Four years after the first wave of municipalist governments in Spain, many of the so-called cities of change have failed to renew the results obtained in the elections that placed them in power. While the Catalan independence movement has radically changed the political landscape, thus...

The Covid-19 crisis has made clear the disastrous effects of years of austerity, social security cuts, and public service privatisation. But it has also demonstrated that public services and the people who operate them are truly the foundation of healthy and resilient societies. As privatisation...

Tourism accounts for about an eighth of GDP in Spain and Italy, which were both badly hit by the coronavirus. Desperate not to lose the summer, Italy cautiously reopened its borders and Spain it set to follow. But no one expects mass tourism to resume...

In 2015, a new cycle of struggles for democratic governance unfolded at the level of the city. One such municipal movement and platform is Barcelona en Comú. Pioneering new ways and words for approaching the city as common(s), Barcelona en Comú opens possibilities for a...

America’s cities and local leaders have emerged as the institutional frontline of resistance against the Trump administration.However, cities can be more than just a last line of defense against the worst excesses of an authoritarian central government: they have huge, positive potential as spaces from...

A presentation on the origins of municipalism and the currencies that formed the movement. Photo: Michael L.

Whether the twenty-first century will be the most radical of times or the most reactionary will depend overwhelmingly upon the kind of social movement and program that social radicals create out of the theoretical, organizational, and political wealth that has accumulated during the past two...

After the success of the Fearless Cities North America summit held in New York, author Masha Gessen reflects on the origins and values of Barcelona en Comú, as well as the challenges that Ada Colau faces half way through her term in office. Photo: Umberto...

Researchers looked at the implementation of guaranteed income in a neighbourhood in Barcelona and found out that it didn’t help people find work, but it made them happier. Against what some critics of basic income say, the money didn’t stop people from looking for a...

A growing number of cities around the world are temporarily reallocating road space from cars to people on foot and on cycles to keep key workers moving and residents in coronavirus lockdown healthy and active while socially distancing. Photo: Jack Van Hel

This piece situates entrepreneurial municipalism as one strand in an assemblage of new municipalist interventions, between radical urban social movements and more neoliberal strategies such as financialised municipal entrepreneurialism. Exploring how local authorities are working with social enterprises to harness place-based assets in ways which...

Around 20,000 citizens protested in early February against Zagreb’s mayor and USKOK indictee Milan Bandić demanding his permanent removal from politics. Bernard Ivčić, from Green Action, said that citizens had come to say enough to Bandić’s system of clientelism, which is destroying Zagreb. Photo: Anna...