Français
Social Cohesion and shared territories
Gerhard ERMISCHER
COORDINATORS
Gerhard ERMISCHER,
Vice-President de CIVILSCAPE
Treibgasse 3 - 63739 Aschaffenburg (Germany)
Tél : 0049 6021 584034-1 / 0049 6021 584034-9
[email protected]
Bernard AUBERT
ISOCARP
[email protected]
THEME
Recent events did proof dramatically, how important a good and participative policy on territorial development is.
From Stuttgart to Istanbul to Sao Paolo, citizens have reacted violently to territorial developments which they considered as a threat. The lack of civil participation in the planning process and the lack of understanding for the needs and demands of the citizens foster political unrest prone to violent outbursts of anger and frustration. These will become even more regular in future, as the territorial development touches directly on the basic needs and fundamental rights of citizens – and becomes ever more pressing in a globalized world facing challenges as global warming or the new energy policy.
The fundamental rights to clean air, access to clean water, sufficient food and energy are directly linked to the territory. Already we see conflicts arising about the use of arable land for food production or energy crops, plate or tank. The changes of our landscapes affected through a changing energy policy, the construction of wind turbines, solar fields and the intelligent grid for electricity distribution create conflicts between land owners, developers, politicians, administrators and citizens, who feel they have a right of property on their landscapes and have to be included in the process of change. These items are linked to highly emotional aspects, like identity, social well being and participative democracy, enshrined in the principles of human rights, democracy and good governance.
As the recent events in Stuttgart, Istanbul or Sao Paolo show, the feeling of loss, of the degradation and destruction of social networks and of local identities creates a feeling of disempowerment, frustration and existential threat, which finally can destabilize the fragile social equilibrium. Only a strong civil participation in the development processes as part of a truly democratic society can overcome such depredations. Ideally it will prevent political unrest and violent protests. Civil participation therefore cannot only strengthen the democratic society but make the planning process more efficient, by mediating perceived problems at an early stage.
While climate change, energy policy, economic and ecologic problems, social stress have already set great challenges, the actual wave of migrants has made our deficits and lack of ready-made answers obvious. The questions to our future landscapes have become pressing and urgent in a way most people would not have predicted just a year ago. So we need to find ways to react on this crisis and to provide tools, how civil society engagement can be canalized and utilized for constructive answer to these challenges and how it can contribute to a peaceful process of change and adaptation.
PLANNED ACTIONS
The tools provided by the conventions of the Council of Europe, especially the Landscape Convention (Convention of Florence), the Guidelines for the Implementation of the Landscape Convention, the tool kits provided by the Conference of iNGOs are starting points. But we need to find practical and useful tools which we can offer to the other pillars of the CoE and to governments and administrations for a pro-active civil society engagement in the difficult planning processes to come.
This has to concentrate on the following aspects:
EXPECTED RESULTS
A toolkit for civil participation and citizens engagment in the planning process.
AGENDA
Permanent dissemination through
If you want to learn more, if you want to engage and make a difference, please join the working group!
Gerhard ERMISCHER,
Vice-President de CIVILSCAPE
Treibgasse 3 - 63739 Aschaffenburg (Germany)
Tél : 0049 6021 584034-1 / 0049 6021 584034-9
[email protected]
Bernard AUBERT
ISOCARP
[email protected]
THEME
Recent events did proof dramatically, how important a good and participative policy on territorial development is.
From Stuttgart to Istanbul to Sao Paolo, citizens have reacted violently to territorial developments which they considered as a threat. The lack of civil participation in the planning process and the lack of understanding for the needs and demands of the citizens foster political unrest prone to violent outbursts of anger and frustration. These will become even more regular in future, as the territorial development touches directly on the basic needs and fundamental rights of citizens – and becomes ever more pressing in a globalized world facing challenges as global warming or the new energy policy.
The fundamental rights to clean air, access to clean water, sufficient food and energy are directly linked to the territory. Already we see conflicts arising about the use of arable land for food production or energy crops, plate or tank. The changes of our landscapes affected through a changing energy policy, the construction of wind turbines, solar fields and the intelligent grid for electricity distribution create conflicts between land owners, developers, politicians, administrators and citizens, who feel they have a right of property on their landscapes and have to be included in the process of change. These items are linked to highly emotional aspects, like identity, social well being and participative democracy, enshrined in the principles of human rights, democracy and good governance.
As the recent events in Stuttgart, Istanbul or Sao Paolo show, the feeling of loss, of the degradation and destruction of social networks and of local identities creates a feeling of disempowerment, frustration and existential threat, which finally can destabilize the fragile social equilibrium. Only a strong civil participation in the development processes as part of a truly democratic society can overcome such depredations. Ideally it will prevent political unrest and violent protests. Civil participation therefore cannot only strengthen the democratic society but make the planning process more efficient, by mediating perceived problems at an early stage.
While climate change, energy policy, economic and ecologic problems, social stress have already set great challenges, the actual wave of migrants has made our deficits and lack of ready-made answers obvious. The questions to our future landscapes have become pressing and urgent in a way most people would not have predicted just a year ago. So we need to find ways to react on this crisis and to provide tools, how civil society engagement can be canalized and utilized for constructive answer to these challenges and how it can contribute to a peaceful process of change and adaptation.
PLANNED ACTIONS
The tools provided by the conventions of the Council of Europe, especially the Landscape Convention (Convention of Florence), the Guidelines for the Implementation of the Landscape Convention, the tool kits provided by the Conference of iNGOs are starting points. But we need to find practical and useful tools which we can offer to the other pillars of the CoE and to governments and administrations for a pro-active civil society engagement in the difficult planning processes to come.
This has to concentrate on the following aspects:
- An integrated approach in landscape planning:
inclusive of all landscapes: e.g. urban, industrial, rural, everyday landscapes or remote areas
inclusive of all aspects of landscape: e.g. social, cultural, economical, ecological
addressing all aspects of landscape development: e.g. energy, food production, commodities, water supply, infrastructure, social cohesion, economic growth, nature preservation, cultural heritage, identity etc. - A strong civil participation in all aspects of landscape planning and landscape management:
inclusive of all layers of the population, including also the poor, deprived, disabled and disadvantaged
inclusive of all types of planning processes, general as well as concrete and at all levels of transnational, national, regional or local planning, from the first draft to the actual implementation - An ambitious approach to teaching and communication of all landscape issues
inclusive of all people, e.g. age groups, land owners, citizens, migrants, minoritiesstrengthening awareness as well as the sense of ownership of the landscape and responsibility for the landscape in all citizens
EXPECTED RESULTS
A toolkit for civil participation and citizens engagment in the planning process.
AGENDA
Permanent dissemination through
- the pillars of the CoE
- Workshops
- Events organized by participating organizations
If you want to learn more, if you want to engage and make a difference, please join the working group!