The City as a Commons

About

A truly inter-disciplinary and intensive course where you will engage with a number of different activities including guest lectures, fieldwork, design-oriented sessions.
You will become part of an exciting research project, where a number of scholars and practitioners will discuss meanings, dimensions and governance of urban commons in contemporary cities. You will work in multi-national teams, and guided by a team of tutors and scholars.
You are expected to contribute to your team final presentation, and produce theoretical reflections as well as practice based knowledge, depending on your background. You will be exposed to high quality research through introductory lectures and the chance to attend a Research Symposium that will run in parallel to the Summer School for one day and a half (you can check the separate Call for participation and overarching theme in the Research Symposium section here: http://cityascommons.unipv.it/researchsymposium2019/). Keynote lectures will also be available for student to attend.
We will support you in defining an innovative methodology to identify, map and investigate urban commons in and around the city of Pavia. The city of Milan (30 Km from Pavia) will also provide case studies and precedents for students to look at or visit with their team.
Undergraduate and postgraduate students from various backgrounds are welcome, in particular from disciplines such as: Geography, Sociology, History, Economy, Art&Humanities, Creative Practices, Photography, Architecture, Urbanism, Urban Design and Planning among others.
Practitioners will also contribute to specific sessions. Case studies will be selected locally (Pavia or Milan) for students to deliver field work activities and/or co-design activities. Each team with deliver a final presentation that may include oral, textual, audio-visual and other graphic elements including sketches, drawings, etc.
The initiative aims at involving approximately 40 students from various countries in the world including Italy, Belgium, United Kingdom, Greece, Mexico and Brazil. Professors/Visiting and a number of graduate tutors/PhD students will actively contribute to the programme.
The 1st edition of the Summer School ‘The City as a Commons’ will be hosted by the University of Pavia, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering.

Course leader

Dr. Ioanni Delsante, University of Pavia and University of Huddersfield

Target group

UG, PGT and PGR Students are eligible to the Summer School. Given the strong interdisciplinary flavour of the Summer School, we welcome students from very diverse backgrounds such as: Geography, Sociology, Architecture, Urbanism, History, Planning, Economics, Law, Art, Photography, Creative Practices.

You are expected to work in multi-national teams and will contribute to the overall methodology to be agreed with your team.

Course aim

The Summer School aims at investigating the notion of Urban Commons and their spatial, tangible or intangible, unfolding in relationship to the City. Taking into consideration the wider debate on Commons and its relevance to several disciplines (economics, geography, law, architecture, planning, etc.), the event aims at focusing on urban commons and broader spatial implications, both in terms of spatial practices and design agencies.

Fee info