#Ruth Levitas

[nextwavefutures]

Making change

Making change: connecting Three Horizons with other approaches to imagining different futures. New post.

I recently found a note I’d written—but never written up—as a result of the Three Horizons course I did with Bill Sharpe and Daniel Wahl at Schumacher College in the autumn of 2017. I enrolled because, although I had been involved early on in developing Three Horizons, and had used it a lot, I was aware that Bill’s practice of it had evolved, perhaps in different directions, and I wanted to get a…

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#Elise Boulding #Fred Polak #James Dator #Robert Jungk #Ruth Levitas #Three Horizons #utopia.

[jacobwren]

For those who still think that utopia is about the impossible, what really is impossible is to carry on as we are, with social and economic systems that enrich a few but destroy the environment and impoverish most of the world's population. Our very survival depends on finding another way of living.

Ruth Levitas, Utopia as Method

#ruth levitas

[perkwunos]

Freud regarded the unconscious as a rubbish bin of repressed material that was no longer conscious; Bloch argues that it is also a creative source of material on the verge of coming to consciousness. The creativity that derives from this is expressed in a variety of ways, from simple day-dreams to the heights of artistic activity. And in so far as these expressions are expressions of hope for a better world or a better way of being in it, they are expressions of utopia. The utopian impulse is therefore a fundamental human faculty, which may take a wide variety of forms, many of which are discussed in the second volume of The Principle of Hope and which range from alchemy to opera.

For Bloch, however, these dreams of a better world are not simply a matter of compensatory fantasies, but a venturing beyond the present to a possible better future. Here, the Not Yet Conscious is linked to the Not Yet Become. Fundamental to Bloch's argument are certain assertions about the material world. It is essentially unfinished, the future is indeterminate and therefore is a realm of possibility: 'the world is full of objective real possibilities, which are not yet actual possibilities because they have not yet fulfilled all the conditions of their possibility, and may or may not ever become fully possible.’ It is the notion of real possibility which provides the link between utopia and Marxism. Bloch is critical of versions of Marxism which present it as a deterministic philosophy:

It is not sufficient to speak of dialectical process and then to treat history as a series of sequential Fixa or even closed 'totalities'. A narrowing and diminishing of reality threatens here ... and that is not Marxism.

Since the world is in a constant state of becoming, and what it is becoming is not determined, there are always many real possible futures - not all of which are desirable, since they include 'devastatingly, possible fascist Nothing' as well as, and above all, 'finally feasible and overdue, socialism'.

Ruth Levitas, “Marxism, Romanticism and Utopia: Ernst Bloch and William Morris”

#ruth levitas #ernst bloch #sigmund freud

[hedgehog-moss]

mademoiselle hedgehog, what are your thoughts on ambition? it seems like such a harsh cutthroat drive, but at the same time, shouldn't we all have something that pushes us to be our best selves? is it possible to find a soft and gentle ambition within ourselves, like a slowly rising tide?

Thank you for this very interesting ask! I’d never really reflected on this, but my gut feeling is that ambition has done more ill than good in the world. If I were sitting my high school philosophy exam and drew this topic, my opening quote would be Minerva from the opera Daphné "How you torment yourselves, ambitious mortals—desperate and frantic—enemies of leisure, enemies of yourselves." But I like your water imagery—maybe you naturally have tides carrying you towards higher goals while I am stagnant water—the word stagnant comes from stagnum, a pond, I don’t mind it. Maybe some people are seas and enjoy tidal rising while others are ponds and enjoy pondering.

If I had to visualise a soft and gentle ambition I wouldn't picture a slow tide rising towards something greater but rather wavelets, setting small projects for myself that don’t disrupt too much (or for too long) the at-rest state that I am content with. (If I were not content with my at-rest state, then yes, a stronger, 'tidal' ambition would help change this situation, but even then I would tend to perceive this ambition as a necessary evil...) One such project could be learning a new language, which possibly fits your definition of a gentler kind of ambition ‘within ourselves’—but I don't know if I would see this as striving to be my best self. Am I a better version of myself if I spend my free time learning a language rather than doing a stagnant activity that doesn't rise towards a goal (like watching my animals live their lives, which makes me happy)?

