Let me include you

//Zuzanna Zajac

In the era of globalisation and rapidly changing circumstances, designers often turn to the physical environment to find solutions to issues of tolerance and functionality. Focusing only on the material surroundings is, however, a safety net, which is only seemingly effective. The installation ofproducts, services and facilities ticks all the boxes of safety and inclusivity and calms down the conscience ofdesigners, who feel they have answered all the required standards, but only address the surface of the problem. Functionality is a complex, layered concept and ‘form follows function’ is no longer a sufficient approach to a theme which faces a new, unprecedented definition.

Inclusivity is fundamentally understood through the concept of disability, which has always been a controversial topic, and remains a taboo in a society, which seems to prefer keeping it on the peripheries of most pressing social issues. Although seemingly treated with utmost care, mental and physical disability are still the cause of huge separations within the social structure. The question, which must be therefore asked is whether or not disability and thus lack of inclusion for the disabled is an inevitable part ofour developing society. The first factor which should be considered is the oppression of the disabled not only by the ones considered ‘healthy’, but also by themselves in their own groups. What is created is a power struggle between ‘us’ and ‘them’, which throws all disabilities into one pot and forces individuals to identify with this singular group they have been associated with. An approach like that may or may not lead to the creation of a self-fulfilling prophecy, where disabled individuals see lack of inclusivity everywhere they go thus causing the concept of absolute inclusion to be unreachable. This dispute is unfortunately advantageous to many and has become, as Grossman has suggested, a political imperative. Campaigns are based on promises to bring equality to those who are still being placed in ‘special schools’ or isolated from the society. These guarantees ofliberation from the basic forms ofinstitutionalized oppression becomes thus a perfect strategy for politicians. People who feel like they are being denied the access to basic human rights are presented with a future ofequal labour market, access to education and processes where it is the environment, not the individual, which is forced to change. We notice, however, that one byone, head ofstates take office and little change is visible. Additionally the media is still pumping the same criteria of success where individuals must perform physical activities to: save the environment (cycling and walking schemes), be seen as powerful or attractive or to be diligent contributors to the economy. It is difficult to imagine a human being feeling included in

a city, where train stations have additional lifts, but the machine to buy tickets is 15 cm higher than the eyes ofa wheelchair user can reach. We cannot keep kidding ourselves and pretend that it encourages human interaction, when the individual feels dependent, helpless and lost, and everyone around rushes to catch the train at 8:15 sharp.

The concept ofintangible inclusivity also takes centre stage when it comes to institutionalized education. Even dismissingthe most visible proofoflackifinclusivitysuch as BME Attainment Gap, male to female ratio, ethnical discrimination and outdated assessment criteria, education is still the least progressive sector when it comes to giving access. Let us begin with the concept of language. For decades researchers representing sciences and humanities have been focusing on improving our society by investing time and money into creating publications, medicine or exhibitions. Philosophers have taken painstaking hours to produce papers, which are written in such high language that only individuals who have the background of at least higher education are able to decipher them. Steps to bridge the gap between scientific and public communication are not effective enough, which discourages civic engagement and understanding. It seems counterproductive to give the responsibility ofeducating the masses to the chosen fewrather than writingit in alanguage, which can be comprehended by a majority. I am not referring here to language as a dialect but as a method ofcommunication. It becomes questionable, therefore, whether this lack of inclusivity is a way of mass control. It would be interesting right now to return to the idea offunctionality. Is education suited to serve its purpose in a practical way? A good argument would be that the access to the language ofnewest technologies is now becoming opensource therefore inclusivity is expanded. Nevertheless it is mainly revolving around digital skills, where masses only gain base access and high-skill people still have restricted approach. Secondly, education has also been created to increase awareness and critical thinking instead ofjust supplying dry expertise in a particular field. From that stand point, learning is still very controlled by political powers, who use itas amedium ofmass manipulation thus making it very impractical and not inclusive to individuals, who are seen as redundant in the eyes of heads of states.

