hortence is the research centre for Architectural History, Theory and Criticism of the Faculty of Architecture La Cambre-Horta of the Université libre de Bruxelles
Understanding and Evaluating Bottom-up Urban Regeneration – Alberto Squizzato
In the last two decades, citizens have demonstrated that they are able to intervene directly in the design of the urban environment, to promote ‘bottom-up’ projects, which are currently sustained also by public authorities. Particularly relevant for their high transformative potential are the ‘bottom-up urban regeneration’ projects whose main goal is the redistribution of benefits to the local community. However, a cause-effect link between ‘bottom-up’ practices and ‘urban regeneration’, claimed by some authors, has not been demonstrated in the academic literature. This research attempts to address this question, to evaluate the claimed existence of this link through the multiple case study method.
In the last two decades, citizens have demonstrated that they are able to intervene directly in the design of the urban environment, to promote ‘bottom-up’ projects, which are currently sustained also by public authorities. Particularly relevant for their high transformative potential are the ‘bottom-up urban regeneration’ projects whose main goal is the redistribution of benefits to the local community. However, a cause-effect link between ‘bottom-up’ practices and ‘urban regeneration’, claimed by some authors, has not been demonstrated in the academic literature. This research attempts to address this question, to evaluate the claimed existence of this link through the multiple case study method.