Inclusiveness and Participation in the Design of Public Spaces: Her City and the Challenge of the Post-Pandemic Scenario

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic made visible the need for greater participation of diverse communities in the planning of cities since it revealed exclusions based on gender, migratory status, and class. As a result, initiatives were launched that applied new technologies, digital platforms, and data-based intelligence to bring alternative solutions to the re-use and re-management of public space. The aim of this article is to analyze Her City, a joint effort of UN-Habitat and Global Utmaning, meant to guide urban actors to implement projects through an open and digitally accessible platform that involves girls and young women in urban planning and design. The authors conducted a review of literature and analyzed a case study that included the application of the Toolbox in Chania, Greece, concluding that although Her City can face challenges in the post pandemic scenario, it could be considered among these new, radical, and forward-thinking technologies, groundbreaking from an urban planning point of view that can address large-scale challenges or opportunities in the design of public spaces.