TY - JOUR

T1 - Composing urban green collaboration

T2 - Exploring coordination in long-term civic–municipal greenspace planning

AU - Christensen, Anette Gravgaard

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2020, © 2020 European Sociological Association.

PY - 2020

Y1 - 2020

N2 - Long-term civic–municipal collaboration around developing public urban greenspace has been increasing in many European cities in the last decades. This novel tendency in urban spatial development is explored via a case study set in a Danish context. Here the municipal landowner, alongside a civic association, has developed an overgrown public urban greenspace into a thriving recreational area through a dedicated collaboration spanning more than six years. I deploy the concept of commonality from the sociology of engagements, developed by Laurent Thévenot, to unfold an integrated analysis of the multiple situations of social coordination and engagement constituting this collaboration. I argue that the ability to accommodate, compose and connect several differing ways of engaging with urban greenspace, is beneficial in sustaining long-term civic–municipal collaboration and securing the civic anchorage of greenspace planning. I discuss the implications and generalisability of these findings.

AB - Long-term civic–municipal collaboration around developing public urban greenspace has been increasing in many European cities in the last decades. This novel tendency in urban spatial development is explored via a case study set in a Danish context. Here the municipal landowner, alongside a civic association, has developed an overgrown public urban greenspace into a thriving recreational area through a dedicated collaboration spanning more than six years. I deploy the concept of commonality from the sociology of engagements, developed by Laurent Thévenot, to unfold an integrated analysis of the multiple situations of social coordination and engagement constituting this collaboration. I argue that the ability to accommodate, compose and connect several differing ways of engaging with urban greenspace, is beneficial in sustaining long-term civic–municipal collaboration and securing the civic anchorage of greenspace planning. I discuss the implications and generalisability of these findings.

KW - civic engagement

KW - collaboration

KW - sociology of engagements

KW - Urban greening

KW - urban planning

U2 - 10.1080/23254823.2020.1772843

DO - 10.1080/23254823.2020.1772843

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:85087761124

VL - 7

SP - 477

EP - 501

JO - European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology

JF - European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology

SN - 2325-4823

IS - 4

ER -