the Edge is hosting a series of four thought-leadership discussions on the future city of 2030-2040 in partnership with Taylor Wessing and UCEM
2. As privatisation of public land increases, how can civic urban spaces evolve to ensure their survival?
Public open spaces offer the ‘freedom of the city’ where all have a right to roam, to gather or protest, to sit and eat a sandwich or even beg from fellow citizens if all other support has gone.
Today
Over time urban parks, commons, Metropolitan Open Land and green spaces have suffered from a lack of investment, diminishing quality and a reduced sense of safety. Local councils have been under pressure to make savings and privately-owned public space (POPS) is increasingly relied upon to deliver urban open space - restricting access and removing it entirely if the land is later sold for redevelopment.
There is a large body of research that confirms the importance of access to green space and nature for our mental and physical health – and the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the urgency for cities to revisit the value of urban open space.
& looking ahead to 2040:
How do planners ensure that access to public open space can be secured for the long term?
Should we resist the increasing privatisation of urban space in recognition of its true value as a place for all citizens?
What are the implications for governance and how could community involvement be better supported?
Chair: Stephen Edwards, Living Streets
Speakers: Peter Neal, Peter Neal Consulting
Helen Griffiths, Fields in Trust
Claudia Carter, Birmingham City University
Thomas Perroud, Université Paris II, Panthéon-Assas
Finn Williams, Public Practice
Online: Zoom
Timing: Tuesday 24th November 2020, 16.00 – 17.30
To attend please register at:
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