Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing

Barcelona is organising an international conference from 5 to 7 October, entitled “Barcelona Superblock – The city after Covid”. The event will bring together around 30 specialists from across the globe to provide a point of exchange for thinking up what cities ought to be like and how they wish to be built after the pandemic.

The international initiative is promoted jointly by Barcelona City Council and the Placemaking Europe Foundation, a European network that works with urban planners, activists, academics, architects and sociologists, amongst others, to come up with strategies and research public space tools to make cities more sustainable and liveable.

Participants in the Barcelona Superblock Conference include international leaders such as Raquel Rolnik, UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing; Kate Raworth, originator of the doughnut economy theory; Edward Glaeser, economist at Harvard University and author of the book ‘Triumph of the City’, and Carolyn Steel, architect and author of the book ‘Hungry City’.

Towards more resilient cities

The aim of the conference is to reflect on what has changed, what has been learned and how urban environments have been altered in the wake of Covid-19, as well as to propose measures to move towards more resilient and sustainable cities that are able to successfully cope with future crises.

The event is scheduled to take place from 5 to 7 October, with a total of eight sessions on the following themes: “A city for those who live in it: building the right to the city”; “Cities fighting the climate emergency: leadership and challenges”; “An economy at the service of the city and the planet”; “How are cities fed? Production, consumption and transforming the food system”; “Urban strategies: Walking towards the future of the city”; “Breathable streets: towards an emission-free city”; “Mobility and the climate emergency: major infrastructures and opportunities for 21st century mobility in the city”; and “City and culture”.

You can consult the programme here.

Online tickets will allow access to all video sessions in real time. However, there are only a limited number of seats available for sessions at the Fossat del Mercat de Sant Antoni.

Both online and in-person attendance is free of charge, but requires prior registration on the website: https://aftercovid.city/superillabarcelona/

We look forward to seeing you at the Barcelona Superblock Conference to reflect together on the cities of the future.