Rethinking Cities and PLAYLINK are hosting an event on 6 April on 'making neighbourhoods more neighbourly'. It's in two parts: a Walkshop from 3.00pm - 5.00pm Meeting at Denmark Hill Station and a Talk the Walk from 5.00pm - 7.30pm at the Clore Studio at the South London Gallery London SE5 8UH.
The theme is 'making neighbourhoods more neighbourly': informal social neighbourliness, a sense of ease across generations, are qualities too infrequently associated with inner city or suburban neighbourhoods. Why should this be so? We believe that the local outdoors can and should allow for fun and the easy inter-play between generations. Why is this not happening as often as we think it should? If we can imagine – and wish for - a playable and walkable neighbourhood, what needs to be done to make this a reality?
More.
And here’s the blurb about a more academic event in St Andrews -
'The Social Dynamics of Neighbourhood’ Postgraduate and Early Career Symposium
23rd May 2011
Centre for Housing Research, University of St Andrews
'There is a belief that local neighbourhoods impact the lives of those that live within them; a relationship extensively explored in the literature on neighbourhood effects. However, there is increasing acknowledgment that the behaviour of residents also changes the character of their neighbourhoods and it is on this second proposition that this symposium takes its focus. The rhetoric of the UK government’s ‘Big Society’ aims to move the control of the neighbourhood increasingly into the hands of local communities and it is therefore ever more important to understand how social change can alter this local arena. Aspects of this social change have been explored throughout the social sciences for many years through discussions of social capital, social inclusion and community cohesion amongst other topics, but the re-examination of topics such as these at the local scale is vital in the current policy climate.'
Confirmed plenary speaker:
Ade Kearns, Professor of Urban Studies, University of Glasgow and Principal Investigator on the GoWell Programme
Attendance is FREE and both lunch and tea/coffee will be provided
Offers of workshop papers are invited (title plus an abstract of 200 words) and should be sent to: Alice Oldfield (aeo4 (at) st-andrews.ac.uk)
Centre for Housing Research, University of St Andrews The Observatory, Buchanan Gardens, St Andrews, KY16 9LZ
OFFERS OF PAPERS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY FRIDAY APRIL 22nd 2011
