Hacking public space towards climate justice

How to take the climate crisis outside the green bubble? Together with students of the high school BORG3 we developed and tested minimal interventions in public space towards climate justice, as part of the project series RaumGestalten supported by KulturKontakt Austria, Architekturstiftung Österreich and Kammer der ZiviltechnikerInnen.

Which topic is particularly important for young adults in relation to the climate crisis or the social climate of the city? What do they want to change? How could public space be used for this?

Together with a group of young adults of the high school BORG 3 the project week began in February 2020 with a common reflection on the role of public space for young adults and, on a more general level, its role in terms of fostering social transformation processes. Following the motto of “Do it together – for social innovation and sustainability” we developed ideas and realized a series of prototypical actions at the school building and in the surrounding area to address and make visible concerns about the climate crisis and the social climate in the city. In the implementation phase, we placed great value on (re-)using and/or adapting already existing resources in the city, such as urban furniture, inspired by the artistic practice of urban hacking, i.e. targeted actions of infiltrating the city in a subversive, playful way by transforming, modifying, re-interpreting, overwriting the city and its rules as an act of self-empowerment. The resulting series of interventions consisted of the following subprojects: the activation and appropriation of common spaces, such as the terrace of the school building, to create places of retreat for young adults; the installation of an open clothes exchange in public space to counteract our throwaway society; the conversion of unused telephone boxes into freely accessible heating and cooling stations (depending on the time of the year) in the wake of global warming; a mapping system of oases of rest in the city, which are green and free of consumption; playful extensions of standard furniture in the park to meet the needs of young people and foster communication among different generations. As public space is the place where social change takes place and/or becomes visible the different projects share the overall idea to initiate platforms for public discussion and sharing knowledge about climate justice with the general public.

Time

February 2020

Location

Austria

Team

İlkin Beste Çirak

Martin Färber

Yvonne Fischer

Anna Gigerl

Iris Hilber

Mila Kocher

Iris Labres

Eva Lausegger

Lily Müller

Johanna Pokorny

Olivia Preiss

Lina Reisinger

Christina Schraml

Anna Vasof (video documentation)

Melina Zamagna Cooperation Partners: Bundesoberstufenrealgymnasium BORG3

KulturKontakt Austria

Architekturstiftung Österreich

Kammer der ZiviltechnikerInnen

Links

https://www.instagram.com/borg3.for.changes/