Urban!Movement!Entrepreneurs!

Download PDF
3 downloads 175 Views 274KB Size Report
Comment
however,!we!believe!urban!social!movements!have!not!been!paid!sufficient! ..... organization!and!consolidation!of!local!urban!actions!into!a!more!consolidated!social! ..... were!lobbing!for!its!cause!through!publications,!social!media!and!events!
!

New!Urban!Movement!Entrepreneurs!Re4Negotiating!! the!Public–Private!Borderland:!The!Case!of!Polish!Urban!Politics! Presented!at!the!11th!ISTR!Conference!in!Münster,!July!22=25,!2014! By#Anna#Domaradzka,#Institute#for#Social#Studies,#University#of#Warsaw,#Poland*# &#Filip#Wijkström,#Stockholm#School#of#Economics,#Sweden# # In# this# paper# we’re# proposing# a# field# theory# approach# to# the# analysis# of# urban# social# movements.# We# use# the# example# of# an# emerging# Polish# urban# grassroots’# civil# society# movement#to#illustrate#the#application#of#a#novel#theoretical#framework#suggested#and# developed#by#Neil#Fligstein#and#Doug#McAdam#in#their#recent#book#“A#Theory#of#Fields”.# # With!more!than!half!of!the!world’s!population!living!in!cities,!and!our!lives!becoming! increasingly! globalized,! many! important! social! conflicts! nowadays! concern! urban! issues! that! display! common! characteristics! between! widely! dispersed! cities;! transnational!social!conflicts!that!at!least!are!played!out!in!urban!contexts!or!settings.! The!issues!are!often!framed!in!terms!of!spatial!and!social!segregation,!and!different! citizens’! initiatives! put! the! searchlight! on! gentrification! processes! pushing! –! among! others!–!low!income=groups!to!the!margins!of!the!city.!At!the!same!time,!many!public! spaces! are! deteriorating,! or! being! privatized! and! shaped! by! capital! and! commercial! interests!rather!than!by!citizens!and!public!will,!making!the!cities!less!livable!and!less! responsive! to! the! needs! of! their! inhabitants.! Such! processes,! we! argue,! lead! to! the! emergence! of! new! global! social! movements! such! as! “Right! to! the! City”.! Up! to! now,! however,!we!believe!urban!social!movements!have!not!been!paid!sufficient!attention,! neither!by!social!movement!theorists!nor!in!civil!society!studies!in!general.!! Since!2008!we!observed!the!intensification!of!grassroots’!neighborhood!activism!also! in!a!number!of!Polish!major!cities,!along!with!popularization!of!the!Lefebvre’s!idea!of! the! “right! to! the! city”! among! urban! activists! (Lefebvre! 1968,! Harvey! 2012).! Urban! grassroots! activism! also! became! an! important! and! visible! part! of! the! Polish! third! sector,!while!remaining!strongly!embedded!in!the!specific!context!of!big!cities!and!the! problems!of!their!inhabitants.!With!a!number!of!international!actors!on!global!level! promoting!the!ideas!of!“placemaking”!and!people’s!“right!to!the!city”,!Poland!becomes! a! country! where! a! new! and! dynamic! urban! movement! is! inspired! by! external! influence!to!deal!with!specific!local!problems.!We!argue!that!both!the!space!and!the! demand! for! the! emerging! movement! and! its! new! actors! are! shaped! by! the! engagement!of!local!leaders!and!neighborhood!activists!around!“concrete!narrative”! of! everyday! needs! (Mergler! 2008)! and! shared! space,! as! well! as! through! the! inspiration!of!local!but!internationally!connected!“norm!entrepreneurs”!(Finnemore! and!Sikkink!1998),!connecting,!translating!and!editing!(Sahlin!and!Wedlin!2008)!core! elements! found! in! the! global,! transnational! dispute! over! the! right! to! the! city! and! related!causes!to!more!local!issues.!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *

Work in progress. Please direct any communication regarding the paper to corresponding and first author Dr. Anna Domaradzka at: [email protected]

1! !

The!paper!discusses!both!the!genesis!of!the!neighborhood!movement!in!Polish!cities! (with!the!primary!focus!on!Warsaw)!and!the!role!it!plays!nowadays,!when,!due!to!the! weakening!of!the!welfare!state,!neither!local!nor!central!government!is!able!to!satisfy! the!changing!needs!of!different!social!groups.!In!this!context,!local!civil!society!actors,! like! neighborhood! associations! and! community! groups,! play! an! increasingly! important! role! in=between! the! retreating! city! administration! and! the! expanding! corporate!actors!in!providing!better!and!more!efficient!solutions!for!local!problems!as! well! as! in! strengthening! democratic! mechanisms! at! the! city! level,! but! also! in! the! provision!of!new!ideas,!norms!and!models!for!how!to!shape!the!future!of!urban!areas.!! We!specifically!focus!on!understanding!the!dynamics!of!a!number!of!the!core!activists! and! their! organizational! platforms! within! this! emerging! urban! movement! and! the! importance!and!role!of!its!wider!international!as!well!as!national!context.!We!argue! that!the!visibility!of!the!ideas!and!actors!of!the!new!urban!movement!is!the!result!of!a! growing! sense! of! severity! of! urban! problems! as! well! as! a! rising! awareness! of! cities’! inhabitants! –! as! individuals! as! well! as! in! groups! –! willing! to! participate! in! the! city! governance! (in! a! wider! understanding! of! the! concept)! and! striving! to! become! important!forces!on!the!“urban!scene”.!Furthermore,!we!claim!that!this!process!and! the! resulting! new! actors,! although! very! diverse! in! nature,! can! be! described,! understood!and!explained!by!using!a!recently!developed!framework!for!field!theory! and!analysis!(Fligstein!and!McAdam!2011;!2012)!–!Strategic!Action!Fields!(see!theory! section).! We! posit! that! the! urban! movement! phenomenon! is! both! a! reaction! to! an! overarching!dominance!of!general!neo=liberal!rules!of!city!planning!and!an!example! of! more! global! urban! trends! adapted! to! local! needs! through! civic! engagement,! in! particular! through! the! interpretation! and! translation! work! provided! by! local! “norm! entrepreneurs”,!to!speak!with!Finnemore!and!Sikkink!1998!(see!theory!section).!!! We!use!qualitative!data!from!observations,!content!analysis!and!in=depth!interviews! with! both! local! and! international! key! urban! activists! in! Warsaw! and! other! Polish! cities,!as!well!as!with!various!local!experts!in!the!field,!to!examine!the!processes!that! shape!the!new!and!emerging!movement!and!its!early!development!in!Poland.!! ! Withdrawing!“Welfare!City”! Twenty=five!years!after!the!transformation!and!the!fall!of!the!communist!regime!led! by!the!well=known!“Solidarity”!movement,!Poland!suffers!from!similar!pains!as!other! European!Union!countries.!The!demographic!changes!as!well!as!low!economic!growth! make!the!previously!existing!welfare!system!unsupportable.!What!makes!any!type!of! reform!hard!is!that!for!many!years,!Polish!welfare!system!was!based!on!the!transfer! of! low! but! stable! cash! benefits! to! the! families! and! individuals,! strengthening! the! passive!attitudes!of!social!aid!beneficiaries.!Many!years!of!“giving!the!fish!instead!of! fishing!rod”!and!small!emphasis!on!activization!or!equalization!on!the!labor!market,! generated! not! only! budgetary! but! also! long! term! social! costs.! While! many! benefits! became! dysfunctional! in! the! era! of! market! economy,! withdrawing! them! or! at! least! modifying! them! would! have! high! political! costs.! While! none! of! the! political! parties! was!willing!to!take!a!risk!of!reforming!the!system,!one!of!the!supposed!cures!was!the! decentralization,! based! on! giving! the! communes! more! autonomy! over! organizing! local!services!and!social!support!system.! As! a! result! of! 1999! administrative! reform,! and! with! direct! relevance! for! the! urban! scene,! three! levels! of! local! government! were! introduced.! The! basic! unit! of! local! 2! !

