The cities as key players in the transition to sustainable societies: the role of urban social movements

Yolanda ZIAKA, February 2017

Given that 80 per cent of us are expected to live in cities by 2050, cities should be considered as a major stakeholder in the process of the transition towards sustainable societies. This study identifies and analyzes significant examples of participatory local initiatives around the world, aimed at actively participating in public debate and decision-making on urban space and its management.

We consider that, although their impact is confined to a locally limited and circumscribed territory, these initiatives constitute laboratories of social experimentation and islets of concrete action for the transition to sustainable societies, as well as educational experiences emerging from collective action.

The deep systemic crisis in our globalized world –economic, ecological, social- raises the challenge of leading a long-term transformation to sustainable societies, ranging from local territories to planet. Given that 80 per cent of us are expected to live in cities by 2050, cities should be considered as a major stakeholder in the process of the transition from one civilization to another, and towards sustainable societies.

The present study aims to analyze some significant examples of participatory local initiatives around the world, aimed at actively participating in public debate and decision-making on urban space and its management: projects to reclaim the collective use of public spaces, consultation on new development projects, exchanges of know-how, offering of proximity services, challenging of public authorities’ decisions, involvement of the community in restoration projects, etc. The thesis that is defended is that, although their impact is confined to a locally limited and circumscribed territory, these initiatives constitute laboratories of social experimentation and islets of concrete action for the transition to sustainable societies.

Moreover, they are, in their essence, educational experiences emerging from collective action, where people learn together during a social action project and are lead to assume concrete responsibility for their future. Inspiring experiences of that type are a calling for making our cities solidarity, ecological and democratic places.

What is the impact that these urban social movements may have to the municipal governance? To what extent these experiences could lead to the transformation of decision-making processes and to a participatory democracy process? Which are the factors that define a transition process? Under which conditions these initiatives can constitute a popular education process for the urban community as a whole? What is the role of the community leaders? These are the main questions to which we aim to bring elements of response, based on concrete examples.