Bringing perspectives together in BoTu: Recognition justice in practice

On Thursday, April 23, Charissa Leiwakabessy (UvA), Anna de Zeeuw (HvA), and Rosa Koetsenruijter (HvA) organized a workshop on recognition justice in renovation and transition processes in a community room in the Rotterdam neighborhood of Bospolder Tussendijken.

 

The session began with a presentation of insights from Charissa's doctoral research on recognition justice in the energy transition in Rotterdam Bospolder-Tussendijken and Amsterdam Zuidoost. It was not a one-way street: residents and professionals from the neighborhoods sat together at the table. We asked them what they recognized in these stories and what it looks like in their own practice.

 

To further deepen this reflection, we subsequently worked with a set of cards designed by Charissa. These cards were designed to gather experiences regarding the interactions between professionals and residents. What does that contact look like? And why does that contact sometimes proceed awkwardly or smoothly? By working with this set, participants were able to outline concrete situations and recognize patterns that often unconsciously influence the collaboration. What the session further yielded was not only an analysis of the current situation, but also an initial exploration of what is needed to break these patterns. Importantly, this workshop had a twofold benefit: in addition to generating new insights for the research, the session also directly contributed to the further development of the card set itself. The feedback and experiences of the participants helped to make the instrument even more practical and refined for future applications.