NEW PROJECT: What kind of cities do we want? Contemporary transformations of urban visions, practices and ethics (URBAN)

Project leader:

Valentina Gulin Zrnić, PhD, Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research

Associates:

Jasna Čapo, PhD, Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research

Sanja Đurin, PhD, Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research

Tihana Rubić, PhD, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb

Mirna Tkalčić Simetić, PhD student, Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Research

The focus of the research project lies in the processes of multiple redefinitions of urban identities and ways of life in Croatian cities under the influence of various global and national trends and policies (deindustrialization, development of new and creative industries, development of digital technologies, post-earthquake reconstruction, touristification, migrations, neoliberal governance, development of sustainability strategies etc.). Through qualitative cultural anthropological (ethnographic, archival, discursive, comparative) research on urban policies, urban ethics, concepts of “good life” and everyday life, the project aims to contribute to a broadly contextualized scientific knowledge of the transformations of urban life in Croatian cities of different sizes, historical development and contemporary situations. On this basis, it will be able to interpret the actors, factors, relationships and atmospheres that influence the current state, with a particular focus on understanding the future-making in the cities studied and the role of citizens in this process.

Academically, the project will contribute to the conceptual and methodological development of urban studies, futures studies, disaster studies, outdoor studies and migration studies. In addition, the project has envisaged various forms of dissemination and knowledge transfer, such as conferences, university lectures, workshops and public discussions. The relevance of the project is based on the complementarity with urgent issues and urban development policies at European level and the further possibility to use the project results in the elaboration of strategic documents and guidelines as well as in awareness raising and empowerment for civic engagement (“Right to the City”,” “futures literacy”).

The project is funded by NextGenerationEU