If someone has an ambitious goal, say, writing a book, that they feel will bring something of value to themselves and/or the world at large, and the idle activities that take time away from this goal are of comparatively less value to them (or inherently less joyful or healthy—insert critique of smartphones here) then I would say ambition is a positive force that helps them better their life and their self. But I deeply value idleness and fruitless pursuits, I think they often bring us great joy and do no harm, and trying to infuse them with more ambition in the name of self-improvement can ruin them (like trying to master a hobby in order to monetise it).

At heart I am wary of ambition—of the way it is lauded as 'striving to be your best self' even when it brings us less joy, and is more detrimental to our health and the health of the world than being content with our current self and enjoying pondlike activities—idleness, contemplation, amateur unproductive hobbies. "Doing nothing is here intended as a positive proposal"—I just went in my idleness tag to fish out this Ruth Levitas quote—"Politicians may declare that ‘we need to do more and we need to do it faster’. The opposite is true. We need to do less, and we need to do it more slowly. Doing a lot more nothing, including sleeping, would reduce resource consumption, lower stress levels and enable social relations more conducive to dignity and grace…"

#ask #thoughts

[comrade-meow]

The Jewish Socialists’ Group takes its banner to many protests and marches but, for us, the commemoration of the Battle of Cable Street of October 1936, a pivotal moment in the fight against fascism in Britain, has a special meaning.

Fascism was advancing across Europe. Mussolini had already taken power in Italy, Hitler in Germany, and in many countries fascist movements were growing rapidly. In July 1936, Franco launched his devastating war on other Spanish people who dared to elect a progressive, democratic government, though one of Franco’s generals claimed: “Our war is not a Spanish Civil War but a war of western civilisation against the Jews of the entire world.”

Here in Britain, with nearly 3 million unemployed, hunger and hopelessness, and a loss of faith in conventional politics, a wannabe aristocratic politician, with financial backing from Mussolini in Italy and generous capitalists here, wanted to make a show of strength in East London where his movement – the British Union of Fascists – had its biggest branches. Those East End branches formed a horseshoe around the Jewish enclave, where 60,000 Jewish people, were trying to find enough work to eke out a living, mainly as tailors, shoemakers, cabinetmakers, market traders and shop assistants.

He chose the fourth anniversary of the founding of his movement to try to invade their streets with thousands of uniformed, jackbooted fascists, to abuse, threaten and intimidate them. Mosley sought support especially from the East End’s other large minority – Irish Catholics – but, on the day, the most unionised sectors of the Irish, dockers and railway workers united with the mass of Jewish East Enders and other non-Jewish anti-fascists to blockade the streets. In Cable Street they built barricades together. Seven thousand police could not clear a path for the fascists to march, as they had been ordered to by John Simon, the Liberal Home Secretary of a Tory-dominated National Government.

Earlier that week he had rejected a petition with nearly 100,000 signatures collected in just two days, calling for the march to be banned. It was drawn up by the Jewish People’s Council Against Fascism and Antisemitism (JPC) – a militant local grassroots coalition, formed with the aim of mobilising local Jews and uniting with non-Jewish anti-fascists to build an anti-fascist majority in the area. Within hours of the Home Secretary rejecting their call, the JPC was printing leaflets addressed to “Citizens of London” stating loud and clear: “This march must not take place!”

The formation of the JPC was also a direct response to the abject failure of the Jewish community’s self-proclaimed leaders – the Board of Deputies – to do anything to support the East End Jews under siege. They had told them they were exaggerating and arrogantly brushed aside the local Jewish community’s claims of police partiality towards the fascists.

We will not forget how the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Chronicle told Jews to stay indoors, claiming that any involvement in public demonstrations against Mosley would aid antisemites. It was their aloofness, their complacency, their lack of care towards London’s largest working class Jewish community that was aiding the antisemites.

Neither will we forget how the Board’s Vice-President and leader of the United Synagogue, Robert Waley Cohen, condemned antisemitism at a meeting of Jewish ex-serviceman in the summer of 1936 while telling them that Jews were prospering in Italy under Mussolini’s fascist regime, and that he himself was attracted to aspects of fascist ideology. Fortunately, the Jewish community completely ignored the wisdom and advice of their “leaders”.

