REFRAMING A BOSNIAN DELIGHT: Coffee and Co-creation
Bringing together creative professionals, individuals, academics and representatives of associations, networks, groupings and civic society in Bosnia and Herzegovina, its diaspora and friends in the EU and the US; Identifying and strengthening synergies for action to advance the professionalism and quality in built environment and society focused on collaborative and sustainable methods and measures locally and internationally.
Cross-border/international
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ireland
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Municipality of Breza, Municipality of Mostar
Mainly urban
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
As an individual
First name: Selma Last name: Harrington Gender: Female Nationality: Ireland If relevant, please select your other nationality: Bosnia and Herzegovina Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: 15 Laburnum Road Clonskeagh Town: Dublin Postal code: 14 Country: Ireland Direct Tel:+353 87 126 0928 E-mail:harrinse@tcd.ie Website:https://www.ace-cae.eu/activities/new-european-bauhaus-forum-bih/
The initiative connects people and contributes to improving skills and knowledge among different communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina by establishing a field of common interest, expertise and exchange. It is backed by my long-standing work as elected representative in the Architects Council of Europe (ACE) and a track record of contribution in professional creative networks nationally and internationally. Embracing the New European Bauhaus (NEB) initiative by the EU COM, I have reached out to colleagues in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the EU and US, to establish a Forum for collaboration around the key NEB concepts applicable to local situations, with the aim to further develop local skills and knowledge among different communities in BiH. Conceived as a poly-centric horisontal network the initial call targeted three urban centres (Banja Luka, Mostar, Sarajevo) which act as main hubs in the country within otherwise complex administrative and political divide. The NEB initiative gives a pretext to generalise and mobilise across generations and several creative disciplines (architects, urban planners, engineers, artists, art historians, entrepreneurs and academics) and formulate a broad vision for collaboration which started during the COVID pandemic in 2021. The NEB Forum BiH was initiated in May 2021 and has received an enthusiastic response and following by an active core group consisting of the professionals from the BiH, Bosnian US and EU diaspora and architects from the EU, some of whom are also active in the Architects Council of Europe, which is supporting the Forum within its range of Activities. The Forum is engaging outwardly with the EU NEB Community and inwardly, promoting its mission and vision in the BiH and region. It draws inspiration, resourcefulness and strength from its members many of whom are active on several fronts in their practices, networks, parliamentary and civic duties.
GLOBAL TO LOCAL: Recognizing global political and regulatory context and developing appropriate local initiatives in built environment, education and society
KNOWLEDGE AND PURPOSE: Exchanging knowledge with view to influence educational curricula and promote evidence based research, promotion and publication
DIGITAL AND ANALOGUE: Understanding the impact and opportunities arising in spectrum from digitalisation to protection of modernist heritage
THE GREEN PARADIGM: Assessing and adapting practices to contribute to 'greening of the economy' in the local context
RIPPLE EFFECT AND SYNERGIES: Identifying friends, allies, networks and opportunities to amplify the thematic focus, impact and messages of the Forum
The NEB Forum BiH has a clear focus to engage, exchange knowledge and act by utilising the existing channels of communication, digital working and media, whilst setting the priorities and creating opportunities to demonstrate its expertise, programme and potential. It acts as a field of exploration, discovery, motivation, facilitation, with a light structure and lateral approach which enables the organic and consensual decision making, whilst it is at the same time guided by the principles and methodology of Action Research, as coined by Kurt Lewin (1944). I have examined this concept successfully in my teaching and research practice (Harrington, 2020, https://stax.strath.ac.uk>concern>thesis) and when working with diverse and multi-cultural groups in higher education or professional networks. Applying the cycle Plan-Act-Observe-Reflect as a vehicle to advance the community building, the Forum is orientated to people, building relationships, mutual trust and curiosity, finding strengths and opportunities through exchange of knowledge and practices to be celebrated as shared achievements. The overarching objective is strengthening of local creative professions to enable them to build and restructure professional associations and enhance activism, participation, effective positioning and contribution in the post-conflict reshaping of the democratic processes in the country. The participating networks, such as Centre for Spatial Research (Banja Luka), Urban design activist IDEAA (Mostar), champions of the circular design, Sarajevo Green Design Foundation (Sarajevo and Mostar), Association of Architects of BiH (AABiH), Dani Arhitecture and Global StartupCities (Spain) draw support from the links with the cross-disciplinary international Bosnian and Herzegovinian American Academy of Arts and Sciences (BHAAAS) and the Architects Council of Europe (ACE).
