Quick Thoughts On Slow Efforts

Watching the video below, a few thoughts and questions come to mind. 

What is the landscape of post-communist industry, more specifically chemical [or any for that matter] industry in Albania? 
Is it in use? Where? When? How? 
Who has control over it? 
What's its relationship with the 'Sustainability' Movement we're pushing for? 
What is the process from making to destruction dumping the unwanted? 
How do these dumping sites affect the city/life today? Its landscape? [here]
What about the future? How are they designed (if at all)? Can their present (state of being) sustain their future? 
What is their infrastructure? 
How does their artificiality co-exist with the natural bodies of water, land, air and civilization?
How can we start thinking about 'zones of exclusions', post-human error sites and their futures? 
What if this context was Gërdec? What is the future of tragic abandoned sites?

Of Monsters and Men.

Future city/life will grow from a ruined history.

Differently.

Humanity will be the Other.

Damaged as Species. 

Timid in Overexposure. 

Mis/scaled in Habitation. 

Quarantined in Contagiousness. 

So, in our attempts to design the [future] smart city, let's not focus [only] on technological advances but the possibility of [its] destruction and [re]mutation from a failed relationship between man and machine. 

A Mis/communication. 

A caprice. 

An accident. 
A coup.
Incompetent Bureaucracy.

Fear that leads to Consequential Possibilities. 
An awareness that covers [more] ground beyond self [interest].

#FutureEcologies
#PostApocalypseLife
#DesigningFutures

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Gentle Manifest | Syria's Chemical Arsenal To Take a Dump in Albania

The much debated and protested civic movement in Albania at the moment is the overwhelming presence (online and on the streets) against dumping Syrian chemical weapons in the country. Even though the process of disarming and disposing the stockpile of chemical warfare is supposed to be supervised by international experts and not affect the security of Albanian life or health for that matter, I am defining it as ‘dumping’ because we know better. We have experienced botched up jobs and shady operations for similar warfare agents, such as arms and ammunition, and we haven't been quick to forget or recover from the devastating consequences of the ensued tragedies. (Gerdec anyone?)

Understandably the immediate concern people have is their health, followed by a long list of possible side effects from the possibility of exposure (those invisible toxins can be easily spread through transportation or on site). Environmental prosperity is another main concern, because it affects the quality of life including air, water, land, crops, as well as economy, employment, health care, etc. Remember Chernobyl? We know better than to rule out ‘accidents’ (be that human error, corruption, theft, etc.) especially in a quasi-stable, still developing, slowly-post transitional country such as ours. Fearing a hazardous future, will disrupt the present stability in Albania. Even if things go as planned (when does that ever happen?) when destroying the waste, we should take into account the unpredictable life span of its materials and possible byproducts in the long run. A lingering latent threat. Future generations beware.  

As one recent article puts it: “It will be much harder to dispose of the chemical agents themselves.[...] Eliminating such a large stockpile will require creativity.”

It's a fact that Albania doesn't have the necessary means to destroy these weapons, and I can convincingly state that we ain't got the creativity either or better yet the responsibility to take on such a task. Our general knowledge about chemical warfare is vague. We have been mere spectators. It's always been somewhere far away, in countries seemingly distant from our own. That's why we're panicking. In shock just to be considered and selected as a possible dump site for such waste. But why? Does the world have faith in us, or simply doesn't care? We not only lack the expertise on the subject, but the relevant (no bullshit) information to educate and voice our civic capacity on this matter (shape opinions and inform decision-making). Since the story broke a few days ago, we (think) have become overnight experts, but are we able to continue this somewhat constructive dialog about options, possible actions and educational decisions, and not be blindsided by political agreements that exclude us this civic right? We've started the conversation with NO (and rightfully so) but how do we continue it? What are we willing to do, to see it through? 

