Urban studies and practices in the context of Social Transformation of Urban Planning in Russia (2008-2021 years)

Abstract

The field of urban planning in Russia (hereinafter — UP) is of particular interest for sociological analysis. By M.S. Larson, results of the activity of architects and town planners are not only material features, but also cultural, behavioral patterns which are inscribed in urban planning projects. In the last decade, professionals, city managers, and developers have faced new challenges related to the quality of the urban environment. The request for new approaches in the field of renovation of urban spaces was formulated both by professionals, representatives of civil, expert communities and grassroots groups, and by government authorities (within the framework of the federal project “Formation of a Comfortable Urban Environment”).The focus of this article is the analysis of “urbanistika” (=urban studies and practices) in Russia in 2008-2021, based on materials from expert interviews with professionals with experience in the field of urban planning. Key aspects of the transformation of UP that were identified during the analysis include: 1) marketization of UP, 2) the formation of an individualistic discourse, 3) the formation of a therapeutic discourse, 4) a communicative turn in UP, which is shown by the example of the emergence of new methods (participatory design and others methods aimed at taking into account the opinions of residents during the urban planning process), as well as the emergence of new actors (bloggers and urbanists) in urban discussions and projects.