The Forum was established firstly as an online platform in the context of the heightened COVID pandemic and a period of destabilising political tensions which distract and deflect attention from vital and shared everyday life matters in the country. The opportunity to embrace the New European Bauhaus (NEB) concepts and discuss the meaning of its key intentions proved to be a motivating and energising factor for the respondents to the first online NEB Coffee Morning in Sarajevo conducted as a virtual workshop. As a contributor to the JRC/NEB team’s co-creation sessions, particularly focused on the Building Communities and Education strands, with the technical support from the Architects Council of Europe (ACE), I have designed a series of online workshops providing briefing about the NEB, baseline data gathering about local practices and activities and teasing out topics of common interest in order to formulate the Vision and Mission of the Forum. The participants embraced the idea and resulting preparation to becoming an EU NEB Community partner, providing examples from their practices to supplement the successful application. Each of them contributed with ideas, suggestions, copy-editing and creation of visual identity elements for the Forum. Having presented their work at the first live meeting (Round Table at the 13th Days of BHAAAS) in Sarajevo, Jasmin Sirčo (Dani arhitekture Festival) exclaimed: “I knew all of you before but I never knew what you were doing [professionally]. The colleagues from Banja Luka were delighted to discover the breadth and depth of presentations and contextual thinking, beyond the often narrow-minded official views in the diverse communities. The colleagues from Mostar extended the invitation for the next gathering at the Mostar Green Design Biennale, masterminded by Elma Durmišević, in October ’22. In short, the need and an appetite for the format of engagement offered by the Forum is palpable and drives its further development.
CROSS-DISIPLINARITY: The creative networking in BiH, through the Collegium Artisticum association (architects, artists, engineers, cultural workers and activist) was somewhat similar to the original Bauhaus, operating during the two periods of modernisation, around two World Wars. This had a positive social and cultural impact and influenced the work of the professional associations of artists, applied artists, designers and architects and their role in the local governance.
CROSS-SECTORAL: The aspiration to make the EU Green Deal a cultural movement calls for a collaboration outside and across institutions, with professional networks and civic society. Peer-to-peer learning and cultural engagement was all but destroyed in the 1990s conflict so that gathering around a NEB call provides a welcome frame for regrouping locally across communities often separated by the administrative and political systems.
PROFESSION TO SOCIETY: The engagement from a cultural perspective, blending disciplines, themes and initiatives in a mix relevant to a vital and generic human interest in clean air, water, soil, living nature and food, when situated in the discourse on the built environment and built heritage, offers much more relevant ideas, discussions and solutions attractive to engage public and civil society.
LOOKING IN AND OUTSIDE OF BOX: The communication and knowledge exchange across pan-European and international networks, which are addressing democratic co-creation by engaging in advocacy with political representatives, provides a valuable insight and models for channelling local initiatives, articulated in an organic and collaborative way. Therefore, the strategic alliance of the NEB Forum BiH through the ACE, BHAAAS and other local networks represents an innovative template of action for change.
Communicating to the local authorities: The NEB Forum BiH continues to develop and focus on the achievable and impactful goals it’s Mission and Vision is cantered on the quality of life in the built environment and it wishes to engage with the citizens through open meetings and events with similar objectives, in particular the Days of Bosnian and Herzegovinian American Academy of Arts and Sciences (BHAAAS) symposia which every year takes place in another city in BiH. Aside the regular online meetings which combine information sharing and mentoring, the Forum intends to organize regular Round Tables within BHAAAS yearly conference and engage with the local authorities’ representatives and public in open debates around shared concerns. The wider promotion of the NEB Forum BiH to public and media is supported under the well-established BHAAAS umbrella and media communication team.
