Welcome to Placemaking 4 Inclusion (PM4I), a dynamic initiative funded by the European Union. This extract, which captures the theory by transforming it into practice, is from the Comparative National Report, weaving insights from Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Greece, and Norway. PM4I empowers youth and organizations, using placemaking to foster social inclusion and shape inclusive urban environments through collaborative co-creation. Explore key chapters on Methodology, Placemaking, Youth Social Inclusion, Community Empowerment, and Competences. Dive into this treasure trove of insights, sparking positive change. Join us on this journey, embrace placemaking principles, and be part of reshaping societies for the better.

You can read the full report here: http://placemaking.4learning.eu/outputs/

“DiverCity: Youth for Gender Equal Cities” is a pioneering guidebook that champions inclusive urban planning through cooperative city-making and a robust gender perspective. It challenges conventional urban development paradigms by placing community engagement, social inclusion, and participatory decision-making at its core. Across Spain, Greece, Germany, and Belgium, the guidebook showcases initiatives where youth play pivotal roles in shaping urban policies and projects, amplifying their voices and contributions.

Emphasizing a multidisciplinary approach, “DiverCity” integrates insights from sociology, ecology, economics, and more to reimagine cities as dynamic, adaptive ecosystems shaped by diverse social, economic, and environmental factors. It underscores the importance of cooperation among stakeholders—ranging from grassroots movements to civic networks—to democratize urban planning and foster inclusive, resilient urban environments.

A central theme of the guidebook is gender mainstreaming in urban and rural planning. It critiques traditional urban designs shaped by male perspectives, addressing how these have perpetuated safety concerns and unequal access to public resources for women and marginalized groups. By advocating for gender-sensitive policies and inclusive decision-making processes, “DiverCity” aims to dismantle existing power dynamics and promote gender equality in city development.

Moreover, “DiverCity” explores intersectionality, recognizing how gender intersects with age, ability, ethnicity, and socio-economic status to influence urban experiences. It offers practical tools and case studies to empower planners, policymakers, and community leaders to create cities that are not only more inclusive and equitable but also resilient and responsive to the diverse needs and aspirations of all residents. Ultimately, the guidebook serves as a roadmap for building cities that prioritize social justice, sustainability, and the well-being of future generations.

This guidebook is part of the Erasmus+ KA210-YOU – Small-scale partnerships in youth.

The “Placemaking 4 Inclusion Cookbook” is a resource designed to empower youth workers and urban professionals to engage young people in placemaking activities. It provides tools and activities aimed at fostering the social inclusion of young people from diverse backgrounds through creative and collaborative approaches. The goal is to help communities co-create sustainable, inclusive, and vibrant public spaces that reflect their unique identities.

The cookbook offers a range of non-formal educational activities and practical tools that have been tested and adapted by the project partners, covering topics such as public space evaluation, community engagement, and urban activism. Each activity encourages active participation, critical thinking, and teamwork, providing a hands-on approach to learning about placemaking and its impact on urban life. The cookbook also includes digital resources, such as an augmented reality map and an online learning space, to further support learning and engagement.

By using these resources, youth workers can guide young people in exploring and reshaping their local environments, helping them develop a sense of ownership and agency while promoting more inclusive and accessible urban spaces.

This book is created with successive approaches based on diverse knowledge, learnings, and experiences on topics that interest us. It depicts part of the collective imagination of those navigating with the *estel cooperative and represents a snapshot of who we are here and now: neither before, nor after, nor elsewhere.

It consists of a compendium of three types of narratives: linear (the writings), relational (the diagrams), and graphical (the images, drawings, illustrations).

The book is intentionally disorganized, following a careful narrative deconstruction (in the style of Quentin Tarantino), mirroring our way of living, experiencing, and learning. We shed the burden of scientific chapter titles and begin explaining things through everyday, urban, and human stories, from which we can unfold the technical account: our interpretation and professional perspective. From there, we add various labels that complete the body of knowledge we accumulate on a specific theme or subuniverse.

Each chapter’s fragments focus on explaining the key concepts of each topic or perspective (environmental, gender-related, intercultural, childhood, and functional diversity) and may consist of a Cooveta talk, a best practice story, or an article from a valuable friend. The chapter concludes with an interview with one of us, showcasing how the circumstances and experiences exposed in the chapter have transformed us.

We do not aim to give lessons. We wish to share our experience and illustrate our attitude and approach, with each of us taking care of one chapter in the book: we are the content curator.