by Ian Cook and Ondřej Daniel*

To this day, the European Union does not have a football team; and the attempt to define a flag and anthem ended unsuccessfully due to the resistance of those fearing that a European super-state would threaten their national identities. If there is nevertheless something like a shared European identity, something what distinguishes our continent from other parts of the world, then it is the European social model. Even though the volume of redistributed resources differs from country to country, all member states of the European Union share the assumption that society has some responsibility towards those who are more vulnerable. The resulting “welfare state” is in fact more than a number of state programmes. Its unique success in ensuring stability and cohesion is based on the synergy of policies and practices by private employers, trade unions, citizen groups, and, importantly, cities and smaller municipalities. In regard to the latter, urban sociologists have coined the term “European city” to describe this model which exists throughout the continent.

It has been argued that the there is something distinctive about a European City when compared to, for instance, an American city. The concept relies on the idea that a European city has shown it has the power and the willingness to make interventions for the good of it inhabitants often. These instances have often been against the strict financial-logic or current global trends – e.g. why sewage systems and street lighting were first installed into the poor neighbourhoods or why local councils choose to house people who can’t afford to buy or rent property because of unemployment or illness. These early examples spread as the 19^th and 20^th centuries also saw the rise of the national state to its strongest position to date - at this time the power of cities and their inhabitants shrunk; recently however with pan-continental institutions and global economic forces coming to the fore, national governments have been to a certain extent weakened and it has again left the local decision makers and power players in a interesting position. Whilst some cities have thrived in the new globalised-age others have fallen into sharp decline; a condition marked by mass unemployment, derelict buildings, emigration, violent crime and a dire financial situation, which leaves little space for own initiatives. Sometimes these pockets of ‘success’ or ‘failure’ exist side-by-side within one city, questioning assertions that these problems might exist because of geographic or location-orientated factors.

With these statements in mind we organize the following event: A week long ‘travelling’ research seminar in the ‘ex-industrial’ areas of the northwestern Czech Republic and Eastern Germany. Focusing mostly on the two old-industrial cities of Chomutov and Chemnitz, students and researches will be selected to come together in the presentation of their papers on the aforementioned issues and then participant in individual and group research. The seminar will start in Chomutov (Czech Republic) where the project and Europeancity.cz website will be presented. The seminar participants will then conduct research in smaller groups before arriving for the discussion of results and consultation with the editorial board in Chemnitz (Germany). The event will produce articles, interviews and studies on the theme of a European City which will be published on the Europeancity.cz webportal. The best of the articles an will be brought together in a magazine-style publication for wider dissemination to the public.

 

* Multicultural Centre Prague

www.mkc.cz

www.europeancity.cz