This series of posts have explored a number of urban issues through a UPE lens, including studying the metabolism of waste and water. Berlin’s aims to configure this metabolism to be as circular as possible shows their strong ambition and forward-thinking outlook to promote sustainability. Although I didn’t explore this idea in the posts, Berlin’s wastewater is actually used to brew beer! They are pushing new boundaries which once seemed absurd, but upon closer inspection, actually make long term sense. It has also closely addressed alternative methods of governance in Berlin, such as a ‘bottom up’ approach with regard to the banning of diesel cars. Also, it showcased the pitfalls of the city’s vested interest in the automobile industry, and how that effects policies that are put into practice. However, this slightly negative outlook on Berlin’s governance is balanced by their incredibly effective response to the recent Covid-19 pandemic. Their capacity to cope was afforded by their prompt response, as their first point of call was to run a diagnosis to ascertain the most vulnerable groups of population. The city’s decision to take a long-term view once again worked in its favour, as they internalised the high costs of implementing their measures in the short term, such as the high volume of testing for citizens in order for the economy to revive faster. Although, through a UPE lens, I consider the analysis of governance a very challenging concept to grasp in the case of Berlin, most notably due to the sheer number of stakeholders and political forces at play.
Berlin’s ‘smart’ approaches explored in my posts emphasise the role infrastructure plays in urban living. In terms of the sponge city concept and waste management in Berlin, these new and innovative infrastructures successfully mediate the relations between the city, nature and citizens. In doing so, the city has displayed urban modernity, and as long as it remains effective in addressing ecological issues through technology, the city will continue to modernise and prosper. However, it is important to note that in general, the adjustment towards these complex systems requires new standards of governance that allow technological and social aspects to be taken into account [1]. In the case of Berlin, the high number of successful corporations that operate there enable a myriad of successful public private partnerships, which in itself updates the governance in co-ordination with technological advancements. This helps to explain why they have had minimal issues concerning the implementation of the smart approaches.
The question is, will Berlin ever be deemed a global city? The future is unknown, but they’re certainly heading in the right direction. As we watch sustainability, environmental protection and climate change all become more and more crucial around the world, Berlin will be used as a model city to establish positive urban futures. One of its current setbacks is its vested interest in the automobile industry. If such alliance breaks down over time, I believe we could see Berlin take even more radical steps to help achieve its goals towards achieving a coal exit by 2030 [2]. These types of ambitions would be deemed far too lofty for other cities, but Berlin’s determination and expertise in the field will make it happen in time to come.
I thoroughly hope you enjoyed reading and engaging with my blog. Over the past three months, I have really enjoyed learning more about Berlin, especially through a UPE lens as it has instructed me to consider urban issues at a slightly different angle to how I would see them previously.
Here are the references I used:
[1] – Boykova, M., Ilina, I. and Salazkin, M., 2016. The Smart City approach as a response to emerging challenges for urban development. Форсайт, 10(3 (eng)).
Urban Political Ecology UCL 