The Urban Talks are a cycle of itinerant talks that aim to open a debate with the citizens about culture and creativity in relation to the urban environment, and that are a part of the Urban District Arts Festival (UDAF) project. The second edition is organized by Poblenou Urban District, Fab Lab Barcelona in IAAC, La Plataforma, Life In The Woords, with the support of the European H2020 CENTRINO project and Fundació Palo Alto as venue partner.

Under the general title of “The impact of culture and creativity”, we will be counting with three round table conferences that will revolve around interconnected topics that affect the world’s major cities, such as the circular economy and its practical applications in the fields of culture and creativity, the recovery and uses of heritage in formal industrial areas and the challenges arising from the processes of gentrification and the search for solutions and elements of harmonization.

These firts Urban Talks of 2021 will be held on May 15th as part of the Poblenou Open Day, a day where the creative community of Poblenou Urban District opens its spaces offering a varied program, as well as being part of the program of Barcelona’s “Architecture Week 2021”.

CENTRINNO PRESENTATION

CENTRINNO EU is a research project focused on the transformation of historic industrial areas. In Barcelona, the local project will explore the value of the cultural and industrial heritage of the Poblenou neighborhood as a catalyst for the development of actions that foster a more inclusive, productive and circular territory.

CLOSING THE LOOP: THE NEW PRODUCTIVE, CIRCULAR AND CREATIVE ECONOMY

Our society needs relevant changes to be able to enjoy a more sustainable and just future. Today, humanity consumes 1.6 times what the Earth generates every year (WWF). In some countries, such as Spain, this rate reaches more than 3.5 “Earths” per year. Our productive model is lineal and global. It’s based on the extraction of resources, transformation, massive consumption and waste disposal in different parts of the planet.

For years, numerous voices and initiatives have been working to build a more sustainable future: a circular economy in which waste is reduced and used, more sustainable products are generated, and citizens are empowered and committed to these principles. But what does this new circular, productive and creative economy mean for our cities and neighborhoods? In this round table conference, we will talk with three experts on circular economy about the role of companies, civil society and institutions in the needed changes, commenting on concrete initiatives and tangible consequences that can convince us as a society that we can change the model.

Participants #TALK 1:

Pablo Muñoz Unceta (Moderator)⟶ Maite Ardèvol – Leader of Circular Economy and Sustainability of ACCIÓ (Generalitat de Catalunya) ⟶ Adriana Sanz Mirabal – Circular Economy Expert from Inèdit Innova (Circular business, cities & regions) ⟶ Nada Tozija – Co-founder and Coordinator of Transfolab

TALK #2

THE RECOVERY OF INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE

The defense of the industrial memory of Poblenou has been, throughout the last years, one of the claims of a district that has been living the disappearance of the last vestiges of its industrial heritage. A process that began in the post-olympic Barcelona and that has opened a discussion on what the future of Poblenou should be, with opposing visions, interests and arguments, which must reach a consensus for the sake of identity and future of this territory.

Located throughout the neighborhood, we find old industrial sites which, with the last turn of the century, have been reconstructed into a new type of factories, hosting creative, cultural and artistic initiatives that bring a new dimension to the social fabric of Poblenou. We will talk with some of those responsible for them and with experts in a round table conference that will analyze the potential and the responsibility of maintaining and recovering part of the industrial heritage for new uses.

Participants #TALK 2:

Laura Sangrà (Moderator) ⟶ Lluis Torrents (Codirector and manager of Razzmatazz) ⟶ Daniel Romeo (Director of Fundació Palo Alto) ⟶ Antoni Vilanova (Architect and expert in industrial rehabilitation)

TALK #3

THE CHALLENGES OF GENTRIFICATION

We have been hearing about gentrification for so many years that the concept seems to have worn out, even though it’s more current than ever. The transformation of urban spaces and their relation to population movements due to the rising cost of housing and urban transformations linked to productivity are a constant in the main European cities. On the other hand, the reconversion of these areas open up new economic and cultural opportunities in many territories, attracting tourism especially in the countries of Southern Europe, with a strong weight in the service sector.

Is there a way to find a sustainable balance? To achieve progress that does not mean the elimination of the neighborhoods’ identity nor the expulsion of their populations? In this round table conference we will talk with activists, experts in the field and theorists to open a discussion on the state of the issue and the possible solutions before this challenge especially related to industrial neighborhoods such as Poblenou, where a social, a cultural and an economic reality coexist and must coexist in the same territory.

Participants TALK #3:

Laura Sangrà (Moderator) ⟶ Salvador Clarós (Industrial policy technician at CCOO de Cataluña and member of neighborhood movement of Poblenou) ⟶ Montserrat Pareja-Eastaway (Vicepresident at ENHR, Coordinator at RGCS and UB professor) ⟶ Jordi Callejón (Project coordinator at Taula Eix Pere IV)