Laboratory of Democracy

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After the XX century trend of squatting houses, we bring to the XXI a new necessity: squatting rivers. By using unsustainable economic models, urban communities have been losing their rivers as a common good. It is urgent to rescue the ancient relationship between both. How to squat a river is a R&D comprehensive learning tool that aims to show how can a community redeem a river for the common good.     The river-city relationship is essential for urban development. The availability of water was always one of the decisive factors for the definitive establishment of populations. With the industrial advance, river-city relationships have changed. There is a functional separation, caused by great works of correction perpetrated to urban rivers, aggravated by the strong levels of pollution of streams and banks. If the larger rivers are now used almost exclusively for economic purposes, the smaller ones, usually extremely polluted, constitute, […]

How to squat a river

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Shortfilm In recent years, Lisbon has become one of the European Cities with the larger tourism growth. Each year, 6 million people come to visit the Portuguese capital: 200.000 tourists every day. Tourism brings opportunities in a city heavily hit by global crisis: about 15% of Portugal domestic product and 8% jobs in Portugal, nowadays are related with tourism. But in the meanwhile, the city is basically disappearing: over the last 30 years, Lisbon lost about 300.000 inhabitants, vacancy rate in the traditional centre is over 40%, about 5.000 buildings are disused, and today only 12.000 persons live in the city center. In April 2016, STADSLAB (Urban Design Laboratory of Tilburg University – Amsterdam) organized an international Masterclass on City Making & Tourism Gentrification for professionals and graduates: the urban intervention case-study was focused on Mouraria, one of the oldest Lisbon’s neighborhood. Originated as a 13th century Moorish neighborhood and […]

Documentary + shortfilm + book: Masterclass Tourism & Gentrification

Sorry, this entry is only available in Português. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language. Junta-te às milhares de pessoas e dezenas de organizações preocupadas com o aumento exponencial dos preços da habitação em Lisboa e com os fenómenos de exclusão provocados pelo turismo em massa e a especulação imobiliária. Em cerca de uma semana mais de 2500 já assinaram. Assina também a “Carta Aberta: Morar Em Lisboa“. Foram solicitadas audiências ao Ministro do Ambiente, à Presidente da Comissão de Habitação da Assembleia da República, ao Presidente da Câmara Municipal e à Presidente da Assembleia Municipal. A Academia Cidadã é uma das organizações promotoras que tem vindo a lutar contra o fenómeno da gentrificação, que fere o direito à habitação nas nossas cidades, tendo já realizado diversas iniciativas ao longo dos últimos anos […]

(Português) Petição: assina pelo direito à habitação a Carta Aberta – Morar Em Lisboa

Sorry, this entry is only available in Português. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language. Entrada grátis. Segue-se um debate aberto com a participação de Margarida David Cardoso (Público) e Forum dos Cidadãos. Temos o prazer de te convidar a participar, no próximo dia 10 de Janeiro (terça-feira), às 21h, em mais um Cine-Café, a ter lugar no Lisboa Vadia (Rua de São Mamede ao Caldas nº 33 A, Lisboa). “TERRAMOTOURISM” Um documentario do colectivo Left Hand Rotation Música: Ricardo jacinto Sinopse A 1 de novembro de 1755 um terramoto destruiu a cidade de Lisboa. O seu impacto foi tal que deslocou o homem do centro da criação. As suas ruínas legitimaram o despotismo esclarecido. Lisboa hoje treme novamente, abalada por um sismo turístico que transforma a cidade a velocidade de cruzeiro. O […]

(Português) Exibição do “Terramotourism” + debate aberto

Sorry, this entry is only available in Português. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language. Temos o prazer de te convidar a participar, no próximo fim-de-semana, num conjunto de atividades sobre a Gentrificação em Lisboa, resultantes da Master Class “Gentrification, Tourism and Citymaking”:   Domingo, 16 de Outubro 13h00: Lançamento do booklet da Master Class Apresentação pelo Prof. Marc Glaudemans (Stadslab – European Urban Design) com a presença  da reitora da Fontys-Tilburg University (Holanda), Karen Neervoort. Local: CIM – Centro de Inovação da Mouraria (entrada pela Travessa dos Lagares).   11h00: Exibição do documentário  “Em Breve Estarás Aqui” + Visita Guiada Filme do realizador Fabio Petronilli, sobre a Mouraria e a Master Class, seguindo-se uma visita guiada pelo arquiteto Nuno Simões, que desenhou o CIM, a outros projectos de reabilitação da Mouraria […]