The people, though, that the Jewish Socialists’ Group remembers most, and with immense pride and affection, are the parents and grandparents of many of our members who courageously took to the streets that day to defend the East End as a multicultural area where all communities would be able to live in harmony.

And we remember the unity in action of those who did most to mobilise the resistance that day, whether from the JPC, the Communist Party, the Independent Labour Party or the Labour League of Youth, and the local trade unions. We especially honour the 200 or so East Enders who continued their anti-fascist activities after Cable Street by joining the International Brigades fighting against Franco in Spain. Thirty-six of these local volunteers for liberty did not return; they lie buried in the Spanish soil.

While they were fighting in Spain, the movement here cemented the victory on the streets with a brilliant campaign to bring together the very communities that Mosley had tried to divide against each other – the Irish and the Jews. This joint campaign, under the auspices of the Stepney Tenants Defence League, saw more than 20 rent strikes against slum landlords. With both communities working closely together, it was much harder for the fascists to advance their politics of hate.

For us – as Jewish socialists, anti-racists and anti-fascists – this is a living history. Fascism was defeated then but returned to the East End streets in the 1970s through the National Front and the British Movement. Their antisemitism was intact but their principal targets were the Bengali communities that had settled in the same streets and worked in similar conditions in the clothing industry as the Jews had in the 1930s. New grassroots movements, led by Bengali youth, spearheaded the resistance to fascist intimidation and daily institutional racism, and they found allies in a similar way to the JPC in the 1930s.

We are proud that our rally this year, on Sunday 3rd October, will be co-chaired by a Jewish Socialists’ Group member and a Bengali activist – two communities brought together by a history of resistance to racism and fascism and we pledge ourselves to continue the fight against fascism and all racism and bigotry today. Please join us!

Cable Street 85th Anniversary march and rally

Assemble 1pm Junction of Cable Street, Leman Street and Dock Street.

Marching to the Cable Street Mural/St George’s Gardens.

Speakers include:

Apsana Begum MP, Jeremy Corbyn MP (Project for Peace and Justice), Rabbi Herschel Gluck, Mick Lynch Gen Sec RMT, Amina Patel (Unison), Abdul Chowdhury (NEU), Noorahmed Uddin (Altab Ali Foundation) Joginder Bains (Indian Workers Association-GB) Julia Bard (Jewish Socialists’ Group), Rob Griffiths, (Communist Party), Weyman Bennet (Stand Up To Racism) Marlene Sidaway (International Brigades Memorial Trust), and relatives of the activists of 1936: Michael Rosen, Ruth Levitas, June Legg and JVL member Tony Booth.

Co-chairs: Julie Begum (Swadhinata Trust), David Rosenberg (JSG)

#Anglo.txt

[geminipdf]

ruth levitas & andrew sayer in ‘utopia as method’

#words #utopia

[scratchingthesurfacefm]

95. Justin W. Cook

Justin W. Cook is an architect, designer, and educator. He's currently the Founding Director of the RISD Center for Complexity & Systems Practice, an initiative that is thinking about design in the widest sense. Previously, he worked at the Helsinki Design Lab and has advised students at MIT and Harvard. His work centers around design as a transformative act, sustainability, and systems thinking. In this episode, Justin talks to Jarrett about realizing he wanted to be an architect and his move into strategic design, thinking about organization change, and the role of the designer.