Active citizenry and Profession: This was successfully tested during the 13th Days of BHAAAS in Sarajevo (June ’22) and Green Design Biennale e Mostar (October ’22), with a next Round Table planned in Tuzla (June ’23). Within an established four thematic pillars which present the members’ expertise and interest, within the Forum’s mission, there is a particular focus on several urban centres and topics related to each locality of the symposia.
Local: The AABiH and its members, together with academics, many of whom are active in other networks form the core grouping of the Forum and are thus represented and active at each local level, in principle within three urban centers, Banja Luka, Mostar and Sarajevo.
The relationships are also established with a Municipality Breza in the former mining area of Central Bosnia. Thus far, many of them participated in the two key public activities of the Forum in 2022: Round Table in Sarajevo (June ’22) and Green Design Biennale in Mostar (October ’22).
Regional: This representation is achieved by the activity of the core partners and organizations from the Faculty of Philosophy (Art History), Architecture Faculty (Sarajevo), Burch International University (Sarajevo), Architecture Faculty (Banja Luka), University Džemal Bijedić and IDEAA (Mostar), Dani arhitekture festival (Sarajevo). Their work is manifested by organization and participation in the local conferences, festivals and events, conference and scientific papers and other publications.
National: The Forum is represented nationally in BiH through it activists in three urban centres, and supported internationally through my leadership in Ireland, Dr Durmišević in Netherlands, and Mr Arturo Villar, Founder of the StartupCities in Spain. Other key note lecturers/ contributors to the work of Forum were Architects from Sweden and Czech Republic.
European: The Round Table in Sarajevo was supported by the (online) presentation from an EU Parliamentarian from Ireland, an architect Ciaran Cuffe and a NEB Team Policy Officer Borut Cink, both of whom gained direct insight into the Forum’s first presentation. Under my leadership, the Architects Council of Europe considers the NEB Forum BiH as one of its Activities, it provided three speakers to the Green Design Biennale in Mostar, which will be reciprocated by the members of the Forum at the ACE Conference on Training and Education in April ’23.
EU Policy development: From the initial stages of the NEB Forum BiH foundation it was envisaged to present and discuss the New European Bauhaus as the current policy development which offered creative professionals a direct engagement in a co-creation process. Having actively contributed to this process at the EU level through JRC and NEB Community workshops, I have prepared a material in a form of continual professional development workshop, as a lecturer, mentor, peer and enabler, motivating participation, feedback and active contributions from the colleagues in BiH centres, cultivating and encouraging also their direct and independent engagement with the NEB.
Professional advocacy: As it is understood by the EU architects involved in the work of the ACE, NEB principles strengthen the role of the profession in society and built environment, impacting the quality of the environment, life and culture in general. Therefore, part of my work in developing the NEB Forum BiH could be seen as advocacy for a better profession and professional networking in BiH, which is struggling to find its voice and adequate position, thirty years after the conflict.
International Entrepreneurship: The learning and friendships formed through NEB-networking at the EU level revealed the opportunities and necessities to work closer together with other disciplines and across disciplines and to develop skills complementary to each other’s basic training, particularly the soft skills and SMART approaches. Through such interactions, NEB Forum BiH is now strongly supported by members from Spain (A. Villar of StartupCities and from the US (T, Tufek Memišević from BHAAAS Executive Board).
Integrative character and lateral approach: Whilst mindful of its focus, professionalism and quality standards, the NEB Forum BiH has a light structure and favours the organic approach to formulating and developing its program. This open structure allows its partners, members, supporters and participants to have initiative and apply own expertise within a common platform which is designed to capitalise on the combined strength rather than on the specialist focus.
Cross-generational and trans-national interaction; Mindful of the post-war fractures, the Forum connect people with interest in Bosnia and its sustainable growth, professionals with empathy and sensitivity to the experiences of smaller cultures and professionals opened to further learning and co-creation, regardless of geographic background, age, gender, diversity.