In today's Albanian fragile climate, be that political, economical, infrastructural and even social, it is hard to maintain a sustainability of sorts (markets, networks, technology, growth) and slowly build upon it as a stable status-quo, let alone contemplating about chemical waste. It can easily kill this post-election upward momentum we got going on. A disruptive move that has blindsided us, just as a war would. We're just getting back on our feet. We are not ready. We are not even prepared.  

**
Let's zoom out for a moment and take a look at data from United States: (in an effort to put things into perspective and maybe shake up the undecided)

Stepping away from the overwhelming unease and speculative future that has taken Albania by storm, I want to introduce a U.S. project that takes a close look at these weapons, as materials that ‘can cross jurisdictional lines, bend political, economic and environmental realities around themselves, reshape geologies and reconfigure landscapes now and into deep futures. And they do so almost entirely without notice.’ (via)

Look Only At The Movement explores and examines the relationship between the American Highway system and nuclear waste transport, disposal and remediation. It aims to increase civic awareness and encourage new angles of exchange in regards to ‘contemporary material realities that are simultaneously of us, and far beyond us.’ 

“It invites imaginings, curiosity, and logistical questions about how contemporary life, landscape, and infrastructure design will, for foreseeable futures, bend their realities around the need to contain and indefinitely move-with nuclear materiality.”

Here is an excerpt of the findings: 

(my emphasis) (original article)

“What you do not see is the material itself: the vast quantities of spent nuclear fuel, uranium mine tailings, radioactive medical waste, and contaminated soil, debris, clothing, tools and equipment transported routinely along [...] streets, highways and railroads.

Seventy years into the Atomic Age, designers, engineers, governments and the public have not been able to adequately imagine or build infrastructures for the long-term containment of materials that are too dynamic to be named, or understood, merely as “waste.” The United States is currently processing, shuffling and storing nuclear byproducts at some 20,000 sites throughout the country. About 70,000 metric tons of spent reactor fuel are held at power production sites in 33 states, an amount that increases annually by 2,000 metric tons. Another 13,000 tons of high-level nuclear waste is left over from weapons production and other military activities. You could say that high-level waste is “sheltering in place,” waiting for the first infrastructure capable of containing it for the span of time mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency: one million years. No such storage options are expected to be available for at least the next century.”

I believe that sending chemical warfare to a country such as Albania, with no adequate facilities, technology or infrastructure to demilitarize this hazardous artillery, is not only an Albanian concern but a threat to the stability and peace everywhere. 

Can these protests take us a step further (or backward if you will) into the existing state of our territory, rundown infrastructure, outdated technology, questionable factories, unhealthy sewers, old building systems and realize that an update is imminent? We can't catch up to today's fast paced, super advanced world, or even consider hosting chemical waste if we can't stay relevant to our own society.

**

The above article is written as a follow up on comments I had made earlier:

Politicians are not experts, and political predictions of what is 'safe' can be proved far more damaging than what they promise today and are willing to admit tomorrow (when faced with the consequences). #DontDumpChemicalWasteInAlbania

What worries me, other than the devastating consequences on people, environment and the obvious fact that Albania doesn't have the necessary means to destroy these weapons, is the physical security of the chemicals. As in most unstable countries (Albania being a semi or pseudo stable one), this product might be (is) in high demand on the black market and as we've previously experienced (with arms & ammunition) somehow through corruption or inadequate secure systems, it might be stolen and sold to the highest bidder. Consequences that go beyond the geopolitical territory of our small country to threaten peace at a much larger scale.

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Open Invitation | Urban Revitalization of Mass Housing Competition

UN-Habitat has announced the International Competition: 

Urban Revitalization of Mass Housing, to address the issues of mass housing through proposals to revitalize a mass housing locality in one’s respective city. 

