Democratization of Architecture

This second dialogue was one between speakers with opposing views. They both represent – or advocate for – a different system, a different world, and also employ a different language and strategy. One explained the history, whilst the other looked to the future. The dialogue, which was somewhat strained as a result, reflected this.

In 2008, Adri Duivesteijn won the Grote Maaskant Prize for his political and social commitment to self-management and self-build in spatial planning. The award ceremony took place during an uncertain period marked by bank collapses. In the ensuing crisis, the construction industry came to a screeching halt, whilst self-build, private commissioning and citizens’ initiatives gained momentum. Over the course of those ten years, academic research into bottom-up initiatives has also developed, which is why the Rotterdam-Maaskant Foundation invited Beitske Boonstra to join the discussion.

Beitske Boonstra is the founder of the research and consultancy firm BecomingPlanner and also works part-time as a research fellow at Ghent University, in the Department of Mobility and Spatial Planning (AMRP). Her research focuses on citizens’ initiatives in the spatial domain, cooperative forms of urban development and the associated governance capacities.

The dialogue therefore centred on the role of private individuals and residents in urban development in the present, past and future. In reality, the time periods overlapped, but for the sake of clarity, the conversation has been arranged in chronological order from 1945 to the future.