RC21 CONFERENCE 2013
Resourceful cities
Berlin (Germany), 29-31 August 2013
Humboldt-University Berlin, Institute for Social Science, Dept. for Urban and Regional Sociology
PROGRAMME » SESSIONS » CALL FOR ABSTRACT » ACCOMODATION » REGISTRATION
Field Trips RC21, Saturday 31st August/Sunday 2st September 2013
1. Bus tour: A critical-geographical tour of Berlin
Date: Saturday 31st August 2013
Time: 3:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Expert: Ares Kalandides
Description: This bus tour is an introduction to Berlin’s social geography. It focuses on central areas (Mitte, Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain, Prenzlauer Berg etc.) and touches on very diverse subjects such as the political, economic and planning history, migration and segregation, urban renewal, neighbourhood management and gentrification, social movements and tourism. The tour includes 1-2 stops.
Meeting point: Humboldt University, main entrance Unter den Linden
Duration: 3 hours
Min participants: 20
Max participants: 45
Costs: 20 €/person
2. Walking tour: Neighbourhood management and policies in Berlin-Wedding
Date: Saturday, 31st August 2013
Time: 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
Expert: Anna Steigemann
Description: Wedding is one of Berlin's most diverse areas, host not only to a wide variety of different social and ethnic groups, but also to local businesses, public and private housing as well as to very differently designed and contested public places. The tour will take us around some of its small neighbourhoods, some of which are currently experiencing gentrification processes or are the main targets of the Socially Inclusive City Programme, the Neighbourhood Management, in an attempt to "improve" the neighbourhoods physically and socially. We will also visit one Neighbourhood Management Office and get in touch with its practical work and experiences.
If you already have a Berlin public transportation pass, please bring it along.
Meeting point: Unter den Linden, main entrance
Duration: 2.5 hours
Min participants: 10
Max participants: 20
Costs: 10 € (plus train ticket)
3. Walking tour: Ethnicity and place-making – the struggle over the informal market at Thai Park (Preußenpark)
Date: Saturday, 31st August 2013
Time: 3:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Expert: Christian Haid
Description: The tour will explore a small neighborhood park in Berlin Wilmersdorf, where a group of Thai and German picnickers have been meeting regularly since the 1990s. Initiated as a social event by a few families, the activities advanced into an informal market – now known as the Thai Park - attracting hundreds of people on warm summer weekends. Yet the serenity of the event is deceptive since it has always been highly contested.
If you already have a Berlin public transportation pass, please bring it along. In case of rainy weather the tour will be cancelled. Please check on Saturday with the organizers.
Meeting point: Humboldt University, main entrance Unter den Linden
Duration: 3 hours
Min participants: 10
Max participants: 20
Costs: 10 € (plus train ticket)
4. Walking tour: Hipster heaven, problem district, death by gentrification? Discovering one of Berlin's most vibrant and controversial neighbourhoods
Date: Saturday, 31st August 2013
Time: 3:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Expert: Viola Rauch
Description: On this walking tour, we will see the different, often antagonistic sides of life in Neukölln, buzzing shopping areas with cheap stores and casinos,side street galleries and rooftop bars and learn about the history of the district and current issues around ethnic segregation, "integration" and the welfare state, and gentrification. We will end the tour at the Neukölln Museum, the public gallery of the district.
If you already have a Berlin public transportation pass, please bring it along, otherwise it might be good to get a day pass, as we will use the subway twice to get to Neukölln and to get from one area to the other.
Meeting point: Humboldt University, main entrance Unter den Linden
Duration: 3 hours
Min participants: 10
Max participants: 20
Costs: 10 € (plus train ticket)
5. Walking tour: Tenants’ protest in Kreuzberg
Date: Sunday, 1st September 2013
Time: 10:00 PM – 12:00 PM
Expert: Erwin Riedmann
Description (max. 70 words): This walking tour will focus on conflicts in the Kottbusser Tor neighbourhood in Kreuzberg, particularly on how local protest groups fighting disinvestment, drug-infestation, privatization, rising rents and gentrification evolved during the past ten years.
Meeting point: U-Bhf Moritzplatz (U8) in front of Aufbauhaus
Duration: 2 hours
Min participants: 10
Max participants: 20
Costs: 10 €
6. Walking tour: The Dong Xuan Center in Lichtenberg as Berlin's new "Chinatown"?
Date: Sunday, 1st September 2013
Time: 1 PM – 4 PM
Expert: Antonie Schmiz
Description: The Dong Xuan Center walking tour brings you to the heart of Berlin’s flourishing Vietnamese business life. During the last years, the further development of the centre became object of an ongoing conflict between its management and municipal stakeholders. Whether it provides a resource for Berlin’s touristic development will be discussed with the participants. After the tour, there is a chance to enjoy Berlin’s most authentic Vietnamese cuisine.
If you already have a Berlin public transportation pass, please bring it along.
Meeting point: Alexanderplatz at the entrance to the television tower
Duration: 3 hours
Min participants: 10
Max participants: 20
Costs: 10 € (plus train ticket)
