French Institute in Russia  & Center UP (Urbanism and Participation) at European University at St.-Petersburg  in a partnership with “Open Urban Lab” and educational program “Building the City Now” (BCNow)

are inviting to attend a series of online lectures & discussions

 “IS THIS NORMAL!? URBAN RESILIENCE IN A CITY FACING THE CHALLENGE OF EPIDEMIC”  

We are inviting specialists working with cities  and representing different disciplinary backgrounds to share their thoughts but also experience, on how do and did cities (they represent or know professionally) react to the recent COVID epidemic or other sorts of challenges without blocking “normal life” for weeks and months.   

We are not going to initiate another discussion on “what might change in the cities after COVID epidemic”. Instead we are inviting our guests to discuss what shall we as urban experts do in terms of the measures aimed at preparing our cities to the new waves of COVID or new epidemic in the future; and, perhaps, even more  important question is – what shall we not do in this respect.  

We are going to raise the questions as follows 

• Shall we plan the cities, their spaces and buildings differently to let them “be prepared” for next epidemic? 

• How exactly? What changes caused by the threat of epidemic shall be accepted and become a part of the approach and practice in architecture and urban planning, and what inventions are rather disputable? 

We invite specialists from different countries to discuss how cities are trying to respond to various challenges and at the same time not to put city life on pause.

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Lecture 1: 25th  of June at 17.00 (Moscow time).

Job, nature and home before, during and after pandemic. What resilience is possible? // Michèle Laruë-Charlus

Michèle Laruë-Charlus is French urbanist and urban planner (Bordeaux’s metropole mission 2050; AGORA). 

A graduate of the Paris Institut d’études politiques and holding a PhD in philosophy, Michèle Laruë-Charlus has made Bordeaux her muse and her home. Since joining the town hall in 1995 as City Planning and Culture Officer in Alain Juppé’s cabinet, she launched and saw through the major urban projects that have transformed the city. 

From the creation of the tram networks to the development of the quays, from the construction of eco-districts to the rehabilitation of industrial wasteland, Bordeaux has completely transformed under her influence, becoming one of the most attractive cities in France. Michèle Laruë-Charlus is a consultant on territorial development strategy in France, Mexico, Brazil and Cameroon. She teaches and lectures in Central and South America and Europe.

The lecture will be held on the Zoom platform — in French with simultaneous translation into Russian. You will have the option to choose Russian or French. We will send a link to the event to your email address on the day of the lecture.

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Discussion 1:  30th of June 19:00 (Moscow time / 18.00 CET).

What is “urban normality” and what we learned about it during the COVID lockdown?

•    What were the experiences ‘on the ground’ during the lockdown in major cities? What do these experiences suggest about the sense of ’normal’?

•    How the quarantine measures suggested by the governments have been ‘normalised’, if at all, and how?

•    What are the challenges and the lessons that the Pandemic offers to planning and architectural professionals? Is there a need to ‘design for the pandemic’, and if so, how?

The Participants:

Marguerite van den Berg (University of Amsterdam) — sociologist, with interests in urban policy, politics, gender, and work.

Anastasiya Halauniova (University of Amsterdam) — scholar and activist interested in the political implications of urban design, and the role of digital platforms in the production of urban space. 

Enric Massip-Bosch (postgraduate program in social urban design Building The City Now! / UPC-BarcelonaTECH)  — architect and urban designer interested in the issues of the liveable city and transdisciplinary approaches to urban planning and architecture.

Inés Aquilué Junyent (UPC-BarcelonaTECH) — architect, with interests in urban conflicts and urban complexity.

Daniyar Yusupov (St. Petersburg University of Architecture and Civil Engineering) — urban planner specialising in urban revitalisation.

Moderator of the Discussion: Olga Sezneva (University of Amsterdam / BCNow!) — urban sociologist, author, and educator. Her interests include cities after a conflict and questions of social-spatial justice in the city.

Short presentations will be followed by Q&As vis chat.

The discussions will be held in English without translation. The event will take place on the Zoom platform. We will send a link to your email address on the day of the event. You need to download the free Zoom program to participate in the discussion.​​​​​​​

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Discussion 2:  6th of July 19:00 (Moscow time / 18.00 CET)

What should we know and research about cities after COVID epidemic – to act professionally? 

• What should be understood, known about the cities and their ways of life? What should we learn about the reactions of citizens to the COVID epidemic and lockdown or other experienced measures—to let finding proper solutions?
• What questions do architects and urban planners want to ask—to get answers that would help them to offer adequate solutions for the organization of urban space, premises, urban life?
• What are social scientists interested about and how could results of their research be used by other professionals?

The discussions will be held in English without translation.The event will take place on the Zoom platform. We will send a link to your email address on the day of the event. You need to download the free Zoom program to participate in the discussion.

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Lecture 2: 9th of July at 17.00 (Moscow time)

Winback // Thomas Boucher

Thomas Boucher is French landscape architect and Director of Praxys paysage & territoire agency (PRAXYS;  http://praxys-paysage.fr/english/ag...) .

Thomas Boucher is a landscape architect and the founder of Praxys Paysage & Urbanisme (Paris). He graduated from the Higher National School of Landscape in Versailles in 2001 and later became a teacher there. He also taught at the Higher National School of Architecture and Landscape in Lille and the Geographical Institute in Paris.

Praxys won the AJAP young architects Award (2009-2010) of the French Ministry of Culture. Praxys has implemented more than a hundred projects for the development of territories, public spaces and gardens in the city and beyond both in France and abroad. Praxys Bureau, together with Katarsis Architechts Bureau (St. Petersburg), proposed a concept for the Tuchkov Buyan Park and was among the 8 finalists of the competition.

The lecture will be held on the Zoom platform — in French with simultaneous translation into Russian. You will have the option to choose Russian or French. We will send a link to the event to your email address on the day of the lecture.