Language: English

Brussels can teach us a lot about city politics and urban planning. Today, citizen movements and progressive forces, including Green parties, are changing the city.

Berlin is pioneering innovative and sustainable schemes – Georg Kössler, member of its parliament, talks about how Greens got there and their wider impact.

The Greens are successfully wooing urban voters in Finland, but the rural areas tell a drastically different story. Why the stark contrast?

Silvia Nossek, the chairperson of one of Vienna’s districts, talks about the Green approach to local politics and about countryside versus city.

Pablo Servigne outlines four vivid scenarios for what our cities could look like depending on which actions we could take now.

Barcelona leads the way in reviving democracy and participation of citizens. Joan Subirats talks about how cities can shape a better governance architecture and complement the current system centred on nation-states.

The editor-in-chief introduces the 16th thematic edition ‘Talk of the Town’ and its foray into the political dynamics and struggles of the city in Europe and beyond.

In Spain, ‘Cities of Change’ are changing the game in municipalities and pioneering citizen involvement – what is their relationship to national forces such as Podemos?

Belgrade’s waterfront is threatened with a megaproject imposed by the government. Citizens have taken to the streets and mobilised against it, and shown an alternative to this kind of urban development.

Populism is malleable and isn’t the problem. The xenophobic nationalism that underpins certain populist movements is what threatens democracy.