Camilo Calderon
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Urban and Rural Development, Researcher and Lecturer
Researcher working with communicative/collaborative planning theory and practice. My research focuses on investigating institutional and agency interactions facilitating and hindering the implementation of communicative and deliberative ideals in diverse contexts. Other interests include environmental conflicts, power in decision-making and comparisons between global North and global South participatory ideals and practices.
Empirically my focus has been on studying participatory and deliberative processes with regard to different spatial, social and environmental problems including urban renewal, public space development, sustainable lifestyles, ecosystem services, community development. This has been done in different countries including Colombia, Spain, Sweden, England and the Netherlands.
I am currently involved in two research projects:
A Balancing Act between Swift and Slow Planning, investigating how practitioners balance, on the one hand, the need for efficiency in decision-making, and the other hand, calls for more democratic/participatory processes that are time-consuming. Focus in on urgent sustainability challenges such as climate change impacts, shortage of affordable homes or influx of immigrants.
Dialogues in governance for sustainability, focusing on the design of power-sensitive and conflict-aware deliberative processes.
twitter: @urbandifference
Empirically my focus has been on studying participatory and deliberative processes with regard to different spatial, social and environmental problems including urban renewal, public space development, sustainable lifestyles, ecosystem services, community development. This has been done in different countries including Colombia, Spain, Sweden, England and the Netherlands.
I am currently involved in two research projects:
A Balancing Act between Swift and Slow Planning, investigating how practitioners balance, on the one hand, the need for efficiency in decision-making, and the other hand, calls for more democratic/participatory processes that are time-consuming. Focus in on urgent sustainability challenges such as climate change impacts, shortage of affordable homes or influx of immigrants.
Dialogues in governance for sustainability, focusing on the design of power-sensitive and conflict-aware deliberative processes.
twitter: @urbandifference
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This thesis aims to contribute to the development of theories of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. It steps away from the prevailing normative and procedural approach to theory development, and instead adopts a critical approach grounded on the deep understanding of the challenges of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. Case studies of two urban renewal projects, in Medellin, Colombia, and in Barcelona, Spain, and their participatory processes, are used for building up the theoretical contribution.
The empirical and theoretical findings foreground the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. Contextual, in the sense that the implementation of ideals and principles found in theory is facilitated or hindered by the social, political and economic context in which a participatory process takes place. Political, in the sense that in complex contexts that comprise a wide range of actors, and where contrasting goals and agendas are at stake, the implementation of these theoretical ideals and principles is significantly challenged by politics involving deep differences, conflicts and power relations.
The findings also show that prevailing theories of participation within landscape architecture and urban design do not take into consideration the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. This renders these theories weak in their capacity to respond to the challenges encountered by participatory processes in contemporary public space projects. This is particularly so as the dynamics of increasing pluralisation, muliticultarisation and neoliberalisation of cities create contexts that hinder the implementation of the ideals and principles found in theory, and increase the challenges caused by their political nature. Consequently, this thesis proposes a new theoretical approach to participation in the planning and design of public spaces, that allows context-based distinctions and judgements about the qualities of participatory practices for just decision-making. Difference, conflict and power are central in this approach. This thesis establishes this theoretical departure point and makes a significant contribution towards the development of the proposed theoretical approach. "
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students from nine different countries in Europe. One of the subjects of the program was the restructuring of
the Bicocca area, where the university is now situated. The first week was dedicated to lectures concerning
this project and some other interesting subjects in Milan. The second week was reserved for working at this
project. The aim was to create a final report about the socio-spatial hierarchy in Bicocca. It was very
interesting to work in a group with members from different European countries. We have learned a lot from
each other, especially about the different visions and background of the different students. Language wasn’t
a big barrier and with an intensive group work we were able to make this paper. The only problem was
translating Italian literature and interviewing people on the streets, because we didn’t have any Italian
students in our group who could do that part. With a creative mind we worked our way around this and made
use of another student at Bicocca University.
We would like to thank the Bicocca University for arranging this Intensive Program and tutoring us during the
two weeks.
Papers
This thesis aims to contribute to the development of theories of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. It steps away from the prevailing normative and procedural approach to theory development, and instead adopts a critical approach grounded on the deep understanding of the challenges of participation in the planning and design of public spaces. Case studies of two urban renewal projects, in Medellin, Colombia, and in Barcelona, Spain, and their participatory processes, are used for building up the theoretical contribution.
The empirical and theoretical findings foreground the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. Contextual, in the sense that the implementation of ideals and principles found in theory is facilitated or hindered by the social, political and economic context in which a participatory process takes place. Political, in the sense that in complex contexts that comprise a wide range of actors, and where contrasting goals and agendas are at stake, the implementation of these theoretical ideals and principles is significantly challenged by politics involving deep differences, conflicts and power relations.
The findings also show that prevailing theories of participation within landscape architecture and urban design do not take into consideration the contextual and political nature of participatory processes. This renders these theories weak in their capacity to respond to the challenges encountered by participatory processes in contemporary public space projects. This is particularly so as the dynamics of increasing pluralisation, muliticultarisation and neoliberalisation of cities create contexts that hinder the implementation of the ideals and principles found in theory, and increase the challenges caused by their political nature. Consequently, this thesis proposes a new theoretical approach to participation in the planning and design of public spaces, that allows context-based distinctions and judgements about the qualities of participatory practices for just decision-making. Difference, conflict and power are central in this approach. This thesis establishes this theoretical departure point and makes a significant contribution towards the development of the proposed theoretical approach. "
students from nine different countries in Europe. One of the subjects of the program was the restructuring of
the Bicocca area, where the university is now situated. The first week was dedicated to lectures concerning
this project and some other interesting subjects in Milan. The second week was reserved for working at this
project. The aim was to create a final report about the socio-spatial hierarchy in Bicocca. It was very
interesting to work in a group with members from different European countries. We have learned a lot from
each other, especially about the different visions and background of the different students. Language wasn’t
a big barrier and with an intensive group work we were able to make this paper. The only problem was
translating Italian literature and interviewing people on the streets, because we didn’t have any Italian
students in our group who could do that part. With a creative mind we worked our way around this and made
use of another student at Bicocca University.
We would like to thank the Bicocca University for arranging this Intensive Program and tutoring us during the
two weeks.