“ UN-Habitat is promoting a new urban planning paradigm that calls for planning in advance at the scale of expected development of cities with a better integration of urban uses - housing, business, retail, recreation, education, agricultural, social and cultural activities, amongst others, in an environmentally sustainable manner. The aim of this paradigm shift is to achieve adequate urban densities to minimize the impact of urban sprawl, improve mobility and reduce greenhouse emissions and pollution through decreased motorized traffic, increased social interaction, and boosted local economic development. The ultimate goal is to attain the social, economic, environmental and cultural sustainability of cities.„

Criteria.

• Urban Design
• Economic Stimulation
• Social Integration
• Environmental Improvement
• Governance and Partnership

Scope.

For this development-oriented competition, participants will need to contact the owners of the housing stock to jointly select a typical mass housing complex for revitalization. The scope includes:

• Research: Analysis of national, city and selected mass housing locality on issues related to sustainability.
• Proposal: Solutions for revitalization of mass housing by addressing the issues identified in the analysis.
• Policy: Concepts and policy implications of the proposals to facilitate international exchanges.

Eligible to Participate.

• University students currently studying at an undergraduate, postgraduate or doctoral level.
• Recent graduates after the 31st of December, 2010.

Location. In cities and localities of countries in the following seven regions:

• Arab States
• Asia and the Pacific
• Countries in Transition (Eastern Europe and Central Asia)
• Latin America and the Caribbean
• Western Europe and other OECD Countries (Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, USA etc.)
• Sub- Saharan Africa

Dates.

• Competition start date: September 15th, 2013
• Deadline for submission: January 15th, 2014
• Jury evaluation: February & March 2014
• Announcement of winners: World Urban Forum 7, April 2014

Award.

A prize will be given to the best competitor or competing team from each of the seven  geographic regions to provide some seed funding to initiate the implementation of the winning proposal in the respective city and locality.

See the competition announcement and guidelines for more details.

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Otherness | Misc. Projects of the Week

These two projects are great examples of spatial Otherness. The effects and products of a natural landscape [as analogue territory] vs. algorithm/code processes [as digital representations] - open up new [im]possibilities of future spatiality for these existing territories [both as a location and a tool].  

LAKE NATRON

by Nick Brandt

the highly toxic lake calcifies animals into stone-like corpses

nick brandt

via

ALGORITHMIC ART

by Adam Ferriss

psychodelic painting pieces made entirely with code

Adam Ferriss

via

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100 Urban Trends | A Glossary of Ideas from BMW Guggenheim Lab

BMW Guggenheim Lab is a mobile laboratory traveling around the world to inspire innovative ideas for urban design and new ways of thinking about urban life. 

100 Urban Trends: A Glossary of Ideas.

Important to 100 Urban Trends is the concept of cities as “idea makers.” In cities, people come together, share their thoughts and common interests, and generate the ideas that shape our world. 

The terms presented here reflect this type of urban exchange. They are new and old, classic and ephemerally fashionable. Among them are some of urbanism’s “usual suspects,” which keep reappearing in the urban discourse. Each definition concludes with an example of a Lab program that illustrated the relevance and context of that term. 

Check out their website for more info.

New York City

Berlin 

Mumbai

BMW Guggenheim Lab është një laborator mobil që udhëton nëpër botë duke frymëzuar ide inovative në planifikimin urban si dhe mënyra të reja mendimi për jetën urbane. 

100 Trende Urbane: Një Fjalor Idesh. 

E rëndësishme për 100 Trendet Urbane është koncepti i qyteteve si “krijues idesh.” Në qytete, njerëzit mblidhen për të ndarë mendimet dhe interesat e tyre të përbashkëta, si dhe të gjenerojnë ide për të ndryshuar botën përreth.

Tërmat e paraqitur pasqyrojnë këtë shkëmbim urban. Ato janë të reja dhe të vjetra, klasike dhe trendi. Midis tyre ka disa nga “termat e zakonshëm” të urbanizmit që vazhdojnë të rishfaqen dhe përsëriten në diskursin urban. Çdo definicion ka në fund një projekt që ilustron rëndësinë dhe kontekstin e atij termi.

Shkoni në websitin e tyre për më shumë info.

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Urban Playscapes | Public Swings

**Creative Sunday Series

Basurama: Ghost Train Park 

More Photos

21 Balançoires

21 Balançoires (21 Swings) from Daily Tous Les Jours on Vimeo.

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Urban Agriculture | Hotel For Insects

**Creative Sunday Series

via pop-up city:

‘‘The urban agriculture scene has become so big you could easily identify different sub-cultures and practices — from little community gardens to urban agriculture supply stores and large-scale urban farms, and from balcony composting to urban beekeeping and mushroom farms. So, what’s next? Insect hotels! ’’

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For more photos check out this website.

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Open Invitation | Neighborday: A GOOD Holiday

Join in forces with  GOOD community members everywhere (in 34 US states, 12 countries and counting) to celebrate Neighborday, Saturday April 27, 2013.

From potlucks to street clean-ups, people have inspiring plans to be social the old-fashioned way—spending quality face-to-face time with the friends and neighbors in their communities.

With only one week left, GOOD is encouraging everyone to participate. 

All you have to do is sign up and create your own Neighborday with the toolkit provided. 

1. Go here and click the green Do It button.

2. Document the event on twitter and instagram with #neighborday, and also check out this link if you want to film for the Neighborday Documentary.

3. Spread the word. Tell your friends and family that April 27 is Neighborday.

a map where Neighborday is happening via GOOD
// harta e vëndeve të eventit

Bashkohuni me anëtarët e komunitetit GOOD në mbarë botën (34 shtete të SHBA dhe 12 vende të tjera) për të festuar Neighborday, të shtunën 27 prill, 2013.

Piknik, pastrim rrugësh, kopshte urbane, workshop, mbledhje (për të diskutuar ide apo çështje të përbashkëta) në kafe apo bare, etj...  njerëzit kanë planifikuar evente nga më frymëzueset për të shpenzuar kohë cilësore me njëri-tjetrin, me miqtë dhe fqinjët në komunitetet e tyre.

Ka mbetur vetëm një javë, prandaj mos nguroni të marrni pjesë.

Regjistrohuni dhe organizoni eventin tuaj për Neighborday me ndihmën e GOOD.

1. Shkoni këtu dhe klikoni butonin jeshil Do It.

2. Dokumentoni eventin në Twitter dhe Instagram duke përdorur #neighborday, dhe klikoni këtu nëse doni ta filmoni për të qënë pjesë e dokumentarit Neighborday.

3. Ftoni sa më shume njerëz. Thuajini të gjithë atyre që njihni se 27 prilli është Neighborday.

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Architecture of Density | Squeezing Bigness in The City

Over half of the Earth's population lives in cities. This number is exponentially growing too quickly. 

Megacities!!! Now that's a scary word, no?

To put things into perspective and to actually understand what it means, NPR shows some interesting insights. They all come with a warning sign though, because no matter how many graphs, predictions or refusals to accept reality and the fact that our lives have become so big, most of us will continue to do the same and strive for even more. A bi-product of a consumerist and spectacle-driven global society. 

" We're waiting for the doomsday, but still hoping to be saved by a miracle."

How much space do we need?
How much space can a city occupy?
How many people can fit in a city?
How dense can city life be in order to still have a degree of efficiency and still work?
Can cities save the planet if its population is squeezed into their territory?

Heights seem to be one solution:

photo credit Michael Wolf

photo credit Michael Wolf

For an aerial view of how global landscapes have been transformed by human activity check out the work of  David Thomas Smith.

via

via

The above photos show density with a quality that merges fact with fiction, (mass) visibility with (individual) invisibility, (digital) activity information with (physical) formal patterns - a global order of things if you will.

What's your take on the subject?