Considering these two examples it is interesting to dwell on the reasons for this lack of inclusivity and propose certain measures to be taken, which could lead to a scenario where unlimited access is possible for all. From both a local and global perspective privatization is one of the clearest reasons for the lack of inclusivity. It leads to a situation where onlyprivileged individuals from minority groups gain possibility ofusing services, facilities and knowledge thus our environment becomes functional only to ‘the chosen few’, which deepens the problem of social stratification. Privatization is however not the cause ofthe problem, but rather a result ofa much bigger issue, where cities become centres for a globalized economy and separate from their local context in order to satisfy the needs ofthe developing market and compete with other metropoles. This is to say that lack of inclusivity stems from the process ofdenationalization ofpublic sectors or services and governments (worldwide) placing the responsibility of arranging public space onto private businesses rather than the people.

There is a visible disinvestment among the society, especially younger generations, and a general blasé attitude. Unfortunately with the addition of mass media and a rapidlyincreasingurbanization, we riskthat

these issues are forgotten under a palimpsestoffinancialgains, lackoftimeandtechnological advancement. Moreover the idea of activism has turned into a trend, utilized by artists or politicians for the creation of an image ofa balanced society, where antagonistic powers have the opportunity to coexist, which makes them actually co-dependent thus decreases their importance.

So what does our future bring in terms ofinclusivity and access? There are manygreat initiatives already, which include opening database and making them available on the internet, transcribing books and translating texts or creating platforms for participatory design. Nevertheless the true source oflack ofinclusivity comes from the fact that our society is constantly floating on the surface of reality. The unfortunate truth is that as a whole, the world is constantly on a search for an ideal and humanity is suspended in a limbo, where we await the perfect time, place or circumstance, which will allow us all to live together on equal terms. What we must realize is that every issue is unprecedented. Not because it has not been present is some forms before, but because each new subject is a unique combination of previous ones. The bottom line is that existing ideas related to concepts ofdisability, education or accessibility are all man made and it is solely up to an individual to decide how we want to address them. Higher power in the sphere of human rights is a dangerous area to rely on. Nobody will save us ifwe do not step up and take charge. That is why it is impossible to ensure absolute inclusivity by only addressing the periphery or the exterior of our thinking patterns. It is therefore not enough to change our material environment and assume that a human being will feel like a fully participating member ofthe society. What we need is a revolution. People must learn to question and criticise the existing status quo from the beginning oftheir lives. If children are taught to take full responsibility for not onlytheir actions, but their decisions and thoughts, while working collaboratively with their surroundings, as adults they will be less likely to become affected by the manipulative voices ofpoliticians thus choosing their own path in life and finding inclusivity within them. The world is changing extremely fast and we expect increased amounts of tolerance, accessibility and acceptance. However, siding with Zizek’s theory of the ‘Big Other’, we are still very much confined by a system, which is stagnant, old and not adapted to today’s world. To achieve honest functionality and sincere inclusivity, humans must learn to be fully aware oftheir own thoughts, needs, mind, body and feelings. This, however, is not a skill to learn overnight. It is a skill acquired during a lifetime, so it is time to start teaching our children nowand maybe the next generation can be a bit more inclusive than we are today.

Call for Action #8

More infos: www.engagee.org/call

Autor*innen & Künstler*innen

Radical Cities

Pearl Ahrens lives in London. Her text is presented on behalf of the Plan C Radical Municipalism and Directional Demands research cluster. The cluster seeks inspiration from international municipalism to pursue taking the conditions oflife into common ownership. They can be contacted at info@weareplanc.org.

Marc Amann ist unterwegs in sozialen Bewegungen zwischen Zivilem Ungehorsam, kreativem Protest und solidarischen Ökonomien. https://marcamann.net

Clive Barnett is Professor ofGeography and Social Theory at the University of Exeter in the UK. His work investigates the intersections between democracy, public life, and urbanization. Clive´s current research includes work conceptualising the relationships between democracy and urbanization; work on the contemporary ‘urbanization ofresponsibility’; and research on the geographies of contentious public action.

Francesca Bria ist ChiefTechnology and Digital Innovation Officer in der Stadtregierung von Barcelona. Zuvor war sie Koordinatorin des Projekts D-Cent zu direkter Demokratie und sozialen digitalen Währungen. Sie war Beraterin der Europäischen Kommission zur Zukunft des Internets und zu Smart-City-Politiken. Sie ist seit vielen Jahren in sozialen Bewegungen aktiv und publiziert in unterschiedlichen Medien.

Anton Brokow-Loga studierte Politikwissenschaft in Berlin und Dar es Salaam (Tansania), um die Notwendigkeit emanzipatorischer Stadtpolitikzu begreifen. In Weimar verbringt er seine Zeit mit politischerArbeitin unterschiedlichen Zusammenhängen, pleniertmit der Raumstation und studiert nebenbei Urbanistik.

