Citizen participation. Urban development for and by the people

Abstract

The idea that 'it is the people who make the city' has been remarked on by many authors such as Churchill, Jacobs, Alexander, Gehl, and others, who considered that human scale and the conduciveness of a determined space to sociality should be the main ingredients of urban design. This article reviews the design of urban space from its human dimension and with active participation by citizens, discussing concepts as neighbourhood, processes for participation and real involvement by residents, mechanisms of empowerment, selfish attitudes so-called NIMBY, or marginalisation. And it goes a step further: the mobilisation of an organised civil society, establishing its own networks for information, decision-making and strategic alliances, and the activation of urban life are needed to guarantee the survival and success of our cities.