government,! gmina,! was! considerably! empowered,! assuming! many! governmental! functions! previously! controlled! by! the! central! government.! Gmina! council! is! elected! in!separate!elections,!it!controls!communal!property,!and!has!its!own!revenue!base.! Other! introduced! units! were! powiat! (county)! and! województwo! (voivodship! or! province).!They!took!over!tasks!formerly!performed!by!the!state!institutions,!mainly! in! education! and! healthcare.! New! system! delegated! welfare! responsibilities! to! the! local! and! self=governing! bodies,! to! ensure! better! embeddedness! of! services! in! the! communities,!but!also!to!lower!the!cost!of!the!implementation!of!centralized!policies.!! Fifteen!years!after!the!administrative!reform,!in!context!of!urbanizing!Polish!society,! we! can! argue! that! the! decentralization! of! welfare! responsibilities! translated! into! creation! of! local! welfare! regimes,! dependent! on! the! economical! as! well! as! political! situation! of! the! city.! Most! of! the! cities,! however,! did! not! manage! to! bridge! the! gap! between! the! withdrawing! welfare! model! on! the! state! level! and! the! arising! needs! of! the!urban!residents.!! Theorists! (Harvey! 2012,! Nawratek! 2012)! as! well! as! practitioners! (Krier! 2009)! emphasize! that! at! the! roots! of! the! urban! crisis! is! the! fact! that! city! government! withdraws! from! its! role! of! the! main! investor! in! the! urban! space,! and! so! this! role! is! taken!over!by!private!commercial!investors!or!international!corporations!whose!main! objective!is!to!maximize!profits.!Because!of!the!global!capital’s!supra=national!nature,! these!investors!have!no!linkages!to!the!local!community!and!thus!do!not!care!about! long=term! social! effects! of! their! investments,! focusing! instead! on! the! immediate! returns.! As! a! result,! the! quality! and! accessibility! of! urban! space! is! increasingly! often! shaped! not! by! the! city! planners! or! local! residents,! but! by! international! investors! and! developers,!whose!growing!importance!started!to!raise!public!opposition.!Meanwhile,! it! becomes! apparent! that! existing! local! governments! and! social! organizations! were! not!able!to!deal!with!deteriorating!quality!of!public!space!as!well!as!quality!of!life!of! urban! dwellers,! and! therefore! new! ways! and! practices! of! expressing! “urban! resistance”!(Wybieralski!2014)!emerged.! In! other! words,! the! growing! crisis! of! the! welfare! state! and! the! inability! of! state! administration! –! as! well! as! the! disinterest! of! the! expanding! of! private! commercial! interests! –! to! solve! the! mounting! social! problems! have! lead! to! an! increased! self= organization! of! residents! who! decide! to! take! care! of! their! problems! themselves,! without! waiting! for! either! public! institutions! or! private! corporations! to! provide! relevant! solutions.! This! activization! often! takes! form! of! local! and! neighborhood! groups!or!initiatives!that!are!directly!focused!on!improving!quality!of!life!in!the!given! area!of!the!city.!! Using! the! example! of! a! number! of! Polish! cities! like! Warsaw,! Poznań,! Cracow! or! Gdańsk,! we! can! say! that! the! domination! of! the! traditional! technocratic! model! of! (public)! urban! management! hit! the! metaphorical! wall! of! civil! disappointment.! The! fact,! that! some! of! the! public! investments! are! more! oriented! towards! attracting! outside! investors! and! developers! than! serving! the! residents’! more! current! and! immediate!needs,!has!created!a!widespread!frustration,!which!surfaced!in!the!form!of! the! Polish! version! or! arm! of! the! transnational! “right! to! the! city”! movement,! as! described!by!Lefebvre!(1968)!and!more!recently!Harvey!(2012).! We! argue,! that! one! of! the! main! signs! of! the! transformation! in! Poland! is! this! fission,! when!the!traditional!methods!of!governance!and!service!provision!are!not!seen!to!fit! 3! !

the! present! needs,! and! the! new! system! is! not! yet! in! place.! However,! this! situation! seems! to! have! empowered! local! civil! society! actors,! taking! up! what! was! previously! understood! as! the! responsibilities! of! the! local! government! in! many! areas! of! social! policy,!either!as!subcontractors,!alternative!or!sole!suppliers!of!specific!services.!The! withdrawing! or!transformation!of!the!welfare!city!entailed!the!wide!mobilization!of! the!social!initiatives,!through!which!citizen!groups!now!try!to!come!up!with!solutions! to! the! most! pressing! social! needs,! like! access! to! daycare,! affordable! housing! or! friendly!public!space.!! Meanwhile,! however,! the! cities’! local! governments! took! up! the! role! of! “engines! of! growth”! in! the! country,! investing! in! infrastructure! and! various! services! to! attract! multinational!investors!and!developers.!As!some!of!the!social!activists!now!argue,!the! result!of!this!business=centered!policies,!was!neglecting!the!needs!of!the!residents!as! primary!users!of!the!city.! ! Raising!Urban!Movement! In! this! context,! grassroots! civil! initiatives! became! an! important! voice! that! is! advocating! for! needs! of! the! residents! as! well! as! alternative! to! insufficient! public! policies,!and!filling!the!gaps!in!cities!services,!thus!acting!both!as!norm!entrepreneurs! and!small=scale!service!providers.!In!this!way,!we!observe!how!emerging!civil!society! actors! have! been! active! in! a! renewed! negotiation! of! the! future! of! the! city! and! –! in! different!ways!and!with!various!methods!–!opened!up!the!discussion!about!the!rules! and!principles!for!the!future!urban!development.! This! growing! importance! of! the! “urban! issues”! is! reflected! in! the! visible! increase! of! social!activity!at!the!neighborhood!level!in!many!Polish!cities.!As!our!qualitative!data! shows,! this! mobilization! is! a! result! of! unfulfilled! residents'! needs! –! both! new! and! traditional.!While!it!affects!the!quality!of!life!of!residents!in!a!direct!way!it!also!causes! increased! interest! in! local! affairs! and! therefore! generates! social! capital.! However,! if! we’ll!take!into!account!the!scope!of!the!grassroots!mobilization!and!its!geographical! dispersion,! we! can! talk! about! local! initiatives! being! a! part! of! a! broader! social! movement! (new! urban! movement).! This! movement,! we! will! describe! and! analyze! using!the!Fligstein!and!McAdam!fields’!theory!approach.! For!the!purpose!of!this!analysis!we!define!the!new!urban!movement!as!the!recently! growing!different!forms!of!civic!engagement!in!the!cities!and!about!the!cities,!focused! on!representing!the!rights!and!needs!of!residents.!Its!main!distinctive!feature!is!that! the!individual!initiatives!are!very!local!and!focused!on!specific!problems!or!needs!of! local!communities.!One!of!the!local!movement!leaders,!Lech!Mergler,!refers!to!it!as!the! “cities! residents’! involvement! promoting! their! own! essential! needs! and! interests,! as! belonging! to! the! residents! of! the! city,! carried! out! in! the! city! and! through! the! city”! (Mergler!2008:!15).!! Another!trait!of!urban!initiatives!is!their!hybridity!(Kurnicki!2013)!in!terms!of!both! the! different! civil! society! organizational! forms! they! represent! (formal! associations! and! foundations,! informal! grassroots! initiatives! and! neighborhood! groups,! electoral! committees! etc.)! and! the! mixture! of! topics! they! tend! to! specialize! in! (e.g.! transport! and!ecology,!education!and!social!services,!culture!and!democratization,!etc.).!! Although! local! grassroots! activity! has! a! longer! history! (some! of! it! dating! pre=war,! other!emerging!soon!after!the!fall!of!the!communism),!many!of!the!local!initiatives!in! 4! !

Poland! started! to! mushroom! only! in! the! last! decade.! For! example,! one! of! the! more! established! and! known! neighborhood! initiatives! is! Smolna! Street! Residents! Association,! which! was! established! in! Warsaw! in! 2001! and! quickly! became! a! role! model! for! many! similar! initiatives.! Another! important! organization! was! Association! My=Poznaniacy,!established!in!2007!in!Poznań,!and!the!first!organization!to!engage!in! legal! struggles! around! planned! development! of! city! parks! (mainly! “Rataje”! and! “Sołacki”! parks)! with! the! city! hall! as! well! as! systematic! monitoring! of! the! city! planning! activities.! The! Right! to! the! City! Association! that! emerged! from! My= Poznaniacy!Association!in!2013,!still!works!on!the!local!level,!but!is!also!the!main!co= organizer! of! Urban! Movements! Congress! –! an! informal! national! network! of! local! grassroots’! initiatives! –! as! well! as! a! leading! actor! in! building! the! movement! know= how!and!network!potential.! Various!urban!initiatives!emerged!as!a!reaction!to!the!“investment!boom”!of!the!last! decade,! on! the! wave! of! city! development! that! –! according! to! interviewed! urban! activists!–!violated!the!“urban!tissue”!and!existing!social!relations.!They!argue!that!a! new!type!of!grassroots!organizations!was!set!off!by!these!processes,!bringing!people! together!around!new!problems!and!issues!and!doing!it!in!a!new!way,!since!they!were! neither! political! parties! nor! highly! formalized! NGOs! (Mergler,! Pobłocki,! Wudarski! 2013).!Although!the!postulates!are!sometimes!of!a!very!general!nature,!these!kinds!of! initiatives! mainly! grows! from! the! need! to! protect! material! interests! of! cities’! residents,!whose!quality!of!life!is!threatened!by!the!growing!dominance!of!developers’! interests!and!a!parallel!lack!of!public!solutions!that!would!guarantee!and!safe=guard!a! more!long=term!development!of!the!cities.!! The! phase! of! Poland’s! accession! to! the! European! Union! was,! according! to! Mergler! (2008),! crucial! in! terms! of! urban! mobilization.! It! was! a! period! of! the! investment! process! revival,! with! private! housing! developments! dominating! the! housing! market! and! business! infrastructure! growing! by! the! day.! As! Merger! argues,! this! period! of! rapid! growth! led! to! commercialization! of! thinking! about! the! city,! where! city! was! defined! as! “a! limited! liability! company”! rather! than! community! of! residents,! entrepreneurs!and!service!providers.!This!trend!coincided!with!the!lack!of!long=term! urban!planning!strategies,!which!resulted!in!a!growing!chaos!in!city!development.!As! residents! soon! discovered,! the! local! authorities! were! practically! unable! to! solve! the! problems! of! urban! development,! given! the! existing! resources! and! legal! tools.! Therefore,! the! grassroots’! urban! movements! started! to! emerge,! to! express! the! political!interests!of!the!local!urban!population,!which!no!one!else!would!take!care!of,! as!well!as!to!solve!some!of!the!more!pressing!needs!of!its!citizens.! These! different! initiatives! first! started! as! sporadic! and! very! local! collective! actions,! usually!limited!to!a!single!neighborhood,!street!or!even!building.!They!progressively! became!more!numerous!and!more!global!in!their!scope.!However,!only!in!the!recent! years,! scholars! as! well! as! politicians! have! begun! paying! attention! to! the! increased! activity! of! urban! movement.! The! big! change! came! around! 2008,! when! the! self= organization!and!consolidation!of!local!urban!actions!into!a!more!consolidated!social! movement! begun,! creating! a! nation=wide! interest! group,! acting! not! only! on! the! city! level,!but!also!visible!and!recognized!on!the!national!level.!The!main!manifestation!of! this!consolidation!was!the!already!mentioned!Urban!Movements!Congress,!which!was! established!in!2011.! As! an! earlier! study! by! Kowalewski! (2013)! indicates,! the! Congress! was! a! tool! for! building!a!common!urban!movement!ideology.!The!main!aim!of!the!Congress!was!to! 5! !

