Where is Urban Politics

Description

As urbanisation picks up pace, so does the importance of cities, both as loci of climate change and mitigation/adaptation, and as sites of political and societal contestation. This lends urgency to the question: how can we (re-)gain urban political agency for just and thriving futures? In this symposium we seek to contribute to the burgeoning critical, interdisciplinary dialogue on urban political agency and the potential of cities to shape just and sustainable futures (e.g., Creutzig et al., 2024; Frick, 2023; Oosterlynck et al., 2020; Davies & Msengana-Ndlela, 2015). The symposium serves as a culmination of the first “Where is Urban Politics?” seminar series.

Globally, we observe cities setting ambitious goals connecting climate, governance, and justice – often going further than the policies and laws of the nation state. In doing so, cities seek to engage with the broader ecological and societal impacts of their uneven development. This is evident in city networks (such as C40, ICLEI, CitiesAlliance), urban knowledge partnerships (such as URBACT), urban awards (e.g., European Capital of Democracy), but also in the application of progressive socio-economic models (e.g., Doughnut Economics). In some regions the gap or even conflict between local politics and the national political arena seems to accelerate. In this symposium we seek to address future-oriented questions engaging with this situation.

What do cities’ progressive commitments tell us about:
* the evolving (self-)understanding of ‘city-nature’ relations?
* the evolving understanding of wider political and economic structures which co-shape urban development?
* the possibilities of urban (political) agency towards ecologically and socially just futures?
* the limits and risks of co-optation, and potentials to connect with wider agendas for meaningful change?

We engage with forward-looking contributions which see cities as political actors, while also recognising that urban politics is shaped beyond the geographic or administrative boundaries of the city, and considering impacts and associated inequalities of urbanisation processes more broadly. The open symposium splits into three elements: 1. invited speakers, 2. submitted contributions, and discussions.

We invite researchers and practitioners working in or across relevant fields such as political or environmental philosophy, political theory, urban studies, planning, geography, sustainability studies etc to join us for an inspiring day of talks, meeting and discussion.

Periode	25-sep.-2025
Evenementstype	Symposium
Conferentienummer	5
Locatie	Groningen , NetherlandsToon op kaart
Mate van erkenning	International