Show Notes:

@justinwcook

71. Bryan Boyer | Scratching the Surface

88. Dan Hill | Scratching the Surface

Marco Steinberg

Low2No

Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari

The Cunning of Uncertainty - Helga Nowotny

Utopia as Method - Ruth Levitas

Download mp3 | Soundcloud | Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify

#strategic design #education #design education #architecture

[inutilidadeaflorada]

Éterea fantásmagórica Peles de vidros A segunda pele, um almoço de fachada Esqueleto transparente, acrílico com beijo de vidraçaria Teus lindos olhos incorpóreos Atiçam meu vestígio Narciso As lâminas de teus vitrais Visita celebrações em orelhas de moinhos Levita Anúbis Leva-me para longe destes vultos Que outrora foram meus seis casamentos Ensaiados em Sara, Ruth e Madalena Outra vez, volto a cair Na paz assobiada Entre as densas nuvens sob meus calcanhares E os nomes jogados em diálogos, são tudo o que cospe-me o espelho Baila com tuas veias azuis que lhe sufocam Tencionando teus passos, emudecendo tua boca Adoecendo seus lábios, dando-lhe liberdade vigiada Eis entre vocês a simpatia super protetora de Gricel O amor transpassa-se como licor Fluído e inflamável Tens o gosto de amantes De qual? Todos os doze abarrotados em um único gole Chamem o doutor com dotes em trinta e três Uísque amargo, o tango doce embaixo dos braços O torpor entre a diferença para um corvo e outro boto Caricias trocadas, fraturas expostas expurgadas O caput amor maior, peça decorativa de dedos Forjado como um leve cristal, bela primazia de prisma Estava-se pálido no dia do teu casamento, anêmico como sempre Hei de salva-la, colorindo-o com o sangue de meus lábios em carne viva

Rubi, Pierrot Ruivo 

#inutilidadeaflorada #poema #poesia #poem #poetry #pierrot ruivo #writters on tumblr #artists on tumblr #carteldapoesia #conhecencia #NovosPoetas #poets on tumblr #prisma #casamento #lábios #carne #cristal #primazia #expurgadas #fraturas #caricias trocadas #braços #amantes #inflamável #moinhos #madalena #gricel #espelho #narciso #vitrais

[liberalartssustainability]

Transport-related social exclusion

The society we live in today means that it is vital to have a means of transportation. It is crucial for many of us to be able to work, get involved in opportunities that might better our situations and maintain social relationships. However, transportation is not accessible to a lot of people. It thus ties in to social exclusion.

A working definition of social exclusion, as stated by Ruth Levitas, is ‘the lack or denial of resources, rights, goods and services, and the inability to participate in the normal relationships and activities, available to the majority of people in a society, whether in economic, social, cultural or political arenas. It affects both the quality of life of individuals and the equity and cohesion of society as a whole.’[1]

Andrew Church identifies specific features of the transport system which contribute to the exclusion of certain groups[2]:

‘i)physical exclusion: whereby physical barriers, such as vehicle design, lack of disabled facilities or lack of timetable information, inhibit the accessibility of transport services

ii)geographical exclusion: where a person lives can prevent them from accessing transport services, such as in rural areas or on peripheral urban estates

iii)exclusion from facilities: the distance of key facilities such as shops, schools, health care or leisure services from where a person lives prevents their access

iv)economic exclusion: the high monetary costs of travel can prevent or limit access to facilities or employment and thus impact on incomes

v)time-based exclusion:other demands on time, such as combined work, household and child-care duties, reduces the time available for travel (often referred to as time-poverty in the literature)

vi)fear-based exclusion:where fears for personal safety preclude the use of public spaces and/or transport services

vii)space exclusion:where security or space management prevent certain groups access to public spaces, e.g. gated communities or first class waiting rooms at stations’[3]

The COVID-19 pandemic has hindered transportation accessibility even more. Due to new social distancing measures, the number of people who can board buses, trains and other forms of public transport has been almost halved. Arguably, this could be seen as an example of ‘physical exclusion’. There is also the issue of hygiene; those who are more vulnerable during the pandemic are even more at risk when having to take public transport due of the amount of people using the service. This could possibly lead to ‘fear-based exclusion’.