Initiative Ne da(vi)mo Beograd(Don’tletBelgrade d(r)own) brings together organizations and individuals interested in urban and cultural policies, sustainable city development, fair use of common resources, and the involvement of citizens in the urban development oftheir environment. Belgrade is our home. We are responsible for each of its parts, processes, and problems, both for the present and for the future we will leave.

Jeremy Gilbert is Professor of Cultural and Political Theory at the University of East London. Jeremy has written and spoken widely on politics, musicandculturaltheoryandwritesregularlyforthe Britishpress. Gunnar Grandel NachUmwegeninStuttgartundBerlinzogGunnar Grandel2013 fürdas Urbanistik-Studiuman derBauhaus-Universität nach Weimar und stieß direkt auf die Raumstation. Mittlerweile in Wien wohnhaft, lässt ihn glücklicherweise trotzdem weder die theoretische noch die praktisch Auseinandersetzung mit dem Thema Stadt selber machen los.

Gabu Heindl, Architektin und Urbanistin in Wien, Lehre an der TU Wien und der Akademie der Bildenden Künste Wien. Ihr Architekturbüro GABU Heindl Architektur bearbeitet öffentliche kulturelle und soziale Bauten, alternative Wohnbauprojekte, Ausstellungsarchitekturen sowie Freiraum- und Stadtplanungsprojekte. Ihre Vorträge undPublikationenfokussieren aufdas Verhältnis von Planung, Politik und Popular Agency in Bezug auf öffentlichen Raum, gegenhegemoniale Planungsstrategien sowie Gerechtigkeit und Solidarität als Planungsparameter. Alexandros Kioupkiolis is an Assistant Professor in Contemporary Political Theory, at Aristotle University, Greece. His research interests focus on modern philosophies offreedom, contemporary philosophies of justice, theories of democracy, analyses and critiques of power.

Alessio Kolioulis is a Doctoral candidate at Paris 8 / Rome La Sapienza and Visiting Research Scholar with the Sonic Research Group at London South Bank University. He studies techno cultures and has a background in the third sector. Alessio is an editorial board member ofEterotopia France and engagée. Dr. des. Friederike Landau (*1989) ist politische Theoretikerin und Stadtsoziologin. In ihrer Dissertation (2015-2017) beschäftigte sie sich mit den politischen Organisations- und Repräsentationspraktiken freischaffender Berliner Künstler*innen sowie mit deren Einwirkungsstrategien aufdie BerlinerKulturpolitik. Friederike arbeitet an derSchnittstelle zwischen Kultur- und Stadtentwicklungspolitik, (künstlerischen) InterventionenimöffentlichenRaumundneuenMomentendesPolitischen in einem angeblich postpolitischen Zeitalter. Oskar Mayböck wurde 1991 im oberösterreichischen Raab geboren und lebt in Wien. Er studierte dort Philosophie und arbeitet als Lyriker, Sound Poet und Musiker. Er ist Gründungsmitglied des Kollektivs Philosophy Unbound. Im Dezember 2016 veröffentlichte er bei Gully Havoc (Berlin) seine Debut EP „The Lane“ unter dem Namen Oskar May.

Cosimo Lisi is a PhD student at the Department of Aesthetics, Sciences and Art Technologies, Paris 8. Cosimo is an editorial board ofmemberofEterotopiaFrance andiscurrentlycuratingabookbyStefanKipfer on the neocolonial character of processes of urban transformation.

Luiza Margan Die bildende Künstlerin Luiza Margan (Wien und Rijeka) verschränkt unterschiedlichste künstlerische Formate miteinander, die von öffentlichen Aktionen und Interventionen bis hin zuraumgreifenden Installationen mitObjekten, Film undFotografie reichen. In ihren Arbeiten untersucht sie die Beziehungen zwischen politischen Ideologien und persönlichen Erlebnissen und ihren Verschiebungen und hinterfragt kritisch, aufwelche Art und Weise sich Geschichte darin manifestiert. www.luizamargan.net Felix Maschewski ist Mitglied des PhD-Nets „Das Wissen der Literatur“ der Humboldt Universität zu Berlin und wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Institut für Wirtschaftsgestaltung (Berlin). Aktuell forscht er zum „kybernetischen Realismus“ an der Princeton University. Neben akademischen Publikationen schrieb er zuletzt als freier Autor für die Neue Zürcher Zeitung, SPEX, agora42, Public Seminar und Merkur (Blog). Evgeny Morozov ist einer der profiliertesten Kritiker des digitalen Kapitalismus und beschäftigt sich mit der Frage, wie große Technologiefirmen unsere Gesellschaft und Demokratie umbauen. Er schreibt fü r diverse Zeitungen, u.a. The NewYorkTimes, The Economist, The Guardian und die FrankfurterAllgemeine Zeitung, und ist Autor mehrerer Bücher.