achieve!a!real!change!in!urban!policy,!through!lobbing!for!more!democracy!in!cities! decision=making! processes.! The! Congress! helped! strengthening! the! lobbing! abilities! of! urban! activists! in! different! cities,! through! building! a! wide! support! network! of! activists! as! well! as! experts! on! different! urban! issues.! Overcoming! the! dispersion! of! the!urban!initiatives!and!organizations,!created!the!opportunity!for!organized!effort! to!press!for!a!real!change!in!legislation!as!well!as!practices!of!municipalities.!It!was,!in! a!way,!a!show!of!strength!of!urban!local!activists!and!their!organizational!platforms,! which!made!them!visible!to!both!local!and!central!government.! An! important! quality! of! the! urban! movement! initiatives! and! organizations! comes! from! their! independence! from! public! funds.! As! many! critics! of! Polish! civil! society! observed,!Poland!experiences!growing!NGO=ization!and!co=optation!of!the!civic!sector! (Korolczyk! 2011,! Jacobsson! 2013,! Domaradzka! 2011).! High! level! of! dependence! on! (very!limited)!public!funds!is!one!of!the!major!weaknesses!of!the!Polish!third!sector,! which! not! only! risk! silencing! the! potential! whistle=blowers,! but! also! creates! fierce! rivalry!among!civil!society!organizations!that!feel!that!they!have!to!compete!for!the! limited! resources! offered! by! municipalities! or! state! government.! Lack! of! alternative! to! public! funding! (with! public! institutions! also! being! the! most! important! intermediaries! in! EU! funding! programs)! gives! public! bodies! a! strong! control! mechanism!over!potential!“trouble=makers”.!! However,!one!can!now!talk!about!NGO=ization!backlash,!when!the!growing!number!of! neighborhood! groups! and! initiatives! illustrate! the! shift! from! representative! democracy! toward! direct! democracy,! based! on! the! growing! engagement! of! individuals!and!informal!groups.!Many!of!the!urban!initiatives!are!very!critical!toward! so=called!NGOs,!defined!as!formal!organizations!with!more!of!a!clientelistic!approach! toward! public! institutions! and! serving! mostly! as! a! subcontractor! of! various! social! services! for! municipalities.! The! distinction! is! fuzzy,! because! both! NGOs! and! urban! movement!organizations!share!the!same!legal!status,!and!there!are!possible!overlaps.! From! the! urban! activists’! point! of! view,! however,! there! seem! to! be! an! important! distinction!between!new!urban!movement!organizations!and!informal!groups!on!the! one!hand,!that!claim!they!will!maintain!their!grassroots!character!and!today!are!very! much!focused!on!solving!the!local!issues,!and!on!the!other!hand!the!growing!number! of!NGOs!active!in!the!same!cities,!but!focusing!on!service=provision!and!fund=raising! rather! than! direct! representation! of! residents’! needs.! Therefore! different! types! of! organizations,!that!are!a!result!of!residents’!various!sense!of!responsibility!for!their! city,!remain!at!the!core!of!the!urban!movement:! “...! for! some! reason,! in! a! given! time! and! in! case! of! certain! issue,! some! residents,! motivated!by!a!sense!of!responsibility!for!their!city!become!engaged!in!a!dispute!with! the!city!administration!in!the!name!of!the!future!of!the!city.!Starting!point!being!their! critical! evaluation! of! the! substantial! part! of! the! administration’s! concept! about! how! the!city!should!be!organized,!and!the!fact!that!the!administration!didn’t!try!to!consult! their!ideas!with!residents!to!a!satisfactory!degree.”!(Mergler!2008:!15).! To! summarize,! social! activity! at! the! local! or! neighborhood! level! visibly! increased! in! Polish! cities! in! the! last! ten! years,! as! a! result! of! changing! and! unfulfilled! residents’! needs! as! well! as! threats! to! their! quality! of! life.! It! is! also! a! symptom! of! growing! willingness! of! residents! to! engage! in! creating! the! future! of! the! city! instead! of! remaining! passive! consumers! of! the! city! offer! (or! as! some! activists! would! put! it! –! passive! victims! of! the! lack! of! it).! The! initiatives! themselves! positively! affect! the! quality! of! life! of! residents! and! increase! their! interest! in! local! affairs,! which,! in! turn,! 6! !

generates! social! capital,! visibly! strengthening! local! communities.! As! we! argue! here,! the!synergy!of!all!the!mushrooming!neighborhood!activity!has!the!potential!to!result! in!an!emergence!of!a!broader!social!movement!(new!urban!movement),!which!quickly! has!become!an!important!actor!in!“the!game!of!the!city”.! Data!from!World!Values!Survey!waves!2005!and!2012!for!Poland!well!illustrates!the! aforementioned! increase! in! several! areas! of! local! activism.! Figure! 1! shows! the! percentage!of!adult!Poles!declaring!that!they!took!part!in!some!type!of!neighborhood! activity! in! the! last! two! years.! Types! of! activities! include! discussion! concerning! local! area,! meeting! of! local! residents,! action! to! improve! local! area,! meeting! of! housing! cooperative,! and! meeting! of! local! council.! Lines! show! the! difference! between! 2005! and! 2012! data,! illustrating! a! significant! increase! in! local! activity! recorded! between! 2005!and!2012!in!all!age!groups.!!Interestingly,!this!increase!is!even!more!visible!in! population!of!people!aged!50!and!more.! ! Figure!1.!Did!you!in!last!two!years!participated!in...?!(%,!WVS!2005,!2012)

! Source:!World!Values!Survey!data!from!2005!and!2012!for!Poland!(country!specific!questions,!not! available!in!the!international!dataset).!Bars!show!results!for!2005!data,!lines!indicate!results!for!2012.!!!

Quantitative! data! suggesting! that! the! population! 50+! engage! more! often! in! local! activity!and!is!a!driving!force!of!Polish!new!neighborhood!movement!is!corroborated! by!the!qualitative!research.!Interviews!with!local!leaders!as!well!as!observation!and! press! analysis! show! that! usually! older! adults! are! behind! the! phenomenon! of! mushrooming! local! initiatives,! neighborhood! groups! and! organizations.! Most! of! the! interviewed!local!leaders!were!50+!and!described!their!civic!engagement!as!a!way!to! deal!with!low!quality!of!life!in!urban!environment!and!everyday!problems!connected! with!changing!life!style!or!ageing!(in!case!of!seniors).!Also,!some!of!them!expressed! the!need!to!protect!they!propriety!(house!or!flat)!value,!through!taking!responsibility! of!the!neighborhood!future!development.!

7! !