However, Lucas then discusses the ways in which we can use the seven exclusionary features of transport to work out where policy should be directed. This is interesting as she goes on to say:

It is ‘essential to recognise the dynamic and relational nature of the exclusionary process where transport is concerned’ ‘i.e. the more mobile society becomes the more certain groups are excluded from and/or disproportionately impacted by the system (Kenyon, 2003). This suggests that to reduce transport-related social exclusion policy makers should not only be concentrating on the populations that are currently excluded or at risk of exclusion but also on reducing the escalating dynamic of hypermobility and its effects across society as a whole (Urry, 2000).’[4]

It is interesting, then, to think how much lockdowns and stricter rules have impacted the hypermobility of society and the natural exclusion it entails. Before we can go back to travelling ‘like normal’, it is possible that the hypermobility of our society will be reduced due to new working models and structure. EE, for example, decided to move hundreds of retail staff to their ‘work from home’ project, in which they answer calls from customer services. It is likely that the new-found benefits of working from home may mean in the future some no longer use transport for employment-related commuting, thus lessening the hypermobility of society and possibly aiding the situation of transport disadvantages.

-       ISABELLE HJ

[1] Ruth Levitas, Christina Pantazis, Eldin Fahmy, David Gordon, E. Lloyd-Reichling, and Demy Patsios, "The multi-dimensional analysis of social exclusion." (The University of Bristol: 2007), 9. https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/6853/1/multidimensional.pdf

[2] Karen Lucas, “Transport and social exclusion: Where are we now?” Transport Policy, 20, (2012) 108.

[3] Lucas, Transport and social exclusion, 108.

[4] Lucas, Transport and social exclusion, 108.

[hygienicutopia]

“every utopia contains a utopia / every dystopia contains a utopia” is a quote from thomas more’s 1516 book utopia. looked into the etymology of the term utopia....discovered there are two versions of the word, eutopia and outopia, translating to “good place” and “no place” respectively. research points: history & theory of ‘utopia’

readings:

Levitas, Ruth. The Concept of Utopia. Syracuse University Press, 1990.

[jsacrefiction2018]

Utopia as method: the imaginary reconstitution of society - Ruth Levitas

This book has been important to develop my idea and has helped me to find and add meaning behind my work. I’ve read some chapters of the book, and from what I’ve understood, Ruth Levitas emphasises the role that utopias play. He describes utopias as a method, a method to suggest alternatives to our society. Utopias help to find solutions to what’s going wrong in the world and are used to think of a better future. As he describes it himself, it is an imaginary process that brings ideas on the table in order to improve our current situation. 

[reginaldodpg]

Resumo da novela A Terra Prometida: capítulos de 13 a 17/05/19

 capítulo 204, de segunda-feira, 13 de maio Na masmorra do palácio, Aruna diz perdoar Tobias. Adonizedeque começa a preparar um ritual para sacrificar Tobias. Os soldados buscam o Monstro Hebreu na prisão. Josué permite que Mireu, Ula e Lina permaneçam em Gilgal. Adonizedeque obriga Aruna a matar Tobias. Josué diz confiar em Deus. Aruna se recusa a matar Tobias e tenta golpear o rei, que consegue se esquivar. Furioso, Adonizedeque pega o punhal e mata Tobias. Ioná fica feliz ao saber que sua amiga está viva. Josué vai até a tenda de Quemuel e avisa que Aruna está viva. Samara se surpreende com a notícia. Adonizedeque ordena que prendam Aruna na masmorra.

Darda e Jesana amparam Yana. O rei de Jerusalém avisa que é preciso dominar Gibeão para terem êxito contra os hebreus. Setur elogia a beleza de Lina. Mara é maltratada pelos mercadores de escravos. Eles dão comida estragada para a vilã comer. Com Aruna amarrada à frente, Adonizedeque conduz o exército de Jerusalém. Josué descobre que Gibeão foi atacada e avisa que a guerra começou. O líder de Israel pede proteção a Deus. Zareg se oferece para lutar ao lado dos hebreus. Calebe e Iru se preparam para a guerra. Mireu também avisa que lutará ao lado do povo de Israel.

Salmon se lembra dos momentos ao lado de Raabe e se declara para ela. Iru se despede de Jéssica. Otniel tenta ajudar Mara, mas ela reclama do tratamento dos comerciantes de escravos. Haniel se declara para Tirda. Livana ajuda Rune a se vestir para a guerra. Eleazar fala sobre a Arca da Aliança com Mireu. Josué termina de analisar a estratégia de guerra. Os soldados da Coalisão Invencível de Adonizedeque se preparam para o confronto contra os hebreus.

