Putting inclusion into practice: how urban professionals give shape to participatory governance approaches in marginalized neighborhoods

Abstract

This article asks how urban professionals put inclusion into practice as they realize participatory governance in marginalized neighborhoods. Our ethnographic study shows that professionals focused their work practice on the process of inclusion; a prioritization legitimized by the underlying assumption that an ‘inclusive’ process would lead to the envisioned outcomes. This, while citizens were not always included, inclusion appeared to be about including urban professionals as well, and it was not yet clear what outcomes were reached. These insights develop existing knowledge on the work of urban professionals, particularly as they deal with coexisting rationales for inclusion.