Same!research!data!suggest!(WVS!2005,!2012)!that!one!of!the!important!factors!that! leads! to! residents’! activization! is! also! the! lack! of! trust! in! public! institutions! and! historically!reinforced!conviction!that!delegation!of!tasks!to!outside!institutions!does! not!bring!appropriate!solutions!(Siemieńska,!Domaradzka,!Matysiak!2011).!We!argue! that!belief!that!given!problem!can!be!solved!only!through!personal!involvement!is!an! important!catalyst!in!formation!of!the!grassroots!movements!in!Poland.!However,!this! general!lack!of!trust!makes!it!difficult!to!collaborate!with!local!government!as!well!as! to!form!larger!coalitions!among!the!initiatives!and!formal!CSOs.!This!usually!leads!to! fragmentation! of! these! movements,! which! however! seems! not! to! be! the! case! of! the! urban!movement.! ! Theoretical!Framework! While!analyzing!the!short!history!of!Polish!urban!movement!we!use!the!framework!of! Fligstein! and! McAdam! (2011,! 2012)! theory! of! fields! as! well! as! the! writing! by! Finnemore! and! Sikkink! (1998)! on! norm! entrepreneurs,! to! allow! for! better! understanding!of!this!new!phenomena!and!stipulate!about!its!future!development.! According!to!fields’!theory!approach,!an!institutional!(organizational)!field!is!defined! by! the! relationships! and! interactions! between! actors! who! share! a! common! understanding!of!the!field,!its!rules!and!purposes,!although!they!do!not!have!to!share! the! same! values! or! ambitions.! On! the! contrary,! the! organizational! field! is! often! understood!as!a!field!of!contestation.!Along!one!of!the!most!promising!(Martin!2003)! lines! in! field! theory,! in! our! main! theoretical! reference! for! this! paper!–! Fligstein! and! McAdam! (2012)! –! the! authors! consider! the! field! as! a! game,! struggle! or! even! battle! with! a! particular! set! of! rules.! They! define! this! “Strategic! Action! Field”! (SAF)! as! a! “constructed! mesolevel! social! order! in! which! actors! (who! can! be! individual! or! collective)!are!attuned!to!and!interact!with!one!another!on!the!basis!of!shared!(which! is!not!to!say!consensual)!understandings!about!the!purposes!of!the!field,!relationships! to! others! in! the! field! (including! who! has! power! and! why),! and! the! rules! governing! legitimate!action!in!the!field”!(Fligstein!and!McAdam!2012:!9).!In!this!way!they!solve! the!challenge!of!“understanding!the!field’s!ability!to!provide!goals!while!being!the!site! for!conflict”!(Martin!2003:!31).!! For!the!sake!of!this!paper,!it!is!important!to!note!that!“the!struggle!is!both!over!and! within! the! rules”! thus! opening! up! not! only! for! rule=obedience! in! the! but! also! rule= alterations!or!even!challenges:!“When!patterns!of!conduct!are!recognized!by!actors!as! forms!of!regularity,!conformity!or!nonconformity!to!the!pattern,!whatever!advantages! or!disadvantages!may!also!follow,!has!semiotic!import![…]!Like!a!poet!breaking!meter! for!emphasis,!players!break!the!rules!precisely!because!they!are!rules”!(Martin!2003:! 31).! In! their! approach,! Fligstein! and! McAdam! place! emphasis! on! various! types! of! collective! actors,! the! dynamics! for! how! different! fields! change,! as! well! as! on! the! broader!inter=field!environment!and!the!importance!of!over=lapping!or!adjacent!fields.! On! the! question! of! how! fields! develop,! they! highlight! both! the! interaction! of! the! incumbent=challenger! relationship! and! exogenous! shocks.! As! a! result,! their! theory! adopts!a!process!approach!to!change,!according!to!which!SAF!might!be!found!in!three! different! states:! in! formation,! stability! or! crisis.! For! the! sake! of! this! paper,! we! will! focus!on!actors!in!a!particular!field!of!urban!unrest!in!Poland,!that!we!studied!in!detail! using!Warsaw!and!Poznań!case!studies!of!grassroots’!initiatives.!We!argue,!that!this! particular! field! is! emerging! at! least! partly! as! a! result! of! an! earlier! exogenous! shock! 8! !

brought! on! by! the! shift! from! communist! regime! to! capitalistic! paradigm! in! Poland.! Consequently,! we! show! how! it! can! be! interpreted! as! a! sign! of! social! transition! in! terms!of!values!and!collective!behavior,!25!years!after!the!crumble!of!the!Soviet!bloc! and!the!fall!of!the!communist!regime.!! Given! the! qualitative! case! study! methodology! used! in! our! research,! the! field! theory! approach! is! perfectly! suitable,! due! to! its! special! situational! character.! As! Martin! describes!it:!“Field!theory![…]!emphasizes!that!the!regularity!comes!at!the!level!of!the! situation!and!that!the!further!one!goes!into!a!particular!case,!the!more!revealing!it!will! be!of!general!principles”!(Martin!2003:!35).! Another!strength!of!the!field!theory!approach!developed!by!Fligstein!and!McAdam!is! that!it!is!able!to!cater!for!an!analysis!of!multiple!or!overlapping!fields!influencing!each! other.! The! embeddedness! of! SAFs! is! one! of! the! central! insights! brought! forward! by! the!authors!in!their!writing:!“Fields!do!not!exist!in!a!vacuum.!They!have!relations!with! other!strategic!action!fields!and!these!relations!powerfully!shape!the!developmental! history! of! the! field.! […]!The! relations! between! strategic! action! fields! are! of! three! types:! unconnected,! hierarchical! or! dependent! and! reciprocal! or! interdependent”! (Fligstein!and!McAdam!2012:!59).!! One! particularly! important! type! of! field! identified! is! the! state! field,! or! rather! the! approach! to! view! the! state! as! a! system! of! strategic! action! fields.! The! state! and! its! capacity!and!claim!to!exercise!sovereignty!means!that!state!fields!have!huge!potential! to! shape! the! prospects! and! possibilities! for! change! as! well! as! stability,! although! the! stability! of! even! the! most! powerful! state! depends! at! least! in! part! on! the! support! it! derives! from! incumbents! that! control! certain! key! nonstate! fields”! (Fligstein! and! McAdam!2012:!67).! Finally,! central! to! this! particular! strand! of! field! theory! stands! the! idea! of! Internal! Governance! Units! (IGUs),! which! is! a! special! type! of! actor! “charged! with! overseeing! compliance!with!field!rules!and,!in!general,!facilitating!the!overall!smooth!functioning! and! reproduction! of! the! system”! (Fligstein! and! McAdam! 2012:! 13=14).! These! units! are!internal!to!the!particular!field!and!thus!distinct!from,!for!example,!external!state! or! government! structures! that! hold! jurisdiction! over! all! the! SAF.! In! overseeing! the! system,! IGUs! free! the! other! actors,! the! incumbents,! from! the! kind! of! overall! field! management! and! leadership! that! they! necessarily! exercise! themselves! during! the! emergence! or! entrepreneurial! phase! of! a! field.! In! this,! they! “ensure! the! routine! stability!and!order!of!the!strategic!action!field”!(ibid.,!77).!The!sole!existence!of!these! units! also! serves! to! legitimize! the! rules! of! the! field! at! the! same! time! as! they! are! standardizing! and! providing! information! about! the! field! and! its! actors.! Finally,! they! often!act!as!the!liaison!between!the!SAF!in!case!and!other,!adjacent!or!external,!fields.! From! Finnemore! and! Sikkink! (1998),! and! to! complement! the! breaking=the=rules! possibility! stressed! by! Martin! (2003)! as! discussed! above,! with! a! changing=the=rules! strategy! in! the! more! general! model! suggested! by! Fligstein! and! McAdam! (2012)! we! borrow! the! idea! of! a! kind! of! “life! cycle“! of! norms! in! three! stages,! where! the! “norm! entrepreneur”!has!its!most!important!role!to!play!in!the!first!stage.!In!the!writings!of! Fligstein! and! McAdam,! the! concept! of! “challenger”! is! used! for! the! kind! of! actor! that! brings! system! dynamics,! change! or! even! rupture! to! the! field.! However,! we! consider! this!type!of!norm=enhancement!or!=provision!so!central!that!we!prefer!a!special!term! for!this!type!of!challenger.!

9! !

In! our! view,! the! norm! approach! provided! by! Finnemore! and! Sikkink! in=itself! adds! substantially!to!the!analysis!of!the!field!dynamics,!where!the!frames!and!rules!of!the! game!are!changed!or!transformed.!According!to!this!approach!each!of!the!“norm!life! cycle”! stages! has! its! unique! origins,! conditions! under! which! norms! will! influence! politics!as!well!as!its!own!mechanisms!of!influence.!Although!developed!originally!for! international! relations! analysis,! we! consider! the! life=cycle! model! suggested! by! Finnemore!and!Sikkink!suitable!also!for!other!types!of!situations!where!new!norms! develop!and!change!the!rules!of!the!game.!! Both! the! theories! put! forth! by! Fligstein! and! McAdam! (2012)! and! Finnemore! and! Sikkink!(1998)!stress!their!capacities!to!deal!with!social!change!and!dynamics.!In!case! of! the! latter,! the! first! stage,! which! is! the! one! we! claim! of! most! relevance! for! our! analysis,! is! norm# emergence,! when! norm! entrepreneurs! are! motivated! to! adopt! a! norm,! either! by! altruism,! empathy,! or! ideational! commitment.! These! entrepreneurs! often! use! organizations! as! tools! to! promote! the! new! norms,! either! already! existing! ones! or! organizations! (or! organizational! platforms,! to! speak! with! Finnemore! and! Sikkink! 1998)! created! specifically! for! this! cause,! to! persuade! others! (often! governments! or! other! public! sector! actors)! to! adopt! and! promote! the! new! norms.! They! argue! that:! “Whatever! their! platform,! norm! entrepreneurs! and! the! organizations! they! inhabit! usually! need! to! secure! the! support! of! state! actors! to! endorse!their!norms!and!make!norm!socialization!a!part!of!their!agenda,!and!different! organizational!platforms!provide!different!kinds!of!tools!for!entrepreneurs!to!do!this.”! (Finnemore!and!Sikkink!1998:!900).!These!organizations!rarely!are!able!to!coerce!the! other! actors! into! adopting! a! norm! –! they! must! negotiate! or! persuade.! Before! being! able!to!move!onto!next!stage,!the!relevant!norms!must!be!institutionalized!into!rules! or!organizations.! Once!enough!actors!have!adopted!the!norm,!however,!the!stage!of!norm#cascade!will! be!entered,!during!which!actors!are!motivated!by!a!desire!to!adopt!a!norm!in!order!to! enhance! legitimacy! or! reputation.! In! this! stage,! new! actors! are! motivated! more! by! other! external! actors! than! local! pressure! groups! led! by! local! norm! entrepreneurs.! When! growing! number! of! actors! adopt! the! new! norm,! this! creates! cognitive! dissonance!between!behavior!and!identity!in!non=conforming!actors.!To!retain!one’s! identity,!then,!one!must!adopt!the!norm,!if!the!norm!cascading!is!successful.!The!final! stage! is! called! internalization,! where! the! legal! system,! professional! training,! and! bureaucratic! procedures! incorporate! the! norm.! Any! remaining! non=conforming! actors! adopt! it! simply! to! conform.! The! norm! is! now! so! institutionalized! that! it! becomes! a! matter! of! habit! and! is! taken! for! granted.! It! becomes! part! of! common! knowledge.! This!institutionalization,!however,!does!not!mean!that!only!one!possible!way!forward! exists.! On! the! contrary:! “Actors! may! face! varied! and! conflicting! rules! and! norms! all! making! claims! for! different! courses! of! action.! Indeed,! most! significant! political! choices! are! significant! and! difficult! precisely! because! they! involve! two! or! more! conflicting!claims!for!action!on!a!decision!maker.!Actors!must!choose!which!rules!or! norms! to! follow! and! which! obligations! to! meet! at! the! expense! of! others! in! a! given! situation,! and! doing! so! may! involve! sophisticated! reasoning! processes”! (Finnemore! and! Sikkink! 1998:! 914).! Taking! this! into! account,! the! surprisingly! rapid! spread! of! “right!to!city”!ideas!in!Poland!as!well!as!other!countries,!surely!deserves!our!attention! as!social!scientists.! ! 10! !

