“HOUSING THE CRISIS” -CALL FOR PROPOSALS AND CONTRIBUTIONS

[Massimo A. Allamandola]

Please send ideas, contributions or suggestion ...
editors-crisis (at) reclaiming-spaces.org
deadline is not very strict but would be good to hear from local stories
in UK...

Massimo.

>

MAGAZINE 1: “HOUSING THE CRISIS” -CALL FOR PROPOSALS AND CONTRIBUTIONS
http://www.reclaiming-spaces.org/project/archives/106

The Reclaiming Spaces project invites proposals and contributions for
its first magazine, targeted at an international audience of urban
activists, community organizers, campaigners, urban researchers,
journalists, and progressive politicians. For further info on Reclaiming
Spaces project visit www.reclaiming-spaces.org/project

Provisional title and focus of the first issue is:

“Housing the Crisis: local struggles in a world of crashes.”

The first issue of the Reclaiming Spaces Magazine will focus on the
multitude of actions, struggles, and strategies of survival and
solidarity, as well as on alternative plans and political demands in
response to the effects of the economic and financial crisis on housing
and local living conditions. By this, we aim to encourage a political
debate among social movements on transnational strategies towards a more
just economy and society.

Attention must be paid to the multi-dimensional character of the current
“crisis”: we know that it emerges as economic, but it is also social,
environmental, political and spatial. Built on the speculative global
finance, this situation is not new and was largely propelled and
modelled by neoliberal policies over the last few decades. Moreover, we
should not forget the continuity between old and new struggles that have
also emerged such as those resisting forced evictions, mega events and
mega projects, gentrification, and other violations of rights. For this
issue, we also welcome a limited number of other proposals for reports
about most recent and urgent struggles for housing and land rights, for
the defence of commons and for the socialization of public goods and
services as well as for the “right to the city”.

QUESTIONS FOR ISSUE NO. 1

- What have been our/your experiences with the impact of the “crisis” on
housing, infrastructure, land and cities? What is the actual situation
in your country, city or region? - Are there new types of transnational
corporations acting under new guises? Have they been weakened or are
they just reorganizing their powers?

- How are States and local authorities changing their roles and
policies? Are there any new political ordinances or laws related to the
crisis? What does this mean for local social movements, labour unions,
and other alliances?

- How have the conditions of struggles changed through new needs,
challenges, and opportunities?

- How can this crisis be analysed with respect to progressive
emancipative strategies and protections of rights?

- Which strategies and policies should and/or would social movements
adopt? - Which are the existing and viable alternatives?

Contributions to this issue may also relate to the demands (including
your critical review or further development) that had been published in
November 2008:
“International housing rights alliances call for fundamental change of
global financial architecture and financing habitat”
http://www.reclaiming-spaces.org/crisis/archives8

CONTRIBUTIONS AND FORMATS

We are accepting proposals for popular political and journalistic
writings, such as features, reportages, personal stories/experiences,
critical commentaries and statements, overviews, news, interviews,
portraits, and scholarly work. We are also interested in visual
submissions such as photo essays, comics, and maps.

Written submissions should be no longer 15.000 characters (or ca. 2000
words). Longer stories (anything above 2500 character/or 350 words)
should be accompanied with illustrations. To map the phenomenon, we are
also accepting a variety of short reports or summaries (400 to 600
words) of national or local conditions with regard to housing and
crisis. We also have some space for urgent news, calls, and announcements.

PROCESS

Please send abstracts, article summaries, or short topic descriptions
(including word count, and number of attached illustrations)

to: editors-crisis (at) reclaiming-spaces.org