Chaia pede para Zaqueu ter cuidado. Ioná diz ter orgulho de Elói. Quemuel estranha o sumiço de Tobias. Mara é assassinada pelo mercador de escravos. Quemuel diz não ter tempo para procurar Tobias. O Exército de Israel vai deixando Gilgal. Confiantes na vitória, Adonizedeque e os outros reis seguem levando Aruna refém. O exército da coalisão avança nas campinas de Canaã. Deus fala com Josué e o encoraja. O líder dos hebreus avista, ao longe, a aproximação dos soldados inimigos.

capítulo 205, de terça-feira, 14 de maio

Os dois exércitos se chocam e começam a lutar. Raabe fala sobre Deus para Ula e Lina. A cavalo, Rune acerta um soldado inimigo e salva a vida de Zaqueu. Os guerreiros hebreus lutam bravamente. Calebe avisa que o exército de Israel está em menor número. Josué diz que Deus está ao lado deles. Os hebreus vão levando vantagem na batalha. No céu, um milagre acontece. Nuvens se movimentam e começam a cair grandes pedras em chama sobre as tropas cananeias. Eleazar, Finéias e os outros hebreus se emocionam.

Adonizedeque avisa que a hora de Aruna está chegando. Ela se mostra confiante em Deus. Alguns cananeus tentam fugir. Milagrosamente, o sol para no céu enquanto os hebreus perseguem os inimigos. Os reis da Coalisão Invencível percebem que o tempo parou. Adonizedeque explode de raiva. Mireu e Salmon observam o milagre. Calebe e Josué lutam confiantes. Adonizedeque olha para Aruna e diz que não desistirá por nada. Ele e os outros reis se aproximam de Josué trazendo Aruna amarrada. O soberano de Jerusalém coloca a espada no pescoço dela.

capítulo 206, de quarta-feira, 15 de maio

Adonizedeque é atingido por uma flechada de raspão. Todos olham para trás e avistam o Soldado Mascarado. Josué fica confuso. Aruna aproveita o momento e foge. Adonizedeque arremessa a espada para acertá-la. Josué consegue defende-la. Eles se abraçam aliviados. Adonizedeque e os outros reis começam a fugir. Josué e os outros hebreus vibram com a vitória. Yana encontra Aruna e revela ser sua verdadeira mãe. Salmon diz saber onde os reis se esconderam. Yana avisa que não pode permanecer mais no acampamento. Samara se assusta ao saber que Aruna está viva.

Escondidos em uma caverna, os reis discutem entre eles. Aruna avisa que Tobias está morto. Samara começa a acusa-la de ter matado o irmão. Quemuel tenta controlar a filha. A vilã deixa o local ofendendo Aruna. Finéias sorri e conversa com Deborah, uma moça levita. Mibar permite que Isaque se case com Adélia. Aproveitando a ocasião, Pedael pede Neziá em casamento e ela aceita. Lina e Setur conversam carinhosamente. Jesana entrega uma flor para Darda. Samara observa os casais e explode de ódio. A vilã é surpreendida pelo ataque de um soldado de Jerusalém buscando vingança.

capítulo 207, de quinta-feira, 16 de maio

Samara então avisa que pode entregar o líder Josué e sua esposa Aruna. Ela leva o oficial para sua tenda. Josué e os outros guerreiros chegam à caverna onde Adonizedeque está escondido com os outros reis. Os monarcas imploram pela vida, mas são executados. Samara engana Aruna e diz querer pedir desculpas. Ruth e Boã cuidam de Sama. Aruna cai na armadilha de Samara e é surpreendida pelo ataque do soldado de Jerusalém. Quemuel chega, luta com o inimigo e é ferido, mas acaba matando o oficial. Samara se desespera ao ver o pai ferido. Quemuel revela a verdade para Aruna.