(Português) Fim-de-semana sobre Turismo e Gentrificação

The ideals to discuss and to create alternatives towards issues such as urban poverty; the urgency to have more democratic and participative urban planning projects, giving a fair response to the needs of the newcomers and war victims; the privatization or public spaces; and the negative effects of gentrification, were the central issues of this four-day meeting in Amsterdam, at the City Makers Summit, together with so many projects that make the difference everyday, on a local, regional, national and international level.   The citizens-politicians   The idea of city-making is a political movement. A movement that includes anyone willing to claim a city that promotes direct action with a stronger participative power, supporting visible changes on the urban and social programme. Claiming the right to public spaces ( or the heterotopian spaces that Lefebvre used to claim) as a “survival strategie”, we are also confronting all the social and […]

Because the city is for everyone to have it

Between the 27th and the 30th of May 2016, the Pakhuis de Zwijger foundation, in the Netherlands, promoted the meeting of more than 600 activists, coming from the four corners of Europe. Because they are normally involved in democratization actions of the cities, as spaces of inclusion, prosperity and resilience, they are called as the “City Makers”. It was during the “City  Makers Summit” that they met, to talk about the main problems of their cities, and the practices that they have been developing, in order to solve them.     City Makers   Visit to the centre of Zaanstad, which was complete renovated in the last 5 years, looking to offer more inclusion, functionality and visual beauty. This Summit had two main goals. The first one was to provide field trips to participants to Dutch local based projects or initiatives, with actions developed in urban context, regarding the improvement of the […]

Let us make an Europe of Democracy

Synthesis by Igor Marko Photos @ Academia Cidadã and participants of the Master Class   The highly challenging urban regeneration case-study was focused on one of Lisbon’s oldest districts – Mouraria.   Lisbon Masterclass #1 – Exploring Mouraria – site analysis, observation and mapping   Paula Marques, councilwoman for Housing of the Municipality of Lisbon, during the Master Class’s opening   Mouraria originated as a 13th century Moorish neighbourhood and remained a marginal downtown area. Nowadays, parts of Mouraria are affected by tourism, others are still deprived with high levels of migrant population and social housing. Cheap property prices and proximity to other tourist destinations (Alfama, Castelo) raise realistic assumptions that Mouraria will face large influx of investment in real estate and tourism infrastructure, resulting in gentrification.   Field trip to historic centre of Lisbon, promoted by Lisbon Sustainable Tourism   Lisboa Masterclass # 2 – Methods and Processes – […]

Master Class “City Making and Tourism Gentrification”

Sorry, this entry is only available in Português. For the sake of viewer convenience, the content is shown below in the alternative language. You may click the link to switch the active language. A Academia Cidadã convida todxs xs cidadãxs a participar num debate informal, aberto e dinâmico sobre a democracia direta, seguido de jantar vegano e de projeção de um filme (a anunciar em breve). O evento terá lugar no dia 14 de maio, pelas 18h30, na Fábrica de Alternativas (Rua Margarida Palla, 19A – Algés) O objetivo é discutir o tema da democracia, principalmente a direta, em Portugal, dando a conhecer a experiência dxs convidadxs e a tua. Presenças confirmadas: -Isabel Pires- deputada pelo Bloco de Esquerda -Paulo Muacho- membro do Livre -Rodrigo Morais- estudante de Ciência Politica (ISCTE) -Leonor Duarte- ativista da Right2Water e STOP TTIP -Marcelo Yamada- ativista da Academia Cidadã Junta-te a nós! O jantar tem […]

(Português) Democracia hoje: Participativa ou Decorativa? | 14 Maio – Algés