Emerging!Field!or!Old!Field!Re4negotiated?! According! to! Strategic! Action! Fields! definition! we! can! distinguish! several! stages! of! movement! formation.! First,! some! specific! problems! or! needs! on! the! local! level! become!an!impulse!to!form!a!local!simple!action!field.!At!this!stage,!when!groups!of! people!(in!our!case!neighbors)!decide!they!have!a!common!goal!and!decide!to!act!on!it,! different! local! SAFs! emerge! independently! in! multiple! localizations! across! the! cities! as!well!as!countries.!After!some!time,!however,!the!autonomous!local!SAFs,!emerging! around! neighborhood! leaders! and! grassroots’! mobilization! have! a! tendency! to! connect! and! create! small! networks,! especially! if! they! are! located! in! geographical! vicinity!(of!the!same!city!or!a!district).!Finally,!with!the!growing!number!of!initiatives! and/or! dominant! player! entering! the! field! (like! leadership! organization! or! networking! event),! the! phase! transition! takes!place.! That’s! when! small! local! players! form! a! common! action! field! around! generalized! goal.! From! that! stage,! we! can! talk! about!shared!frame!for!joint!action!(as!defined!by!Benford!and!Snow!1988,!2000)!and! the!development!of!some!kind!of!structure!that!defines!the!movement!more!clearly.! In! case! of! many! studied! local! initiatives! we! can! observe! the! development! around! those!stages,!although!some!of!the!initiatives!remain!small!scale!and!focused!on!the! neighborhood!level.!!Most!of!them,!however,!developed!along!the!similar!lines!–!from! the!local!particular!goal!(fix!the!street,!build!the!playground,!clean!the!graffiti,!create!a! neighborhood! garden,! stop! the! unwanted! investment)! they! moved! to! a! more! generalized! goal! or! set! of! values! (carrying! about! immediate! urban! environment,! generating! social! capital,! building! local! community,! promote! urban! residents’! wellbeing)!and!finally!express!a!political!goal,!establishing!the!new!set!of!norms!for! the! city! development.! In! case! of! the! studied! urban! movement! those! political! postulates!include!reclaiming!the!public!space!and!access!to!decision=making!and!city! planning.! As! our! qualitative! data! shows,! spontaneous! initiatives! all! over! Poland! were! usually! emerging! as! protests! against! local! authorities,! after! they! announced! some! type! of! unwanted!development,!usually!at!a!price!of!some!of!the!residents’!comfort.!When!the! protest!begun,!many!of!the!active!residents!realized!that!they!have!no!influence!over! the! municipal! decisions,! and! they! started! to! form! local! coalitions! and! networks! to! support!their!claims.!A!breakthrough!was!the!organization!of!first!Urban!Movements! Congress! in! 2011,! which! was! solely! devoted! to! networking! and! sharing! the! experiences! between! local! initiatives.! Also,! at! that! moment,! the! group! of! pragmatic! local! activists! started! to! work! closely! with! a! group! of! intellectuals.! Some! of! the! intellectuals,!we!argue,!played!an!important!role!of!norm!entrepreneurs!(Finnemore! and! Sikkink! 1998)! at! that! stage,! introducing! the! idea! of! the! “right! to! the! city”! (Lefebvre! 1968,! Harvey! 2012),! “uneven! development”! (Smith! 2010)! and! “deep! democracy”!(Appadurai!2001)!to!the!discussion.!From!the!practitioners’!side,!the!idea! of! the! “concrete! narrative”! introduced! by! Mergler! (2008)! became! a! shared! motto,! readily! repeated! and! used! to! frame! their! actions.! Those! slogans! become! the! part! of! the! shared! discourse,! resulting! in! many! publications,! as! well! as! formulation! of! Nine! City!Theses!(2011)!during!the!first!Congress,!including!postulates!for!democratization! and!decommercialization!of!cities!development!strategies.!! Soon!after,!the!government!presented!the!outline!of!National!Urban!Policy,!criticized! during! the! second! Congress! in! 2012,! which! prepared! its! own! proposition! of! the! document! tenets.! Between! the! Congresses,! the! urban! movement! representatives! were!lobbing!for!its!cause!through!publications,!social!media!and!events!focusing!on! 11! !

the!problems!of!the!cities!and!democratic!representation!at!the!local!level.!As!a!result,! at! the! third! Congress! in! 2013,! the! head! of! the! Department! of! Spatial! Development! Policy! presented! the! state! of! affairs! in! respect! to! the! works! around! National! Urban! Policy!and!invited!the!participants!to!take!part!in!the!series!of!workshops!discussing! main!topics!on!which!the!document!is!touching!upon.!It!was!in!accord!with!the!third! Congress! focus! on! the! issues! of! further! lobbing! for! legal! solutions! that! would! strengthen!the!citizens’!voice!at!the!local!level.!! The! visibility! of! the! urban! movement! was! also! strengthened! by! the! series! of! local! referenda! organized! in! several! Polish! cities,! to! overthrow! city! presidents,! who! lost! social! support,! but! managed! to! stay! in! power! due! to! the! political! parties! strong! influence!on!local!politics.!Although!most!of!the!referenda!were!unsuccessful!from!the! point! of! view! of! the! organizers,! they! were! an! important! manifestation! of! power! as! well!as!mobilization!potential!of!urban!initiatives.! Recently,! we! can! talk! about! a! new! important! development,! connected! with! the! upcoming! local! elections! that! will! take! place! in! November! 2014.! While! we! could! already!observe!local!activists!running!for!elections!in!2010,!this!time!they!managed! to! become! serious! alternative! to! the! ruling! political! parties! in! several! cities.! Just! a! week!ago!(July,!8th!2014)!a!new!election!committee!was!publicly!announced!during!a! press! conference! outside! Warsaw! city! hall.! Grassroots’! candidates! to! local! councils! from! six! cities! decided! to! create! a! joint! political! initiative! called! Urban! Movements! Coalition!that!will!support!candidates!all!over!Poland!in!their!attempts!to!be!elected.! Meanwhile,! activists! not! only! seek! to! become! the! part! of! local! government,! but! also! decide! to! take! up! jobs! in! the! city! hall,! introducing! the! movement! ideas! to! its! bureaucratic!structures.! Apart! from! this! growing! political! engagement,! urban! movement! activities! also! concentrate! around! other! issues,! especially! lobbying! for! urban! policy! and! the! introduction! of! legal! changes! in! favor! of! democratization! and! sustainable! urban! development! as! well! as! daily! struggle! for! “every! bush! and! tree,! square,! school! and! kindergarten,! tram,! municipal! building,! a! street,! not! to! mention! bigger! things! –! airports,! housing,! urban! highways,! incinerators”! (Mergler! 2008).! Those! three! main! notions!intertwine!and!are!supported!by!the!intellectual!and!ideological!discussions! about! urban! issues! that! take! place! in! press! and! during! the! numerous! meetings! in! academia!as!well!as!practitioners!circles.! An! important! part! of! constructing! the! social! movement,! as! both! Fligstein! and! McAdam! (2011,! 2012)! and! Benford! and! Snow! (1988,! 2000)! would! argue! is! the! definition!of!boundaries!between!the!movement!and!its!context.!This!differentiation! strategy! is! visible! in! some! of! the! writing! of! urban! leaders.! Most! clearly! visible! in! Mergler! (2008)! writings,! where! he! enumerates! what! is! not! a! part! of! the! urban! movement:! associations! of! professionals! such! as! planners,! architects,! specialists! in! public! transport;! Association! of! Polish! Cities! (or! Metropolitan! Union);! non= governmental!organizations!operating!in!the!city,!but!not!focused!on!urban!issues!(e.g.! ecological,! cultural,! charitable! associations! and! foundations);! as! well! as! clusters! of! young!academics!or!intelligentsia!active!in!the!media,!publishing!on!urban!sociology! and!urban!planning.! To!put!it!more!broadly,!we!can!say!that!the!urban!movements!entered!the!scene!with! new! postulates,! answering! the! burning! question! also! posed! by! theorists! of! globalization!(Sassen!1996):!whose!city!is!it?!The!first!Congress!of!Urban!Movements! 12! !

