Applying gender perspective to urban planning and architecture. Experiences at regional and municipal level in Catalonia

Abstract

The approval of Law 2/2004, of June 4, on the improvement of neighborhoods, urban areas and towns requiring special attention, has marked a turning point in the visibility and application of the gender perspective in urban planning in Catalonia. In the following years, the commitment to introduce gender into other laws of regional scope has continued, with a transversal development in Catalan politics. This article focuses on the experience of urban policies in Barcelona and some examples from other cities are described: Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Girona, Garraf and Olesa. Not only from the regulations or the incorporation of citizen participation with a gender perspective, but also from other areas such as culture or political representation events, representation parity has been sought, giving women greater prominence to compensate years of invisibility in the past. These changes, which are rooted in the feminist movements and struggles of decades, are not solitary actions of government, but a reflection of a society aspiring for real equality.