Spatial justice
From Geography
The concept of spatial justice emphasizes the necessity to add a spatial perspective to the understanding of social justice. The term has only recently emerged in the scientific debate and addresses all scales of geography, in theory ánd practice.
"Thinking spatially about justice not only enriches our theoretical understanding, it can uncover significant new insights that extend our practical knowledge into more effective actions to achieve greater justice and democracy." (The city and spatial justice, Soja, E.,2008)
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Examples
One example of spatial justice is the railroad between Nijmegen (The Netherlands) and Kleve (Germany). The railroad is situated over the Dutch-German Border and runs through the village of Groesbeek. Groesbeek does not want the train driving over the rails through Groesbeek because they think it is an infringement on the environment. This reaction can be seen as othering. With this case Groesbeek defines itself as normal, it classifies itself as higher than the other environment. Groesbeek thus defines itself in the position that it is the most important in this case.
Another example of spatial justice is the dutch squatting movement. Citizens of dutch cities claimed the right to occupy abandoned buildings, to prevent the property owners of keeping all this space for themselves while at the same time, the Netherlands were facing major problems of housing all dutch citizens. The dutch squatting movement was at his top in the 1980's. Until october 2010 squatting was legalised in the Netherlands, now it is considered a crime like it is in most countries. (For further reading see: Mamadouh, V.D. (1992). De stad in eigen hand: Provo's, kabouters en krakers als stedelijke sociale beweging Universiteit van Amsterdam)
A very 'green' example of the concept of spatial justice is now florishing amongst citizens who feel there is a lack of nature in urban areas, including urban artists and designers: Guerilla Gardening. The idea of Guerilla Gardening is to change the stony urban landscape into a greener and more pleasant environment. This can result in all kinds of green interventions in the public domain, normally without official permission of the local government. Many Guerilla gardening networks can be found online as they (i.a.) connect through social media, but a feature of Guerilla gardening is that it also includes very small-scale interventions that can be done by individuals.
Further reading
- Soja, E., (2010). Seeking spatial justice. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press
References
- Soja, E. (2008). The city and spatial justice. (Paper prepared for and associated with the conference Spatial Justice, Nanterre, Paris, March 12-14, 2008 www.jssj.org)
Editors
- Page created by Isis Boot --IsisBoot 20:23, 3 October 2012 (CEST)
- Page enhanced by Lieke Vogels --LiekeVogels 15:54, 24 October 2012
- Examples enhanced by Isis Boot --IsisBoot 15:10, 26 October 2012 (CEST)