announced!those!postulates!in!the!form!of!“Nine!Urban!Theses“.!Two!years!later,!in! 2013,!the!second!thesis!about!participative!budget!was!already!being!implemented!in! many! cities! across! Poland.! Thus,! what! for! a! long! time! was! considered! as! an! extravagant! and! exotic! Brazilian! idea! has! recently! become! a! widely! discussed! and! implemented!instrument!of!urban!governance.!Although!critics!like!Bendyk!(2013)!or! Miessen! (2013)! often! point! out! that! this! idea! may! still! be! not! so! much! a! tool! of! democratization!as!a!safety!valve!protecting!the!status!quo,!this!new!tool!of!voicing! the!needs!and!preferences!of!citizens!is!nevertheless!entering!into!force.!It!will!be!an! important! test! not! only! of! the! willingness! of! the! local! authorities! to! work! with! the! citizens,! but! also! of! the! real! strength! of! urban! movement! and! its! ability! to! mobilize! people!to!engage!in!decisions!concerning!their!own!space.! This!strength!is!already!illustrated!in!the!recent!book!published!by!urban!movement! activists! (Mergler,! Pobłocki,! Wudarski! 2013),! which! lists! several! more! or! less! successful!“battles!for!space”,!describing!legal!tools!available!for!citizens!who!want!to! influence! the! decision! making! process! or! protest! against! unwanted! investments! in! their! city.! This! know=how! book! is! in! itself! a! tangible! proof! of! growing! organization! and!professionalization!of!the!movement.!It’s!now!widely!read!and!discussed!not!only! by!the!urban!activists,!but!also!architects,!city!planners!and!local!administration.!! As!our!research!shows,!those!“battles!for!space”!were!crucial!for!emergence!of!urban! grassroots’! initiatives.! From! the! interviewed! activists! point! of! view,! the! common! space! constitutes! a! specific! point! of! reference! and! a! context! for! fulfillment! of! everyday! needs! of! the! residents,! uniting! them! in! a! very! practical! manner! –! the! necessity! to! share! the! common! space! turns! it! almost! automatically! into! a! common! good! and! a! shared! value.! Thus,! space! can! be! understood! as! the! classical! “common= pool!resource”,!in!the!sense!Elinor!Ostrom!uses!to!describe!resources!as!groundwater! pools,!forests,!fisheries!or!grazing!lands.!In!her!book!dedicated!to!governance!of!the! CPR,! Ostrom! (1990)! opts! for! economic! benefits! of! introduction! of! the! possibility! of! such! goods! to! be! administered! not! by! the! state! or! the! market,! but! by! the! local! communities,!outside!of!markets!as!well!as!public!sector!bodies,!using!and!developing! their! own! institutional! governance! solutions.! This! is! a! theme! carried! further! by! Ostrom!in!her!Nobel!Prize!lecture!where!she!stresses!the!importance!of!poly=centric! governance!arrangements!in!complex!economic!systems!(Ostrom!2009).! On!the!other!hand,!however,!the!space,!which!we!use!every!day,!becomes!something! obvious!and!unseen,!which!often!leads!to!a!situation,!in!which!its!inhabitants!are!no! longer!able!to!notice!the!existing!problems.!They!either!accept!them!or!are!convinced! that! nothing! can! be! done.! The! sense! of! lack! of! responsibility! for! the! urban! space! undoubtedly!also!stems!from!the!belief!that!it!is!a!common!space,!and!thus!nobody’s! space,!usually!remaining!under!management!of!some!official!institutions!–!the!district! or!city!authorities!or!the!homeowner!association,!housing!cooperative!or!the!investor.! This! dispersion! of! responsibility! is! strengthened! by! the! popular! belief! that! “our”! space!begins!at!the!threshold!of!our!private!apartment.!This!often!leads!to!a!situation! in!which!problems!associated!with!public!and!semi=public!space!are!defined!as!issues! that!should!be!solved!by!somebody!else!–!local!official,!policeman,!cleaning!services,! or! a! housing! cooperative.! As! data! indicates,! that’s! why! the! shape! and! the! physical! form!of!the!common!space!matters!in!this!respect.!If!the!space!between!the!buildings! is!separated!from!purely!public!space,!and!the!group!of!residents!who!use!this!space! on!everyday!basis!is!clearly!defined!the!easier!it!is!to!mobilize!this!group!around!local! initiatives! and! protection! of! such! space.! It! is! much! easier! to! engage! in! activity! on! 13! !

behalf! of! common! space,! if! it! is! sufficiently! friendly! and! private! to! be! treated! as! the! extension!of!privately!owned!space.!This!is!the!case!of!internal!backyards!and!squares,! separated! more! or! less! visibly! from! the! street.! The! sense! of! ownership! of! a! given! space!seems!to!be!the!key!factor,!motivating!local!residents!to!act!for!its!sake!and!to! assume!responsibility!for!it’s!quality.!! In!this!context!we!can!also!use!Benford!and!Snow!(2000)!concept!to!discuss!how!the! space!ownership!is!framed!or!re=framed!and!by!whom.!What!from!the!one!hand!looks! like! taking! responsibility! for! shared! space! can! as! well! be! a! way! to! „re=frame“! an! existing! public! space! into! semi=public! or! even! semi=private! one,! creating! new! exclusion!patterns.!This!seems!to!be!the!case!in!many!middle=class!initiatives,!which! focus! on! making! the! neighborhood! more! aesthetic! and! exclusive,! and! defending! the! space!from!the!negative!influence!of!“unwanted!inhabitants”,!poor!and!marginalized! members!of!local!community.! Typical! for! the! course! of! various! initiatives! is! the! preliminary! focus! around! a! single! problem!or!need,!which!then!may,!although!does!not!have!to,!“spill!over”!and!inspire! different!types!of!activities.!Research!on!initiatives!shows!that!the!greatest!potential! for!integration!of!inhabitants!and!generating!of!social!capital,!which!may!then!serve! as!fuel!for!further!group!action,!is!a!situation!of!an!acute!conflict!and!direct!threat!to! interests! of! the! local! residents.! Dissatisfaction! of! the! residents,! however,! is! usually! not!sufficient!for!an!initiative!to!emerge!–!this!requires!a!leader!(much!less!frequently! a!group),!who!decides!to!counteract!the!undesirable!situation!and!organize!the!joint! efforts.! The!potential!for!mobilization,!associated!with!emergence!of!a!common!enemy,!is!not! something!new;!however,!it!is!worth!noting!that!very!often!this!negative!motivation! gives! the! initial! impulse! for! changes! in! the! neighborhood.! According! to! Mergler! (2012),! one! of! the! basic! barriers! preventing! activation! of! the! inhabitants! is! the! diversity! of! interests! and! preferences! that! they! represent.! Frequently,! one! person,! due! to! his/her! various! traits,! represents! conflicting! preferences! –! an! example! here! may!be!a!situation,!in!which,!as!drivers,!we!need!sufficient!number!of!parking!lots!in! the!neighborhood,!and!at!the!same!time,!as!parents!of!small!children,!we!would!prefer! to!live!in!a!location,!in!which!playgrounds!are!developed!instead!of!parking!lots.!If!we! experience!this!type!of!conflicting!interests!internally,!it’s!no!surprise!they!are!much! more!acute!between!representatives!of!the!local!community,!who!differ!in!age,!gender,! education,!income,!family!status!and!so!on.! What!makes!it!possible!to!act!together!in!this!typical!situation!of!conflicting!interests,! it! what! Mergler! calls! „concrete! narrative”! (Mergler! 2012).! It! describes! the! situation! when,!through!focusing!on!a!certain!concrete!component!of!the!common!space,!which! requires!intervention!or!protection,!even!a!highly!diverse!group!of!people!can!build! the!idea!of!common!interests!around!it.!Focusing!on!a!specific!matter!(protection!of!a! square,!cleaning!of!a!dirty!backyard,!elimination!of!a!troublesome!night!club)!allows! for!joint!action!of!persons!representing!very!different!views!and!conflicting!interests.! Concrete! narrative! or,! in! other! words,! discussion! on! a! specific! component! of! the! common! everyday! reality,! allows! people! to! focus! on! solving! a! real! and! shared! problem!of!local!residents,!avoiding!discussions!of!ideological!or!symbolic!nature.! Particularly! because! it! turns! out! that! persons! or! groups! displaying! polarized! views! often!share!the!same!postulates!at!the!specific!narration!levels.!In!other!words,!if!we! 14! !

do! not! talk! about! the! principles,! but! about! specific! problems! or! threats,! effective! cooperation! is! possible! within! a! much! broader! group! of! residents! as! well! as! other! local!agents!or!institutions.!Still,!a!leader!able!to!bringing!those!wider!principles!into! the!project!is!needed.!More!importantly,!the!cooperation!based!on!concrete!narrative! often!brings!an!additional!benefit!of!increased!tolerance!or!openness!to!the!views!of! others!as!a!result!of!getting!to!know!each!other!better!or!appreciating!the!benefits!of! overcoming!the!differences.! In! the! case! of! the! examined! grassroots’! initiatives,! we! are! usually! dealing! with! a! scheme,! in! which! appearance! of! a! leader! allows! for! mobilization! around! a! common! problem! to! transform! dissatisfaction! or! theoretical! postulates! into! action.! A! leader! usually! mobilizes! the! group! around! the! common! problem! –! usually,! however,! they! also! notice! the! broader! potential! benefits! of! activity! in! the! neighborhood.! The! presence!of!a!leader!seems!to!be!decisive!for!emergence!of!the!„bubble”!of!activity!in!a! given!neighborhood.!The!basic!role!of!a!leader!is!to!initiate!a!certain!kind!of!activity! by!giving!example!of!they!own!activity.!In!the!case!of!the!initiatives!examined,!such! first! impulse! was,! for! instance,! cleaning! of! a! backyard,! painting! of! the! elevation,! planting!of!trees!or!hanging!“protest!posters”!by!the!leader.!The!second!stage,!during! which! the! role! of! the! leader! is! also! very! significant,! is! the! defining! of! the! existing! situation! or! a! problem! as! a! common! cause! of! all! residents,! through! showing! the! benefits! of! joint! action! or! threats! associated! with! inactivity.! For! this! purpose,! the! leaders!often!attempt!to!reach!other!inhabitants!personally!–!by!doing!door=to=door,! talking!to!the!neighbors.!At!present,!increasingly!often,!they!also!use!the!social!media! to! popularize! their! cause! via! Facebook,! blogs! or! specific! web! pages.! Various! announcements,! posters! and! flyers,! encouraging! others! to! act! together,! are! also! helpful! at! this! stage.! It! seems,! however,! that! during! the! first! stage,! establishing! personal! contact! with! other! residents! is! the! most! effective! solution;! the! trust! build! during! those! encounters! can! be! then! maintained! through! less! personal! means! like! formal!announcements!or!electronic!media.! The! initial! focus! of! activity! of! the! neighbors! around! a! single! problem! or! initiative! is! often!translated!to!further!actions,!particularly!if!the!cooperation!so!far!has!brought! some!measurable!effect.!The!sense!of!effectiveness!provides!the!group!with!a!sense!of! direction! and! often! serves! as! a! basis! for! building! of! the! group! identity! through! the! shared!story!of!successful!activities.!Moreover,!defining!of!quality!of!a!given!space!as! a!common!good,!which!one!may!influence,!results!in!transformation!of!the!informal! initiative!into!a!specific!group!of!interest.!Although!we!could!expect!that!after!a!given! problem! is! solved! or! a! threat! is! eliminated,! the! group! would! become! inactive,! it! usually! turns! out! that! there! are! many! other! matters! worth! taking! care! of! together.! Willingness!to!keep!acting!seems!to!be!a!function!of!trust!enjoyed!by!the!leader!and! faith!of!the!inhabitants!in!their!own!potential!as!a!group.!! ! Conclusions! Using! qualitative! data! concerning! several! urban! initiatives! in! Warsaw! and! other! Polish!cities,!we!claim!that!urban!unrest!can!be!viewed!as!a!distinct!field,!as!defined! by!Fligstein!and!McAdam!(2012),!where!the!involved!actors!interact!around!a!set!of! more! or! less! distinct! rules! of! the! game,! in! a! social! landscape! that! has! formed! and! developed!in!the!intersection!of,!as!well!as!by!the!tensions!generated!by,!a!number!of!

15! !

earlier! and! more! established! fields.! In! this! process,! we! argue! that! we! can! already! observe! the! process! of! “field=maturing”,! with! a! number! of! already! well=established! main!actors!and!common!definitions!emerging,!although!the!field!in!itself!is!far!from! being! institutionalized.! On! the! other! hand,! since! there! is! not! yet! one! dominant! discourse! and! even! the! language! and! terminology! of! what! is! going! on! is! still! developing,! clear! tensions! exist! between! different! parts! and! actors! of! this! rather! heterogeneous!movement!which!can!be!understood!as!an!on=going!negotiation!of!the! boundaries! as! well! as! the! core! of! the! field.! Also,! a! growing! division! between! formal! and!informal!local!urban!initiatives!can!be!observed,!which!could!be!interpreted!as!a! backlash!against!growing!NGO=isation!of!civil!sector!in!Poland!(Graff!2010,!Korolczuk! 2011).! The! “Right! to! the! city”! movement! develops! rapidly! in! Poland! in! the! shadow! of! a! growing! marketization! of! the! cities! as! well! as! a! result! of! an! increased! mobility! (the! influx!of!people!to!the!cities!from!other!parts!of!the!country)!and!individualization!of! Polish!society.!The!accelerated!urban!development,!that!took!place!since!the!shift!to! market! economy,! was! characterized! by! the! loss! of! control! by! planners! and! lack! of! long=term!reflection!on!the!changing!and!future!needs!of!the!residents.! The!main!reason!for!this!lack!of!vision!of!the!city,!as!claimed!by!both!activists,!urban! planners! or! journalists! (Buczek! 2006,! Kosiewski! and! Przybylski! 2012,! Domaradzki! 2013,!Mergler!et!al.!2013)!is!that!authorities!abandoned!the!role!of!an!investor!in!the! cities!–!so!the!city!development!is!mostly!governed!by!market!actors!and!forces.!The! main! result! of! this! “invisible! hand”! of! the! market! regulation! of! the! development! of! cities!in!Poland!today!is!experienced!by!their!citizens!as!a!decline!in!the!quality!of!life! in! urban! areas! (slums,! suburbanization,! etc).! In! this! context,! grassroots! activists! argue! that! the! changing! nature! of! cities! requires! an! open! discussion! and! urgent! intervention,! involving! city! residents! in! the! decision=making! processes,! as! they! are! the!primary!“users”!of!the!city.! To!summarize,!in!this!paper,!we!posit!that!a!number!of!citizens’!initiatives!in!Warsaw! as! well! as! other! cities! in! Poland! should! be! understood! as! part! of! a! larger,! possibly! transnational,!(re)emerging!social!movement!for!urban!renewal.!We!argue!that!these! initiatives! should! be! understood! as! a! new! form! of! citizens’! struggle! for! increased! influence!over!their!urban!environment!in!this!city,!a!struggle!in!a!field!(Fligstein!and! McAdam!2012)!where!a!variety!of!actors!take!part!–!public!sector!(the!city),!for=profit! corporations! (urban! developers! as! well! as! retail! capital)! and! civil! society! (urban! activist!initiatives!and!associations)!–!and!also!have!different!interests!in!the!game!of! the! city! (Domaradzka! 2014:! 4).! Not! only! are! these! initiatives! part! of! a! wider! movement,!we!also!find!some!of!them!at!the!center!of!a!process!where!old!boundaries! and!previous!understandings!are!renegotiated!and!where!it!is!“the!changing!contours! of!common!knowledge!that!are!the!object!of!the!game”!(Finnemore!and!Sikkink!1998:! 911),! at! least! for! some! of! the! actors.! We! analyze! these! initiatives! in! this! paper! as! a! form! of! “norm! entrepreneurs”! (ibid.)! in! what! we! view! as! an! emerging! or! at! least! renegotiated!strategic!action!field,!to!speak!with!Fligstein!and!McAdam!(2011;!2012).! From! our! perspective,! one! of! the! most! central! contours! or! borders! now! being! re= negotiated!by!these!groups!is!where!the!boundary!between!private!and!public!should! be!re=drawn!in!the!new!social!contract!of!the!city,!thus!our!over=arching!question!or! concern! whether! this! should! be! understood! as! a! transformation! towards! a! more! semi=public! or! semi=private! state! of! the! affairs! than! before.! New! paths! and! recently! opened! fields! emerge! in! the! social! urban! landscape,! offering! new! spaces! for! old! as! 16! !

well! as! emerging! actors.! At! the! same! time! previous! paths! and! openings! become! overgrown,!forcing!some!of!the!residents!to!change!their!living!patterns!or!strategies.! In! the! light! of! a! slowly! retreating! public! city! administration! in! combination! with! a! steadily! growing! interest! from! commercial! developers,! the! new! urban! borderland! between!the!public!and!the!private!sphere!is!slowly!being!re=negotiated!in!a!growing! number!of!Polish!cities,!potentially!with!a!number!of!much!smaller!and!more!recent! civil! society! initiatives! appearing! at! the! margins! of! those! negotiations.! The! strategic! behavior!of!these!new!actors,!and!their!capacity!to!form!alliances!and!strike!bargains,! has!the!potential!to!affect!the!development!and!in!this!approach!we!follow!Finnemore! and!Sikkink!(1998:!911)!in!their!conviction!that!“processes!of!social!construction!and! strategic!bargaining!are!deeply!intertwined”.! While!our!paper!focuses!on!the!Polish!context,!we!would!argue!that!the!ideas!present! in! the! national! field! of! urban! unrest! are! also! a! part! of! a! global! “right! to! the! city”! movement.! Based! on! the! available! data,! we! could! observe! how! the! postulates! of! “reclaiming! the! city”! –! both! in! terms! of! public! space! and! political! debate! –! were! popularized! in! Poland! by! a! group! of! “norm! entrepreneurs”,! active! through! existing! international! networks! of! urban! researchers! and! activists! and! their! efforts! to! translate!the!core!arguments!of!the!global!movement!and!debate!into!a!Polish!context! and!reality!(Sahlin!and!Wedlin!2008).!Thus,!both!the!theoretical!framework!and!the! empirical! conclusions! create! a! good! starting! point! also! for! analyzing! the! wider! international! development! of! what! we! may! suspect! to! be! a! new! or! possibly! altered! strategic!action!field!of!urban!unrest!and!citizens’!activism.! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

17! !

