Cities are increasingly a major cause of, but also a potential solution for, environmental and social crises. Across the world, a new wave of urban social movements are arising: movements building economic, social, and political alternatives based on solidarity, equality, and participation. At the forefront of these, social ecology is emerging as a rich body of ideas spanning disciplines as diverse as democracy, economics, and urbanism to technology, philosophy, and social development. This anthology develops the debates that began at the Transnational Institute of Social Ecology’s (TRISE) conference in Thessaloniki about the dire need to rebuild our cities. It discusses the prospects of current urban movements; examines the radical potential of the concept of “the Right to the City”; and looks at how activists, scholars, and community movements can work together towards an ecological and democratic future. A fruitful conversation between theory and practice, this book opens new ground for rethinking systemic urban change in a way that transforms how we live, work, and create together.
Photo: Kokil Sharma