forwarding equal access, equity, and inclusion. A strong urban community enhances our society's resilience to various future challenges.