Paolo Mossetti is a writer from Naples. He collaborates for many newspapers and magazines such as the Huffington Post, Domus, Il Tascabile, Salvage, and N+1 writing stories that span from anthropology offood to urbanism.

Daniel Mullis istpromovierterHumangeograph. Seine Interessen liegen in derpolitischen Philosophie, Sozialprotesten sowie Krisendynamiken, aktuell arbeitet er zum Neuen Autoritarismus in Deutschland.

Miriam Nessler studied and studies cultural anthropology, urbanism and urban studies in Hamburg, Paris and Weimar. She likes to explore material and immaterial Freiräume (open/free spaces) in a theoretical as well as a practical way.

Anna-Verena Nosthoffistfreie Autorin, PhilosophinundPolitische Theoretikerin. Sie arbeitet derzeit an einer Dissertation über die Kybernetisierung des Politischen. Akademische Aufsätze erschienen zuletzt u.a. in Cultural Politics, Critical Research on Religion und Culture, Theory & Critique sowie in Sammelbänden; journalistische Beiträge u.a. im Feuilleton der Neuen Zürcher Zeitung. Maurilio Pirone has a PhD in Politics, Institutions, History at University ofBolognaandparticipatestotheinternationalcollectiveresearchproject Into the BlackBox. He is anactivistofBolognaSocialCentre TPO. Marina Prentoulis is a Senior Lecturer in Politics and Media at the UniversityofEast Anglia. She completed herPhD in Ideologies and Discourse Analysis at the Department of Government, University ofEssex. She has been working on contemporary social movements and European radical ideologies. She has been involved in numerous campaigns and movements. She has been the UK spokesperson of Syriza and of‘Another Europe is Possible’. Kollektiv Raumstation 2013 in Weimar gegründet, ist die Raumstation heute auch in Berlin und Wien eine interdisziplinäre Plattform für kreative und engagierte Köpfe, die die Stadt aktiv gestalten wollen. Stets vernetzt agieren die drei Raumschiffe Weimar, Berlin, Wien unabhängig voneinander und mit unterschiedlichen Schwerpunkten. hallo@raumstation.org - facebook.com/raumstationweimar - Instagram @raumstation Nikolai Roskamm lebt und arbeitet in Berlin und Erfurt. Er ist Mitglied des Redaktionskollektivs von sub\urban, zeitschrift für kritische stadtforschung. Seit 2015 ist er Professor für Planungstheorie, Stadtbaugeschichte und Städtebau an der FH Erfurt. Zuletzt erschienen ist von ihm „Die unbesetzte Stadt. Postfundamentalistisches Denken und das urbanistische Feld“, Bauwelt Fundamente 158. Valerie Scheibenpflug ist am 03. Juli 1991 in Korneuburg geboren. Zurzeit schreibt sie an ihrer Dissertation mit dem Arbeitstitel „Gemeinschaft. absolut-sein. unmöglich-sein“ und arbeitet als Lehrerin in Wien. Sie hat Philosophie, Psychologie und Germanistik studiert. Währendihres Studiums verbrachte sie Forschungsaufenthalte in Nottingham und Heidelberg und war in verschiedenen Studierendeninitiativen tätig. Johannes Siegmund (PhD student, Vienna) creates publics at the interface between arts, theory and politics. He is part ofengagée, philosophy unbound, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and University of Vienna.

