São Paulo – The public administrator and economist Ana Carla Fonseca, a professor at the postgraduate courses in Brazil’s Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) and Argentina’s National University of Córdoba, is delivering a lecture on Creative Cities on the 14th this month at the offices of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, in São Paulo. In an interview granted by email to ANBA, she said “there is no single definition of the notion,” but that “in one sentence, a creative city is a city that constantly reinvents itself.”
These cities have three features: innovation, connections and culture. In Brazil, she says, public policies that fit the bill completely are hard to find; as examples she mentions cities like Copenhagen, Amsterdam, New York, Lisbon and Rosário, in Argentina. An Arab case in point is Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates, where “a series of efforts reflect a structured underlying program for change.” Read below the interview and information about the lecture:
ANBA – What is the concept of creative cities?
Ana Carla Fonseca – There is no single definition of the notion of creative cities. In a bid to shed light on the different existing concepts and try to pin down their common features, in 2008, in collaboration with a colleague from the United States, I carried out the first attempt to systematize this issue at a global level. It was a volunteer study involving 18 professionals with conceptually solid approaches and practical experience in the subject of creative cities. We purposely invited colleagues from 13 different countries as diverse as Taiwan, Norway, South Africa and Colombia, from cities of various sizes, histories and socioeconomic profiles. The study became a free bilingual e-book (Creative Cities – Perspectives) and revealed that, in one sentence, a creative city is a city that constantly reinvents itself.
The concept is based on three general guidelines. The first is innovation. Innovation here entails myriad aspects, including new products, services, processes and views and their perceived value, problem-solving and the taking of advantage of existing opportunities – ranging from nanotechnology to social technologies, solid waste reuse and green technologies. The second guideline is connections – between the public and private spheres, between different areas of the city, between its history and its vision of future, between the city and its neighbouring cities or the rest of the world. And the final guideline is culture, in three dimensions: identity, soul and symbolism; economic impact; and a creativity-prone environment.
Could you name examples of policies that fit this concept?
By policies do you mean public policies? These are still hard to come by in a complete form in Brazil, unlike in cities such as Copenhagen, Amsterdam, New York or even Lisbon and Rosário, where citizens are involved in the decision-making pocesses that concern their cities (as in the participative budget system in place in Lisbon’s schools and the social fine issued by the children in Rosário to drivers who park in no-parking areas), where the state takes on the role of a fosterer of innovation (such as in the bicycle culture project spearheaded by the Dutch Cycling Embassy, in Amsterdam, the creative entrepreneurship programs in Copenhagen and the set of actions focusing on public spaces and transportation in New York).
What initiatives can enterprises have in this respect?
There are myriad possibilities, such as real estate developers investing in healthy relationships with and in the surroundings of their properties, employing clear-cut strategies to value the territory and ecosystem in which their own employees work; or Sampa Criativa (Creative São Paulo), a collaborative platform we have developed at the behest of organizations Fecomércio-SP, Sesc and Senac, inspiring citizens to outline propositions for improving the city in many different fields (ranging from business to public spaces, from communication to social innovation), positioning themselves as agents of change. Hundreds of news stories were generated, some of which covered traditional businesses that reinvent themselves creatively, and over a six-month period 800-plus propositions were submitted, openly published and forwarded on a weekly basis to the City Hall and the City Council (www.criaticidades.com.br/sampacriativa).
Are you familiar with any examples in Arab countries? For instance, does Masdar, in Abu Dhabi, fit the bill?
Abu Dhabi is a regional highlight where a series of efforts reflect a structured underlying program for change. Projects include the Vision 2030 plan, the cultural district development (including five major iconic sets dedicated to local culture, in the so-called “Island of Happiness”), innovative actions targeting urban sustainability, and the attraction of newly-graduated talents from world-class universities.
Service:
Creative Cities – Lecture
Ana Carla Fonseca
October 14th, 7 pm at the Arab Chamber, Av. Paulista, 326, 17th floor, São Paulo, São Paulo
Admission is free, but limited to business executives and Arab Chamber members
Information and registration: (+55 11) 3147 4066 – tmachado@ccab.org.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum