Minim is a municipalist observatory that aims to give voice to the municipalist movement in different parts of the world. Nevertheless, we have observed that much of the debates, practices and theorisation of municipalism – and the networks that are emerging – are between participants from the Global North. Now we are looking to commission introductory research that explores the existence of, and potential for, municipalist practices in a number of regions we are less connected with. We are also interested in why we have such gaps in our networks and knowledge. Are municipalist practices not appropriate in very different national or regional political contexts? Or maybe there are and we are just divided by issues of language? What can we learn from municipalist practices in the Global South? What are the limits to municipalist practices emerging in those parts of the world with which we have little contact? Can we compare what is happening there with what is happening in the North?

We are looking to commission four short introductory pieces of work that connect the authors, topics and practices from the Global South with those in the Global North and that contribute to “translating” (in a broad sense, not only linguistic) these experiences from one context to another. By Global South we understand anything that is beyond the Eastern and Southern borders of the EU, but not the United States of America, Canada or Australia.

The topics of the reports may include any of the ones covered by Minim:

• Municipalist public policies
• Municipalist theory and history
• Municipalist organising

Applications can be presented by people or teams and we encourage authors from the Global South to lead the reports, although any person can apply. Applicants don’t need to be academics, but some background in research is needed, and a connection with activism will be highly valued.

The amount allocated to each report will be between 1000 and 2000 Euros, depending on the proposed program of research. Research proposals should be realistic and reflect the available fee. We are expecting the production of the report to last between 2 and 3 months. Outputs will include a report of between 4-5,000 words, and a shorter 1200 word summary for the Minim website.

Deadline for applications is March 6 2020. Applications should be no more than two sides of A4; details are included in the attached form. Please send the application form to contact@minim-municipalism.org

The Minim community will evaluate the proposals and publish the results by March 13 2020.

Deadline for the production of the reports will be decided together with the applicants but no later than December 2020. Reports will need to be provided in English.

If you have any question or need more details, please send us an email: contact@minim-municipalism.org

Application form

• Who is conducting the research and what’s your experience as a researcher/activist? (150 words)
• What does municipalism mean to you? (150 words)
• What would you like to write about? What questions will the report try to answer? (200 words)
• How will you conduct the research? (200 words)
• How are you connecting the experiences and people from the Global South with those in the Global North? (150 words)

Results

• Municipalism and decolonisation in Aotearoa (New Zealand)
• Municipalism and land disputes. Networks of towns and cities for the co-production of rural-urban policies (Argentina and Brazil)
• Municipalist movements in Lebanon (Lebanon)
• The making of autonomous municipal infrastructures (Argentina)