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Albania's Bunker Mentality on PRI's The World

Continuing the subject of Albanian Bunkers as residue of the communist mentality and military paranoia that still linger not so latent(ly). 
In a way they are hidden in plain sight.

For more info go here, here, here, here.

Photo credit: David Galjaard

Here's PRI's The World:

" You know the environmental mantra — reduce, reuse, recycle? Well, this story is kind of about all three.

More than half a million concrete bunkers dot the Albanian landscape. They’re holdovers from the time of Cold War leader Enver Hoxha.

Since the end of Communism, many of the bunkers have been re-purposed. But there are so many, Albanians don’t know what to do with them all.

If you’re looking for a poster boy that embodies “Communist strongman with an iron fist,” Enver Hoxha‘s definitely your guy.

Let’s tick the boxes.

Massive state security apparatus? Check.

Cult of personality? Check.

Rampant paranoia and xenophobia? Check and double check."

(the full transcript at PRI The World) 

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Art Kontakt Festival 2012 | A Closer Look

Last summer Art Kontakt organized the International Arts Festival 2012 at the Ali Pasha Castle in Porto Palermo. 

Subject: The Crisis, The System & Changes

Art Kontakt Festival is unique to the Albanian art scene, in form and content. It combines experimental art and entertainment by inviting established and emerging visual artists, as well as talents who play experimental electronic music trends. Thus, creating a hybrid of multi-dimensional genres.

This edition includes an architectural component that offers ideas and visions to re-conceptualize and transform ex-military zones (such as this one in Albania) into artistic territories and [inter]national cultural melting-pots.

Here's a closer look:

Verën e kaluar, Art Kontakt organizoi  Festivalin e Artit Bashkëkohor 2012 tek Kalaja e Ali Pashës në Porto Palermo. 

Tema: Kriza, Sistemi dhe Ndryshimet

Formati i Art Kontakt Festival është një format unikal për skenën artistike shqiptare, në formë dhe përmbajtje. Është një kombinim i artit eksperimental me zbavitjen, duke ftuar artistë vizualë të konsoliduar dhe emergjentë (të rinj) me artistë që luajnë tendencat e muzikës eksperimantale elektronike. Pra, kijohet një hibrid me zhanre të tjera.

Në këtë edicion është dhe sektori i arkitekturës që jep ide vizione për një rikonceptim të zonave të tila ish-ushtarake që fare mirë mund të shndërrohen në zona arti dhe prurje kulturash ndërkombëtare.

**If you're not familiar with ArtKontakt check out their website and our posts (here, here, here, here, here).

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Open Invitation | I'm a City Changer

I'm a City Changer is a worldwide campaign with the aim of sensitizing and creating awareness among citizens on urban issues to achieve better cities. // 

Unë jam Ndryshuesi i Qytetit është një fushatë mbarë botërore me qëllim sensibilizimin dhe krijimin e ndërgjegjësimit qytetar mbi çështjet urbane për të përmirësuar qytetet.

10 Reasons to be a City Changer // 10 Arsyet për të qënë Ndryshuesi i Qytetit:

 1. 21st century challenges are in cities // Sfidat e shekullit 21 janë në qytete

 2. World population is growing // Popullsia botërore po rritet

 3. For no slums // Për asnjë lagje të varfër

 4. For facing climate change // Për përballjen me ndryshimin e klimës

 5. For fewer emissions // Për më pak emetime

 6. Urban areas are an economic opportunity // Zonat urbane janë një mundësi ekonomike

 7. Cities are the future of younger generation // Qytetet janë e ardhmja e brezave të rinj

 8. Cities are creative and productive // Qytetet janë kreativ dhe produktiv

 9. We love cities // Ne i duam qytetet

10. It is the time to change // Është koha për ndryshim

To learn more about the Campaign and Add your story, check out their website.

I'm a City Changer Campaign works to achieve better cities and better life fostering proper sustainable urban development through key core components:

A Resilient City - Prepare cities for change, managing adversity, resilience and take action to reduce risk. Urbanization and development can only be sustainable if it is adaptable to future demands and risks, and is resilient to the consequences of climate change or natural disasters. Empowering cities and communities to plan for and effectively manage adversity is fundamental to the urban agenda.

A Green City - Build environmentally sound and carbon efficient cities. Buildings alone account for 30% of greenhouse gas emissions, and the way we plan and design our cities now will have significant implications for how resilient, resource efficient and environmentally sound they are in the future. A green city means promoting sustainable development through a carbon efficient built environment.

A Safe and Healthy City - Make cities safer and healthier. Cities hold the answers to challenges posed by urbanization, which are in turn inextricably linked to issues of and agendas concerning the economy, climate change, resource consumption, food security and more. Cities need to be highly livable environments in order to capitalize on their tremendous potential as the drivers of sustainable solutions to our current and future challenges.

An Inclusive City - Build socially inclusive, accessible, pro-poor, equitable and gender sensitive cities. Socially equitable development is one of the three pillars of sustainability, and is vital to creating a shared, sustainable urban future. The challenges posed by the pace and scale of contemporary urbanization require us to invest in infrastructure, development and political processes that promote inclusivity, and a pro-poor, gender sensitive agenda. An inclusive city promotes equitable rights to the city and therefore allows all citizens to partake of the urban advantage.

A Planned City - Plan the cities of tomorrow for sustainable decision-making processes. Sustainable urbanization and development requires planning processes and political frameworks that harness the city's assets and potential. Sustainable planning entails participatory decision making processes and particular attention to development that balances social, environmental and economic needs. Of equal importance, sustainable planning and a planned city are fundamental to achieving the characteristics of all other World Urban Campaign thematic areas.

A Productive City -- Make cities more efficient and better places to ensure decent work. Economically equitable development is also one of the three pillars of sustainability, and a requisite component of any healthy, livable and sustainable city. Pursuing a sustainable development agenda means planning cities that promote and foster livelihoods for all citizens through economic opportunities.

**I'm a City Changer campaign is convened by UN-Habitat, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme, with support from partners from the private and public sector.

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Social Participation in Public Spaces | Occupying Commons

David Harvey, "The Right to the City" // "E Drejta Për Qytet"

" The question of what kind of city we want cannot be divorced from that of what kind of social ties, relationship to nature, lifestyles, technologies and aesthetic values we desire. The right to the city is far more than the individual liberty to access urban resources: it is a right to change ourselves by changing the city. It is, moreover, a common rather than an individual right since this transformation inevitably depends upon the exercise of a collective power to reshape the processes of urbanization. The freedom to make and remake our cities and ourselves is . . . one of the most precious yet most neglected of our human rights."

" Pyetja se çfarë qyteti duam nuk mund të ndahet nga lloji i marrdhënieve sociale, raporti me natyrën, jetesa, teknologjia dhe vlerat estetike që dëshirojmë. E drejta për qytetin është shumë më tepër se liria individuale për qasjen e burimeve urbane: është e drejta për të ndryshyar veten duke ndryshuar qytetin. Është më tepër një e drejtë e përbashkët se individuale, meqënëse ky transformim varet në mënyrë të pashmangshme në ushtrimin e një fuqie kolektive në riformimin e proçeseve të urbanizimit. Liria për të bërë dhe ribërë qytetet tona ashtu si dhe vetveten është. . . një nga të drejtat njerëzore sa të çmuara aq dhe të neglizhuara që kemi."

