English modules

Municipalism, what’s it all about?

Module 2 – Onboarding video

Municipalism, a historical process dating back to antiquity

Interview with Jonathan Durand Folco – Ph.D. and professor at Saint Paul University in Ottawa.
Author of A nous la ville! Traité de municipalisme (“The City is Ours! Treatise on Municipalism.”) (EcoSociété Editions).

• When did municipalism begin?
• How is municipalism related to local democracy?
• What municipalist experiences can be found historically?
• Is municipalism also a movement of social and economic transformation?
• How is municipalism expressed today?

Municipalism as political Utopia

Interview with Corinne Morel Darleux – Regional councilor and campaigner for the eco-socialist project.

• Is municipalism an answer to the limits of our democracy?
• Is municipalism in Rojava an ideal experience?
• Is municipalism an answer to environmental collapse?
• What are the limits of the local level?
• How do we define libertarian municipalism?

Municipalism and Climate Emergency

Interview with Nicolas Haeringer – Global Organiser 350.org

• How does municipalism follow the evolution of social movements in the last decade?
• Do you think that occupying institutions is a credible and sustainable alternative?
• Can municipalism offer an answer to the environmental crisis?

Right to the city and municipalism

Interview with Magali Fricaudet – activist for The Right to Housing from AITEC.

• How is municipalism related to the struggle for the right to the city?
• Municipalism: Social or political movement?
• What do you consider to be the main traits of the municipalist movement?
• What is a citizen platform and how does it work?
• Does municipalism question the place and role of the State?

Let’s get started! From the spark to the mobilizations

Module 3 – Onboarding video.

Social movements, ‘gilets jaunes’ and municipalism

Interview with Killian Martin – Student at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences.

• What elements do you think trigger municipalist initiatives?
• Do we have the ingredients today for a municipalist movement in France?
• Is the future of Yellow Vests in municipalism?

From urban struggle to a municipalist plateform (Ne Da(vi)mo Beograd – Serbia)

Interview with Natalija Simovic and Radomir Lazović – Members of ‘Ne Da(vi)mo Beograd’ (‘Let’s not d(r)own Belgrade’)

• What was the spark of your municipalist mobilization ?
• What were the different steps and strategies to achieve your goal as a municipalist movement ?
• What is the opinion of ‘Ne Davimo Beograd’ towards the perspective to become a political party ?
• What are the ingredients of the fertile ground in Belgrade ?
• What are the main obstacles your movement is facing ?

Mobilization strategy in Zagreb (Croatia)

Interview with Vedran Horvat – Member of Zagreb je NAS (Zagreb Is Ours)

• What were the sparks of your municipalist mobilization ?
• What were the different steps and strategies used for your municipalist mobilization ?
• Is the mobilization still going now ?

Take power to share it : The example of Saillans

Interview with Annie Morin and Vincent Beillard – First Deputy Mayor and Mayor of Saillans.

• What were the sparks and then the different stages for the participatory list in Saillans?
• How is governance implemented in Saillans?
• Has this changed the way residents perceive the elected official’s role?
• Does it work? What are the ingredients for success?
• How does this mode of operation change the decisions you make?
• What do participatory lists like yours need the most to be prepared and function well?

Making Alliances – Campaign Convergence, Political Confluence?

Module 4 – Onboarding video.

From the tide to the town hall,
the experience of Marea Atlántica (A Coruña)

Interview with Claudia Delso – local elected official (“participation and democratic innovation”)

• When and how did Marea Atlántica become a municipal confluence platform?
• What steps were taken to move from confluence to the local government of A Coruña?
• What obstacles did you face? How did you overcome them?
• What are the keys to understanding your success?
• On what principles did you build your confluence platform?
• How does Marea Atlántica organize its governance?
• And the relationship with social movements?
• How does Marea Atlántica manage its relationship with the municipal government?
• And the enjoyable part of all this adventure?
• Some advice for the undecided?

The experience of Archipel Citoyen in Toulouse

Interview with Jonas Georges – facilitator in collective intelligence

• What is Archipel Citoyen of Toulouse?
• What made you decide to run for the 2020 municipal elections?
• How do you envisage the confluence, the alliance with other more traditional political forces/parties?
• How is the list made up?
• What are the commitments of the candidates on the list?
• What is radical democracy for Archipel Citoyen?
• What are your main limitations and difficulties?
• How do you integrate in your approach the connection with the inter-communal level?

Restoring Confidence – The values of municipalisme

Module 5 – Onboarding video.

When cities defend hospitality and humanity (Grande-Synthe)

Interview with Damien Carême – Mayor of Grande-Synthe (2001-2019)

• 00:35 What does it mean “to put hospitality back in the heart of municipalities”?
• 04:31 Can international networks of welcoming cities propose alternatives to closing borders?
• 07:12 Is the European level the right one to make the voices heard of cities that are sometimes ahead of the States?
• 09:04 In relation to what values are local public policies implemented in Grande-Synthe?

