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Nine - Civic cultures and modalities of place-making
- Edited by Ian Hargreaves, Cardiff University, John Hartley, Curtin University
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- Book:
- The Creative Citizen Unbound
- Published by:
- Bristol University Press
- Published online:
- 01 September 2022
- Print publication:
- 06 April 2016, pp 205-230
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- Chapter
- Export citation
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Summary
Introduction
Acts of creative citizenship require places, where challenges and tensions generate energy, inviting resolution through creative collaboration. In this chapter we aim to shed light on processes of place-making, whether they occur in physical, digital or hybrid spaces. We adopt a broad definition of place to explore what place and making mean within three urban settings of our action research. In all three of these locations, we encounter groups that share an interest in the relationship between artistic imagination and its political expression in projects of urban renewal. We pay particular attention to the ways in which communicative infrastructures may contribute to the construction of social relationships and civic agency, leading to dividends in the form of enhanced networks of affinity, trust and resilience.
Place and media making in a digital world
The emergence of web-based community news sites has provoked much discussion about the citizen voice in localities (Radcliffe, 2012; Goggin et al, 2015). Hyperlocal news services are usually discussed in relation to their value as a potential solution to the problem of news plurality in localities. However, hyperlocal news can also play a crucial role in place-making. Kirsty Hess (2012) has argued that the emergence of the term hyperlocal is evidence of ‘a reinvigorated interest in geography, as media industry and entrepreneurs experiment with new business models in the changing technological landscape’ (Hess, 2012: 53). Borrowing from Manuel Castells, she argues that small local newspapers act as nodes, holding ‘a degree of symbolic power in constructing the idea of community and the local’ (Hess, 2012: 56). In a digitally networked world, geography is ‘local and global at the same time’ (Castells, 2012: 222).
The perspective of place is also fundamental within the broader landscape of participatory media/arts and community media. Goldfarb (2002) shows how participatory creative networks generate communities of interest, fostering civic engagement through their media making. As Couldry et al (2014: 1) write: ‘digital media and digital infrastructures provide the means to recognise people in new ways as active narrators of their individual lives and the issues they share with others’. These affordances are said to be particularly important for young people, who through creative media acts acquire agency in civic debates (Günnel, 2006), offering a ‘voice to the voiceless’ (Lewis P., 2006).
Eight - Asset mapping and civic creativity
- Edited by Ian Hargreaves, Cardiff University, John Hartley, Curtin University
-
- Book:
- The Creative Citizen Unbound
- Published by:
- Bristol University Press
- Published online:
- 01 September 2022
- Print publication:
- 06 April 2016, pp 181-204
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Introduction
Throughout this book creative citizenship is explored theoretically and empirically as a concept that intrinsically leads to value generation. Acts of creative citizenship bring personal, cultural, economic, social and civic benefits, not only to individuals and communities directly involved in these acts, but also to the wider public. So, hyperlocal blogs may generate income for amateur journalists but also benefit local residents and businesses through communicating and raising awareness about issues that affect them, ranging from the weather and local services to political and planning issues (Nesta, 2013). Similarly, the benefits of community-led design enhance social value through civic participation, more democratic outcomes, creation of public goods, improved social capital and stronger community. In boosting qualities such as self-expression, confidence and skills, they also generate personal value. (Alexiou et al, 2013).
The Creative Citizen project is concerned not only with understanding and capturing current practice and its value, as enacted through the use of different media, but also exploring how this pursuit of value can be further supported and advanced.
One of the instruments we used to explore questions of value was asset mapping. In community engagement and community development theory and practice, the term ‘asset’ has long been used as an alternative for the term ‘value’. Assets are tangible or intangible resources that have a potential – they can grow or be better used to achieve something new. Drawing from the strengths of different existing approaches, asset mapping was innovatively used in the Creative Citizen project both as an analytic research tool for capturing people's values and perceptions of value, and as a practical tool to support community engagement and co-creation.
The chapter reviews different asset mapping or asset-based development approaches and presents the approach developed and used in the Creative Citizen project, discussing theoretical and methodological insights. The chapter links to Chapter 4, which is focused on appraising and articulating the value of creative citizenship through the lens of cultural value.
Approaches to asset mapping
Asset mapping is a methodology used with community groups and organisations to help unearth, capture and visualise existing resources and capacities, which may otherwise lie undiscovered and underused.