Paul Sörensen, Dr. phil., ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Fachbereich Politische Theorie und Ideengeschichte der Universität Augsburg. Kontakt: paul.soerensen@phil.uni-augsburg.de Rahel Sophia Süß is a Lecturer in Political Theory, author and initiator ofengagée whose aim is to transform the theory/practice divide into everyday knowledge and experience. Rahel lives in London where she is a Phd Visiting Scholar at the Centre for the Study ofDemocracy doing research on radical democracy. Das Team Sowieso“ setzt sich aus Aktivist*innen, Künstler*innen und Theoretiker*innen zusammen, die sich gemeinsam über ihre Praxis austauschen undmitanderen Menschen die Ergebnisse dieses Austausches teilen, diskutieren, reflektieren und in Frage stellen. Lasse Thomassen is Reader in the School of Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary University ofLondon. He is currently working on representation and new forms ofradical politics, and he is the co-editor ofRadical Democracy: Politics between Abundance and Lack (Manchester University Press, 2005).

Norma Tiedemann is a PhD-student and research assistant at the UniversityofKassel’s Political Science Department. Before that, she studiedGlobalPoliticalEconomyandnowattempts to bringtogether critical urban studies, radical geography and materialist state theory when analyzing social movements and the local state. Contact: norma.tiedemann@uni-kassel.de Markus Wende ist Animator, Illustrator und Comiczeichner in Berlin. Er verabscheut Autowerbung und beschäftigt sich künstlerisch gerne mit menschlichen und politischen Angelegenheiten. www.animationsfilm.de Zuzanna Zajac has a background in Interior Design, completed in Kingston University, London. She is currently studying MA Social Design in Universitat fur Angewandte Kunst, where she focuses on mappings, urban innovation and collaborative projects. Her main interests revolve around participatory design, construction, education and material science. She has worked extensively in architectural practices in London, Poland and Malta and is currentlyengaging in a variety ofpolitical and academic undertakings in Vienna. https://www.behance.net/zuzannazajacdesign Andreea Zelinka ist Masterandin der Kultur- und Sozialanthropologie an der Universität Wien und der Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Ihre Masterarbeit befasst sich mit Demokratisierungsbewegungen in Barcelona. Darüber hinaus ist sie in Menschenrechtsbewegungen aktiv.

Impressum

engagée #6/7 „Radical Cities“, 2018. ISSN 2413-4279

Wien | Berlin | London

Medieninhaberin: engagée –Verein für politisch-philosophische Einmischungen (ZVR-Zahl: 807011148). Hermanngasse 19 - 1070 Wien.

Prozesskoordination: Alessio Kolioulis, Felix Maschewski, Anna-Verena Nosthoff, Valerie Scheibenpflug, Johannes Siegmund, Rahel Sophia Süß, Zuzanna Zajac.

Kontakt: info@engagee.org, www.engagee.org.

Offene Redaktion: #6/7: Pearl Ahrens, Anton Brokow-Loga, Gunnar Grandel, Alessio Kolioulis, Felix Maschewski, Miriam Nessler, Anna-VerenaNosthoff, Maurilio Pirone, Paul Sörensen, Valerie Scheibenpflug, Johannes Siegmund, Rahel Sophia Süß, Norma Tiedemann, Zuzanna Zajac.

Beiträge: Pearl Ahrens, Marc Amann, Clive Barnett, Francesca Bria, Anton Brokow-Loga, Don’t let Belgrade d(r)own, Jeremy Gilbert, Gunnar Grandel, Gabu Heindl, Alexandros Kioupkiolis, Alessio Kolioulis, Friederike Landau, Cosimo Lisi, Luiza Margan, Felix Maschewski, EvgenyMorozov, Paolo Mossetti, Daniel Mullis, Miriam Nessler, Anna-VerenaNosthoff, Maurilio Pirone, MarinaPrentoulis, KollektivRaumstation, Nikolai Roskamm, Valerie Scheibenpflug, Johannes Siegmund, Paul Sörensen, Rahel Sophia Süß, Team Sowieso, Lasse Thomassen, Norma Tiedemann, Markus Wende, Zuzanna Zajac, Andreea Zelinka.

Die Verfasser*innen sind für die Inhalte selbst verantwortlich. Die darin vertretenen Positionen spiegeln nicht zwangsläufig die Meinung der Redaktion wider. Die Beiträge dürfen von Dritten nur unter der Bedingung der Rücksprache mit den Verfasser*innen verbreitet werden.

Gestaltung: Oskar Mayböck, Rahel Sophia Süß. Cover: Alessio Kolioulis, Oskar Mayböck, Rahel Sophia Süß

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