CITY-MAKING BEYOND CRISIS MANAGEMENT: TOWARD JUST URBAN POLICIES

Organizers

Laura Sobral, University Institute of Lisbon
Androniki Pappa, University Institute of Lisbon

Contributors

Bruna Ferreira Montuori, University College London
Predrag Milić, Vienna University of Technology
Aluízio Marino, University of Antwerp
Isabella Rusconi, University Institute of Lisbon
Sonja Dragović, University Institute of Lisbon
Burcu Ateş, Vienna University of Technology

Urban policies are not static—they evolve, adapt, and sometimes fade away. Their lifecycle is shaped by “middling actors”—urban professionals, activists, and bureaucrats—who navigate complex socio-political landscapes while co-producing and implementing policies, mediating between diverse stakeholders, and drawing on successful precedents. Yet, their work is fraught with tensions arising from land commodification, climate crises, and armed conflicts, all exacerbated by neoliberal urbanism and urban extractivism. This roundtable critically examines the lifecycle of urban policies, the agency of those involved, and the conflicts they navigate. Inspired by Brazilian philosopher Nego Bispo’s phrase: “O começo, o meio e o começo” (“The beginning, the middle, and the beginning”), we propose a processual approach to urban policy design and implementation to explore negotiation, adaptation, and resistance.

1. Power Dynamics in Urban Policy Formation 

Who are the middling actors, what are their positionalities, and how do they negotiate power within multi-level urban governance? How do policies emerge from these interactions, and how do unequal power dynamics shape or hinder inclusive decision-making? When does participation reinforce exclusion rather than fostering just urban policies?

2. How Urban Policies Travel, Adapt, and Move Forward

How do policies travel across different contexts while retaining their core values, and what role does political agency play in their adaptation? How can urban policies remain relevant in rapidly changing environments while overcoming power imbalances and institutional inertia? How do shifts in political power influence the interpretation and implementation of existing policies?

3. How Urban Policies Fade Out (or Not)

How can trust and stewardship be sustained beyond funding or political cycles? How to create policies for maintenance? What does a “good death” for a policy look like, and how can its lessons be carried forward?

4. Making Change: Towards Justice-Oriented Urban Policies

How can middling actors push urban policies beyond tokenistic participation toward structural transformation? What strategies can make city-making more equitable? Drawing on feminist and Global South perspectives, this session explores creativity, trust-building, and collective vision in urban policy-making—while avoiding romanticised notions of participation and foregrounding the conflicts that shape urban transformation. Guided by the questions above, we will address various cases and discuss different scales and scopes of practices, from neighbourhood-level to ecosystem-level planning, considering the lifecycle of urban policies. Within this roundtable, we will critically engage with how urban planning can shift from reactive harm mitigation to proactive justice-oriented practices, fostering policies for equitable and inclusive urban environments.

Key words: N/A