Transforming the role and representation of elected officials

Interview with Charlotte Marchandise – Deputy mayor for health and community activist

• 00:45 What do you mean by a democracy by and for the people?
• 03:10 How do we make sure that people stay involved throughout the mandate?
• 06:39 What is it to be a “radical Care Bear”?
• 08:31 What lessons have you learnt from laprimaire.org ?
• 12:55 In your opinion, what is municipalism’s challenge in transforming society?

The code of ethics in Valencia en Comu, theory to the test of practice

Interview with Neus Fabregas – City Councilor (2015-2019)

• 00:39 A code of ethics in Valencia en Comú: what for?
• 01:58 What does it talk about?
• 08:05 What were the difficulties, the limits, the assessment?
• 11:55 If you had to do it again, how would you go about it?

Municipalism and feminisation of politics

Interview with Laura Roth – Researcher and activist, co-founder of MINIM.

• 00:35 What does feminisation of politics mean for the municipalist movement ?
• 02:35 Could you explain what does it change in practice ?
• 04:23 What is the impact on leadership?

Democracy by, for and with the people

Module 6 – Onboarding video

Permanent democracy and co-construction in Kingersheim

Interview with Jo Spiegel – Mayor of Kingersheim

• 0:33 What is construction democracy?
• 01:43 How is democracy and citizenship a learning process?
• 02:58 What democratic innovations have been implemented in Kingersheim?
• 05:59 What does it change in terms of positions? (Residents, mayor and elected officials, agents…)
• 08:49 Are leadership and democratic participation compatible?
• 10:07 What does it mean to go from “I” to “we”?
• 11:31 What would be a critical interpretation of municipalism for you?

Radicalize democracy, govern with empathy (the Barcelona experience)

Interview with Gala Pin – Municipal councilor responsible for participation on Barcelona’s city council (2015-2019)

• 00:36 What does “radicalize democracy” mean?
• 02:47 How can we create a positive tension between social movements and elected officials?
• 06:36 In terms of participation, what have you learned?
• 12:03 What does it mean “to govern with empathy”?

New languages and new places : Cambiamo Messina dal Basso experience

Interview with Federico Alagna – Regional Advisor and Eco-Socialist Activist

• 01:01 What are the main lessons you learnt by governing the city during five years ?
• 03:40 What are the new municipalism, new forms of your mobilization outside institution ?
• 05:57 Why “the relationship between movements and administration is the centrepiece of new municipalism”?
• 09:32 What are the principles, values and process to rebuild confidence in people and in institutions ?
• 11:12 How to open public participation and mobilization beyond the same players ?
  
• 12:35 What is for you the conditions to a successul municipalist mouvement outside institution ?

What are the results ? What public policies favor residents?

Module 7 – Onboarding video

Assessment and challenges of municipalism in Spain and Europe

Interview with Ludovic Lamant – Journalist at Mediapart

• 00:33: How do you assess the last term of the rebel town halls in Spain (2015-2019)?
• 03:06: How do you interpret the election results of the rebel cities in May 2019 in Spain?
• 05:30 How can we analyze the relationship between the Podemos party and the municipalist platforms in Spain?
• 07:15: Does the practice of political power upset the ideal of municipalist democratic radicalism?
• 08:35: Is municipalism the end of political parties and can it survive in the long run?
• 11:23: What is the result of overcoming the traditional powers of municipalities?
  12:15: What issues does a European level municipalism have?
  

What are the results of municipalist policies in Spain? (Atlas del Cambio)

Interview with Ana Mendez – Urbanist and activist

Room for maneuver at municipal level

Module 8 – Onboarding video

Public power and the law – Challenging commons and municipalism

Interview with Sylvia Fredriksson – Designer and researcher (Remix the commons)

• 00:46 How do the commons inspire municipalism?
• 04:26 When the citizens’ initiative brings about change in public power and law: cross-learning between the commons and municipalism.
• 06:38 What European experiences have been an inspiration? The example of the Bologna regulation (Italy)

Culture and municipalism

Interview with Igor Stokfiszewski – Krytyka Polityczna (Poland)
Sergi Escribano – CommonsPolis (Spain)
Lucas Tello – Zemos98 (Spain)
Shelagh Wright & Peter Jenkinson (London)

Does municipalism contribute to change collective imaginary, democratic culture?

Igor Stokfiszewski – Krytyka Polityczna (Poland)
Sergi Escribano – CommonsPolis (Spain)
Lucas Tello – Zemos98 (Spain)
Shelagh Wright & Peter Jenkinson (London)