Jeffrey Hou, "Insurgent Public Space" // "Hapësira Kryengritëse Publike"

" Today, even as more and more public spaces have become heavily regulated and privatized, there are attempts by individuals and communities at greater freedom. (7)

[...] citizen initiatives and informal activities have created other new uses and forms of public space. They include spontaneous events, unintended uses, and a variety of activities that defy or escape existing rules and regulations. (10) 

[...] precisely because these acts do not require overburdening investment or infrastructure, they enable individuals and often small groups to effect changes in the otherwise hegemonic urban landscapes. Although the actions may be informal and erratic, they have helped destabilize the structure and relationships in the official public space and release possibilities for new interactions, functions, and meanings. (15)"

" Sot, edhe pse hapësirat publike gjithnjë e më shumë kontrollohen dhe privatizohen, ka përpjekje nga individë dhe komunitete për më shumë liri. (7) 

[...] iniciativat qytetare dhe aktivitetet informale kanë krijuar përdorime dhe forma të reja të hapësirës publike. Ato përfshijnë evente spontane, përdorime të paparashikuara, dhe një shumëllojshmëri aktivitetesh që sfidojnë apo nuk zbatojnë rregullat dhe rregulloret ekzistuese. (10) 

[...] pikërisht për shkak se këto veprime nuk kërkojnë investime apo infrastruktura të mëdha, ato mundësojnë individë dhe shpesh herë grupe të vogla të bëjnë ndryshime në peisazhet tashmë hegjemoniste urbane. Edhe pse veprimet mund të jenë informale dhe të çrregullta, ato kanë ndihmuar destabilizimin e strukturës dhe marrëdhënieve në hapësirën formale publike si dhe kanë krijuar mundësi për bashkëveprime, funksione dhe kuptime të reja. (15)"

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In recent years, recession has caused social (mass) protests of all sorts. All around the world people have taken to the streets to 'perform' their anger and the injustice done to them. In a way they have redefined public space by occupying it, not only physically but by (creatively) voicing their human rights. 
They have opened it to discussion, a democratic one at that. Isn't it why the Greeks first established the agora? 

How do we take privatization, commercialization and political control out of it to restore its commons? Can that space be really public?

Here are a few examples of different social participation performance:

Occupy Wall Street

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For the full article go here.

" We must not be satisfied merely to ask how such models might conform to the supposed “realities” of a fetishized corporate economy. Rather, we must ask, quite pragmatically: What sort of political economy, and what sort of society, would be required to make another way of living possible or even conceivable in the first place? For there is nothing preventing us, in an agonistic and participatory manner, from devising and debating forms of shelter — of housing — that correspond, in microcosm and macrocosm, with the still-resonant slogan of the anti-corporate, anti-globalization protests from which the Occupy movement has itself taken inspiration: Another world is possible."

10.000 yellow helmets at Milan's stock exchange

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On 'the day of anger' in front of the Milan stock exchange, Italian workers, laborers, clerks, surveyors, architects and real estate agents brought attention to a sector that in the past five years, according to data from the center for economic research and market sociology, has lost 157 million companies as well as 893 million employees. (via)

Smoke and noise as a form of protest

25 Minutes of protest in the smoke from luzinterruptus on Vimeo.

The spanish group Luzinterruptus has taken to the streets yet again. Their latest project uses smoke and noise to protest political corruption and the controlling powers of publics.  

"This environment, belonging to a post-conflict zone or of a church during the hours of mass, was inviting to stay and watch as the smoke materialized the beams of light from the lampposts, forming imperfect cones in space, within which the smoke evolved in hypnotic movements." (via)

Art Kontakt Flash Mob in Tirana

Last December, Art Kontakt organized a Flashmob in Tirana. The goal was not only to bring a fun and engaging social event to the biggest, sparsely used and most central Albanian public space but also, to hang postcards dedicated to Albanian Railways on the big Christmas tree, wishing a speedy recovery to the binaries and trains in order to facilitate the communication of Albanians with Europe, but most importantly among us. (via) 

So, how can we (as designers and urban dwellers) take back and transform our cities? 

How do we push and encourage ourselves and others to not only question but take action through social participation, to engage (what are now institutionalized urban publics) commons in alternative ways (such as Park(ing) Day and many others) so we can fully explore the potential of the city?

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