Bi-lingual communication and remote working: The conditions of pandemic lockdown with the help of digital communication platforms opened up huge possibilities of expedient, cost and time-effective and timely communication. The medium of English language is almost universally adapted as a norm, often as a courtesy to a minority of present participants. On the other hand, for members of diaspora, the Forum also offers a possibility to cultivate a good quality exchange in a mother tongue (Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian), fulfilling a significant cultural need. It is also reveals the quality of communication, typical with and ease of understanding due to cultural similarities among otherwise diverse (by age, locality, background) participants of the Forum.
Community building as a process: As NEB is a relatively new initiative less known in many parts of the EU, especially CEE and parts of EU South; the experience of building up the NEB Forum BiH is highly instructive. The (live or virtual) workshop approach as a medium for development has been proven as successful and effective method, applied as mixture of lecture delivery, dialogue and group interaction on the key concepts, leading to a common and specific goal.
Action Research Method as a tool: Applying the cycle Plan-Act-Observe-Reflect as a vehicle to advance the community building is an underlying and effective method to design and guide the process of shared learning and knowledge exchange and it has to precede more specific and directed task-orientated content.
Cultural Intelligence and Empathy in Action: My current and forthcoming engagement in promoting the NEB principles and practices at the Executive Board level in the Architects Council of Europe, including keynotes and articles for other professional associations (Italy, France, Poland, ACE Ukraine Task Force) provides good evidence of the transferability of the NEB Forum BiH community building process to other similar initiatives for different communities and locations.
My approach is based on a form of ethnographic experience, practice, knowledge and research of aspects of architecture, built environment and geo-political and historic developments that impacted architecture and modernization trends in the urban environment. My further learning and formation is associated with Ireland and the Celtic Fringe geographies and transitional experience of smaller cultures at the intersection of climate changes, systems of governance, new technologies and cultures of the land. Therefore, my professional approach is contextual and based on the fact finding with the stakeholders in the Forum. This was achieved by combining all the technical and empirical knowledge and a tested Action Research method applied in designing and conducting the workshops through which new knowledge was achieved and common goals were set. (Harrington, 2020, DOI: 10.48730/KGV1-WJ30). The method can be further described as a Discourse development among the participants, followed by the Practice (application) in the social context. Each of the two steps of this method allowed to (1) Plan, (2) Act, (3) Observe, (4) Reflect and move forward with the groups and participants. This was also applicable to the primary desired outcome of the workshops,- to identify a series of Case Studies (from the participants) in order to provide baseline data on the BiH good practice examples compatible with the NEB.
Broadly speaking, the NEB Forum BiH addresses the following:
Citizens participation in the local democracies:
Repurposing and renovation of buildings and infrastructure in a post-conflict context
Greening of the economy and a Climate change impact
FOUNDATION AND PROMOTION: The NEB Forum BiH has gathered an active core group of participants and partners and established mutual collaboration locally through giving support to existing professional networks and groupings. This was manifested in 2022 by two successful international events in Sarajevo and Mostar with presentations and special events.
CURRICULA DEVELOPMENT: There is a modest impact on the existing curricula developments in architecture studies in all three cities where Forum is active, which is achieved through participatory short-term group students’ workshops during the Green Design Biennale in Mostar (October ’22)
KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE: This is manifested through guest lectures by members of the Forum, scientific paper submissions through the BHAAAS-organized
SOCIAL IMPACT AND IMPLEMENTATION: The NEB Forum BiH has made a modest mark and was advertised through the channels of the BHAAAS, EU Office in BiH and the ACE. Given that it is active since May ’21, it is too early to confidently measure the social impact, particularly in view of its light structure and the resourcing for a stronger communication strategy.
(1) Developing Peer learning through online workshops and lectures [Equip learners and educators with the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed for a greener and more sustainable economy and society];
(2) Bringing together academics and professionals from regional centres and sister disciplines [help education and training institutions to integrate sustainability into teaching and learning and across all aspects of their operations]
(3) Influencing training and Curricula development [create a shared understanding on the deep and transformative changes needed in education and training for sustainability and the green transition]
