This thesis builds on a collective experience shared between the researcher, residents, and climate activists at Fartown Forest Garden (FFG), West Yorkshire, UK. The bottom-up regeneration project involved spatial reappropriation of a council-owned land by the self-organised group. Local knowledge, collective efforts and “gifted economies” were key to reactivate the underused land into a community-managed space. I investigated the socio-spatial practices within this project through an embedded approach with the aim to generate insight into the conditions, processes, strategies pitfalls and struggles behind the project activism. Moreover, the study explores the governance protocols and tactics developed to sustain bottom-up agencies. I used the lenses of the commons/commoning practices – defined in this thesis as a pro-social system by a self-organised social group - to study the group and its practices from the embedded position of a researcher-participant. Primary data was collected mainly through visual research methods, participatory observation, and semi-structured interviews which allowed the documentation of the reappropriation project from an insider’s perspective, especially in terms of its spatial practices, social relationships, internal culture, and context. It revealed the intricacies of the citizen-led initiative which constitutes its everyday operations evoking active citizenship, struggles to survive as a bottom-up initiative, and governance through a learning-by-doing approach. By analysing internal processes underpinning the social production of urban space, this study, thus, focuses on the matters of their development and sustainability over time. Long-term co-creation and embedded experiences with the grassroots group evidence three core findings. I argue that FFG is a “potential commons” – an expanded terminology of commons/commoning practices that deliver resilience and innovation but are yet to realise autonomy and agency as an urban commons. The second finding brings forward nuanced patterns of commoning, particularly of potential commons as demonstrated at Fartown, including reflections on challenges involved in active participation, expanding the common space as thresholds, conflicts in internal dynamics and threats of co-optation or pressures of institutionalisation by external agents. Given various potentials and struggles, the third finding prompts the need and means to support potential commoning endeavours. I propose the toolkit Commoning Kirklees as one such support tool. In addition to generating deeper insights into the socio-spatial practices of grassroots groups, this study uniquely highlights the emotional and personal journey of the researcher. By critically reflecting on moments of dilemma and discomfort during the research process, this exploration reveals the often imbalanced and emotionally taxing relationship between the researched, researcher and research process. As such this thesis not only contributes new understanding in the field of socio-spatial practice but also provides a critical reflective lens on how such research experiences inform ethical measures in embedded research.
Date of Award | 30 Sep 2024 |
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Original language | English |
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Supervisor | Rowan Bailey (Main Supervisor) & Ioanni Delsante (Co-Supervisor) |
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