Objectif
Porous borders and walls seem to be a contradiction in terms, yet they coexist in contemporary societies. This project aims to asses this contradiction by exploring the impact of walls in contemporary European cities. As urban artifacts walls are a contentious figure: not friendly, but embodying security; not totally urban, but defining urbanity and civility; not a common good, but representing the distinctive line between one specific community from another. By tracing the historical, cultural, socio-political and economic arguments for erecting walls in Padua (2006), Ceuta/Melilla (1998/2001), Belfast (1970’s) and Berlin (1961) this project explores the impact of walls in ordinary city life in a twofold way. On the one hand it questions the effectiveness of walls as an instrument for conflict resolution, while on the other hand it addresses the moral understanding they provoke at the level of institutions and lay persons. By combining approaches and methods of historical and social science research, this project creates the necessary conditions for responding to the main questions it asks how walls shape everyday practices, and how these practices in turn accommodate, legitimate or challenge the presence of walls in each of the selected settings. Thus, this project aims to study the impact of walls for urban social life and the way in which they are incorporated and absorbed within the daily routines by the inhabitants of the above-mentioned cities. By comparing different historical and spatial contexts/conflicts in which walls have been built, the project is expected to further the understanding, current validity and legitimacy of this archaic urban form in contemporary European societies. This understanding will not only enhance the scholarly fields of urban history and socio-political theory, but it will also facilitate a possible dialogue between academics, civil society actors and policy-makers over main problems affecting the future of European cities
Champ scientifique
Mots‑clés
Thème(s)
Appel à propositions
FP7-PEOPLE-2007-2-1-IEF
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Régime de financement
MC-IEF - Intra-European Fellowships (IEF)Coordinateur
EH8 9YL Edinburgh
Royaume-Uni