Urbanizing degrowth: Five steps towards a Radical Spatial Degrowth Agenda for planning in the face of climate emergency. (May 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kaika, Maria; Varvarousis, Angelos; Demaria, Federico; March, Hug
• Other Names: Kaika Maria guest-editor.; Varvarousis Angelos guest-editor.; Demaria Federico guest-editor.; March Hug guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Urban studies. Volume 60:Number 7(2023)
• Page Start: 1191
• Page End: 1211
• Publication Date: 2023-05
• Subjects: degrowth -- imaginaries -- planning -- postgrowth -- urban political ecology; 去增长 -- 想象 -- 规划 -- 后增长 -- 城市政治生态学; Cities and towns -- Periodicals; City planning -- Periodicals; 307.1216
• DOI: 10.1177/00420980231162234
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0042-0980

Abstract

We call for coupling degrowth with urban studies and planning agendas as an academically salient and politically urgent endeavour. Our aim is threefold: to explore ways for 'operationalising' degrowth concepts into urban and regional everyday spatial practices; to sketch pathways for taking degrowth conceptually and methodologically beyond localised experiments and inform larger scale planning practices and international agendas; and to critically assess the multiple ways in which such a radical urban degrowth agenda will have to differ in the Global North and in the Global South. We outline five steps for such a programmatic, yet paradigmatic, urban degrowth agenda. These are: (1) grounding current degrowth debates within their historical–geographical context; (2) engaging (planning) institutions in linking degrowth practices to urbanisation policies; (3) examining how urban insurgent degrowth alliances can be scaled up without co-optation; (4) focusing on the role of experts and professionals in bringing degrowth principles into everyday urban practice; and (5) prefiguring how degrowth agendas can confront the diverse and unequal urban social relations and uneven outcomes in the Global North and South.