Ele diz ser seu verdadeiro pai, dá o último suspiro e morre. Léia grita chocada. Raabe fica aliviada ao reencontrar Salmon. Samara se desespera ao ver que Quemuel está morto e começa a vagar dando sinais de loucura. Dez anos se passam e os hebreus seguem vencendo diversas batalhas contra os povos inimigos. Mais velhos, Josué e Aruna conversam e comentam sobre o fato de não terem tido filhos. Iru e Jéssica brincam com o filho Matheus, de oito anos. Acsa permanece triste e com esperança de rever Otniel. Barbudo, forte e queimado de sol, Otniel trabalha pesado em uma grande plantação sob o comando de mercadores de escravos.

capítulo 208, de sexta-feira, 17 de maio

A emissora não divulgou o resumo.

*Os resumos são disponibilizados pela RecordTV, podendo haver alterações de acordo com a edição da novela.

[aleksandrabelitskajadiploma]

A political system which measures success by the quantity of buildings it can erect in the shortest period of time is dominating the contemporary scene. Politicians need quick solutions within the timeframes of elections, yet there are only a very limited number of problems which can be addressed in such short timescales. *** Realistically, there is no choice but to work with these competing forces within contemporary cities. Yet, as cities expand in size, the difficulty of achieving the goals set by utopian visions increase. Those visions and ideals start falling away from practical ideals because of the blocking forces of reality. The expanding power structures and struggles tend to filter and block critical flows of information necessary for achieving responsive urban civilizations over the long term.36 As Levitas emphasised, it becomes difficult or even impossible to achieve consensus between different agents and bearers of a cosmopolitan society in such a complex scene of wills and forces. Levitas, Ruth. “The Future of Thinking about the Future.” In Mapping the Futures: Local Cultures, Global Change, edited by Jon Bird (London: Routledge, 1993), 256-265. *** Achieving successful wholes relies on achieving a common vision and target under which different approaches can still flourish. *** Why Now? The 21st century is marked by the word ‘crisis.’ The world witnessed the collapse of the free market economy – “the missionary idea of the West” –overnight. However, it is not only the financial crisis which is dominating the scene. It is the crises of context, security, the environment, and that born out of the collapsed financial forces which push cities to be built before they are envisioned.

[aleksandrabelitskaja]

A political system which measures success by the quantity of buildings it can erect in the shortest period of time is dominating the contemporary scene. Politicians need quick solutions within the timeframes of elections, yet there are only a very limited number of problems which can be addressed in such short timescales. *** Realistically, there is no choice but to work with these competing forces within contemporary cities. Yet, as cities expand in size, the difficulty of achieving the goals set by utopian visions increase. Those visions and ideals start falling away from practical ideals because of the blocking forces of reality. The expanding power structures and struggles tend to filter and block critical flows of information necessary for achieving responsive urban civilizations over the long term.36 As Levitas emphasised, it becomes difficult or even impossible to achieve consensus between different agents and bearers of a cosmopolitan society in such a complex scene of wills and forces. Levitas, Ruth. "The Future of Thinking about the Future." In Mapping the Futures: Local Cultures, Global Change, edited by Jon Bird (London: Routledge, 1993), 256-265. *** Achieving successful wholes relies on achieving a common vision and target under which different approaches can still flourish. *** Why Now? The 21st century is marked by the word ‘crisis.’ The world witnessed the collapse of the free market economy – “the missionary idea of the West” –overnight. However, it is not only the financial crisis which is dominating the scene. It is the crises of context, security, the environment, and that born out of the collapsed financial forces which push cities to be built before they are envisioned.

[lifetechnology2017]

Utopia As Method : The Imaginary Reconstitution of Society by Ruth Levitas...

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#Bionics #Chi #Diet #Fitness #Health #Healthcare #Holistic #Holistic Health #Hypnosis #Manifesting #M

[paperswanted]

Call for Papers, Artsworks, Posters

Call for Papers, Artsworks, Posters

Mobile Utopia: Pasts, Presents, Futures Conference 2-5 November 2017 / Fringe Events 29 October – 2 November 2017 At Centre for Mobilities Research, Lancaster University, UK

‘Mobilising’ utopia can provide important insights into intergenerational, multi-scalar, human and non-human interconnectivities across transport, traffic and mobilities. From Thomas More’s Utopia (1516) to Ruth Levitas’…

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