! References! Appadurai,! A.! (2001).! Deep! democracy:! urban! governmentality! and! the! horizon! of! politics,! Environment#&#Urbanization,!Vol.!13,!No!2.! Bailey,!S.!J.!(1995).!Public#Sector#Economics:#Theory,#Policy#and#Practice,!London:!MacMillan.! Barometr# współpracy! (2009).! Survey! “Barometer! of! cooperation”! conducted! by! Foundation! for! Development! of! Local! Democracy! and! KLON/JAWOR! between! 2000! and! 2009.! http://wiadomosci.ngo.pl/wiadomosci/543144.html!! Bendyk,!E.!(2013).!Na!Kongres!Ruchów!Miejskich!http://antymatrix.blog.polityka.pl/!2013/10/11/na= kongres=ruchow=miejskich/! Benford,! R.D.,! Snow,! D.A.! (2000).! Framing! Process! and! Social! Movements:! An! Overview! and! Assessment.!Annual#Review#of#Sociology,!26,!611–39.! Buczek,! G.! (2006).! Czy! Warszawa! staje! się! miastem! trzeciego! świata?,! Studia# Regionalne# i# Lokalne,! 4(26)/2006,!68=83.! Domaradzka,!A.!(2014).!Changing!the!Rules!of!the!Game:!Impact!of!the!Urban!Movement!on!the!Public! Administration!Practices,!in:!M.!Freise,!F.!Paulsen,!A.!Walter!(eds.)!Civil#Society#and#Innovative#Public# Administration.!Baden=Baden:!Nomos!Publishers!(in#print)! Domaradzka,!A.!(2010).!Filling!the!Gaps?!The!Role!of!Civil!Society!on!the!Individual!Level:!The!Case!of! Polish! Women’s! Organizations,! in:! M.! Freise,! M.! Pyykkönen,! E.! Vaidelyte! (eds)! A# Panacea# for# all# Seasons?#Civil#Society#and#Governance#in#Europe,!Baden=Baden:!Nomos!Publishers,!287=303.! Domaradzki,! K.! (2013).! Przestrzeń# Warszawy# –# tożsamość# miasta# a# urbanistyka,! Warszawa:! Oficyna! Wydawnicza!Politechniki!Warszawskiej.! Evers,!A.!(1995).!Part!of!the!welfare!mix:!the!third!sector!as!an!intermediate!area,!Voluntas,!6!(2),!159– 182.! Finnemore,! M.,! Sikkink,! K.! (1998).! International! Norm! Dynamics! and! Political! Change.! International# Organization,!52,!4,!Autumn!1998,!887–917.! Fligstein,! N.,! McAdam,! D.! (2011).! Toward! a! General! Theory! of! Strategic! Action! Fields.! Sociological# Theory,!29:1,!March!2011,!1=26.! Fligstein,!N.,!McAdam,!D.!(2012).!A#Theory#of#Fields.!New!York:!Oxford!University!Press.! Graff,!A.!(2010).!!Urzędasy,!bez!serc,!bez!ducha,!Gazeta#Wyborcza,!6.01.2010.! Harvey,!D.!(2012).!Rebel#Cities:#From#the#Right#to#the#City#to#the#Urban#Revolution.!Verso!Books.! Jacobsson,! K.! (ed.)! (2013).! Beyond# NGO_ization.# The# Development# of# Social# Movements# in# Central# and# Eastern#Europe.!Ashgate.! Korolczuk,! E.! (2011).! Problem! z! ngoizacją.! Debata! na! temat! społeczeństwa! obywatelskiego! w! Polsce.! Polityka#Społeczna.!Vol.!5=6,!240=259.! Kosiewski,! P.,! Przybylski,! W.! (2012).! Źle! się! dzieje! w! mieście! polskim.! Gazeta#Wyborcza,! 27.12.2012.! http://wyborcza.pl/1,75968,13107415,Zle_sie_dzieje_w_miescie_polskim__Brak_wizji_modernizacyj nej.html! Kowalewski,! M.! (2013).! Organizowanie! miejskiego! aktywizmu! w! Polsce:! Kongres! Ruchów! Miejskich.! Przestrzeń#Społeczna,!2(6),!99=124.! Krier,!L.!(2009).!The#Architecture#of#Community.!Island!Press.! Kurnicki,!K.!(2013).!(Nowe)!ruchy!miejskie!w!Polsce!–!w!stronę!socjologicznego!opisu.!Trzeci#sector,!no.! 31!(3/2013)!Warszawa:!Instytut!Spraw!Publicznych,!12=24.! Lefebvre,!H.!(1968).!Le#Droit#à#la#Ville.!Paris:!Anthropos.! Martin,!J.!L.!(2003).!What!is!Field!Theory?!American#Journal#of#Sociology,!Vol.!109:1,!1=49.! Mergler,!L.!(2008).!Poznań#Konfliktów,!Poznań:!Wydawnictwo!Lepszy!Świat.!

18! !

Mergler,!L.!(2012).!Dyskusje:#My_Poznaniacy#–#demokracja#miejska#–#polityka,!presented!at!the!meeting! of!My=Poznaniacy!Association!in!February!2012.! Mergler,!L.,!Pobłocki,!K.,!Wudarski!(2013).!Anty_Bezradnik#przestrzenny:#prawo#do#miasta#w#działaniu.! Warszawa:!Res!Publica!Nowa.! Miessen,!M.!(2013).!Koszmar#partycypacji.!Warszawa:!Bęc!Zmiana.! Ministry! of! Infrastructure! and! Development! (2014).! Krajowa# Polityka# Miejska# –# projekt,# wersja# I# [National! Urban! Policy! –! draft,! version! 1].! http://www.mir.gov.pl/fundusze/Fundusze! _Europejskie_2014_2020/Documents/Krajowa_Polityka_Miejska_wersja_I_27032014.pdf! Nawratek,!K.!(2012).!Holes#In#The#Whole:#Introduction#to#the#Urban#Revolutions.!Zero!Books.! Nine#City#Theses!(2011).!!http://kongresruchowmiejskich.pl/?page_id=18! Ostrom,! E.! (1990).! Governing# the# Commons.# The# Evolution# of# Institutions# for# Collective# Action.! Cambridge!University!Press.! Ostrom,! E.! (2009).! Beyond# Markets# and# States:# Polycentric# Governance# of# Complex# Economic# Systems,! Prize!Lecture!December!8,!2009,!Workshop!in!Political!theory!and!Policy!analysis,!indiana!University.! www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economic=sciences/laureates/2009/ostrom_lecture.pdf! Pestoff,! V.,! Brandsen,! T.! (eds.)! (2009).! Co_Production.# The# Third# Sector# and# the# Delivery# of# Public# Services,!London:!Routledge.! Pluciński,! P.! (2013).! Miejskie! (r)ewolucje.! Radykalizm! retoryki! a! praktyka! reformy.! Praktyka# Teoretyczna,!3(9)/2013.!http://www.praktykateoretyczna.pl/czasopismo/miejskie=rewolucje/!! Putnam,! R.! D.! (2000).! Bowling# Alone:# The# Collapse# and# Revival# of# American# Community.! New! York:! Simon!&!Schuster.! Sahlin,! K.,! Wedlin,! L.! (2008).! Circulating! Ideas:! Imitation,! Translation! and! Editing,! in:! Royston! Greenwood,! R.,! Oliver,! C.,! Suddaby,! R.! and! Sahlin,! K.! (Eds.)! The# SAGE# Handbook# of# Organizational# Institutionalism,!New!York:!SAGE.! Salamon! L.! M.! (1987).! Of! Market! Failure,! Voluntary! Failure,! and! Third=Party! Government,! Journal#of# Voluntary#Action#Research,!16!(1).! Sassen,!S.!(1996).!Whose!City!Is!It?!Globalization!and!the!Formation!of!New!Claims.!Public#Culture,!8,! 205=223.! Sekuła,!E.!(2009).!Niczyje!jest!miasto?,!in:!Czyje#jest#miasto?,!ed.!B.!Jałowiecki!et.!al,!Warszawa:!Scholar.! Siemieńska,! R.,! Domaradzka,! A.,! Matysiak,! I.! (2011).! Local# welfare# in# Poland# from# a# historical# and# institutional# perspective.! WILCO! Publication! no.! 09.! http://wilcoproject.eu/public/assets! /img/uploads/WILCO_WP2_reports_09_PL.pdf! Smith,! N.! (2010).! Uneven# development:# nature,# capital,# and# the# production# of# space,# trzecie# wydanie,! Verso,!London!2010.! Snow,! D.! A.,! Benford,! R.D.! (1988).! Ideology,! frame,! resonance,! and! participant! mobilization.! International#Social#Movement#Research,!1,!197–218.! Touraine,!A.!(2013).!Po#kryzysie.!Warszawa:!Oficyna!Naukowa.!! Wybieralski,! M.! (2014).! Partyzanci! miejscy.! Lud! rządzi! ułamkami.! Gazeta# Wyborcza,! 13.03.2014.! http://wyborcza.pl/duzyformat/1,136810,15604176,Partyzanci_miejscy__Lud_rzad! zi_ulamkami.html!

!

19! !