As a board member of Placemaking Europe, I have had the privilege of following and participating in the Cities in Placemaking-programme. My own role during the sessions is best described as elusive. But my ambition has always been to share my own experiences – not as a civil servant but rather as both a former politician and, perhaps most importantly, as a practitioner of placemaking.
As a fly on the wall, participating in the programme was a strangely welcomed reminder of my own experiences when trying to introduce placemaking into a municipal system. To challenge an existing system, a status que and the silos protecting the static foundation it is based upon does not win you any popularity contests.
Placemaking as civil servant is more often the province of solitude than the source of collective praise. And the struggle of being taken seriously in an unpredictable and mosaic landscape of stakeholders, strangely orchestrated budget processes and highly unpredictable politicians.
Let´s be honest, there is nothing, light, quick or cheap about governing a city. Yet, placemaking works! It makes cities and communities strive, along with ideas, inspiration and inclusion. And if you ask me, it makes cities happier. And to be able to bring people together that truly believe that placemaking has a possibility to change cities for the better, and to strengthen the narrative to build a common vision, has been an extraordinary rewarding experience.
As someone who have spent a large part of my career promoting placemaking, I can honestly say that I have failed far more times than I have won. But if my endeavors resulted in losing a battle or two, the very existence of Cities in Placemaking meant that perhaps we are winning the war.
Anyone who has the courage to introduces a simple idea to solve a complex issue will always be questioned. But I truly believe that the future of a sustainable urban lifestyle should be founded on simple ideas formulated and shared by the people who populate our cities.
To me, that is placemaking.
