Social Cohesion through Collaborative Public Space Production

Social cohesion is a crucial component of a healthy neighborhood, enhancing social resilience through processes such as the creation of networks and common civic values, the fostering of feelings of belonging, and adherence to social norms. Collaborative production of public spaces that involves residents, experts, and municipal authorities is identified as an effective way of arriving at neighborhood cohesion. In fact, such initiatives are becoming increasingly relevant in heterogenous neighborhoods in Rotterdam, like the Tarwewijk. Considered to be ‘lagging behind’, national policy interventions target the Tarwewijk for improvement, but seem to focus on traditional metrics like schooling, housing, and employment. Already existing collaborative public space initiatives and resident impetus on the ground suggests that ignoring social cohesion as a policy outcome is a missed opportunity at enhancing neighborhood resilience. In turn, the main research question addressed through this study is: how can collaborative, community-led spatial production processes foster social cohesion in ethnically heterogenous neighborhoods in Rotterdam? Furthermore, two important aspects are given special attention. Firstly, how do existing municipal processes and resident-led spatial production coexist in the Tarwewijk, and what are the impacts on the development of social cohesion? How does neighborhood diversity and pre-determined social groups impact the development of social cohesion in the Tarwewijk? The analytical framework for the present research follows a narrow approach to social cohesion, and involves its four core components: common values, social order, place identity, and social capital. Furthermore, the methodological approach is twofold. Firstly, a diagnosis of social cohesion at the neighborhood level utilizing municipal data revealed a divergence between objective and subjective measures of social cohesion. While scores and statistics reveal primarily an upward trend between 2022 and 2024, residents perceive a less cohesive Tarwewijk. Secondly, semi-structured interviews and process observations in one of the main sites of collaborative public space interventions reveal that participating actors perceive cohesion to have been fostered in the same period. This suggests the need of expanding collaborative public space interventions and resident participation in them to spread positive impacts on cohesion to a neighborhood wide level. Interestingly, the processes in the Tarwewijk show a decrease in trust for municipal institutions because of tension between institutional and neighborhood agendas. Nonetheless, collaboration exhibits potential to bridge between pre-existing local communities and foster the creation of diverse social networks.