Identifying bonds between people and spaces: a study of three neighbourhoods in Barcelona

Paper presented at the fourth OIKONET conference on “Global Dwelling”, University of Thessaly in Volos, 21-22 September 2018. In the research project PROHABIT, we have studied the importance of the sense of place in the urban transformations of three neighbourhoods located in the periphery of the city of Barcelona. In all three cases, local residents have been involved in a lengthy fight against the plans of the administration to radically transform their neighbourhoods. This resistance shows the strong bonds between people and spaces: their identity and attachment to the place, as well the ways to appropriate and territorialize the spaces they live in. A methodology together with the corresponding tools required have been developed to collect and analyse the information about the sociophysical characteristics of the three neighbourhoods, gathered from interviews, observations and reference documents. Among other findings, the study has revealed that in order to present an alternative to the renovation plans, the neighbours have felt impelled to construct an identity of the place – an image and a narrative of what they consider essential features and values to be preserved – created from personal memories and historical evidences. This identity has played a fundamental role in the final acceptation of their demands by the administration