May 31, 2010 12:35:50 AM cite

Your question raised more questions than answers to me. Is your question simply about architecture? Tourism? Identity of a population? What is meant by identity of a city? Buildings? Cultural groups? Religious groups? All bundled? How can a city have an identity when a city is made up of different groups, different cultures, sub cultures, counter-cultures? I suspect when people talk about identity of a city they are referring to the postcard. The one with the landmarks that tourists visit, like Buckingham Palace or the Mayan Pyramids. Or maybe to local features such as traffic culture, nightlife or lifestyle. Things like gay San Francisco or Parisien style cafes. But those are images, ideas, punctual places. Identity relates etymologically to sameness, not difference. So to wish to protect cities from sameness is to protect them from expressing identity. I think you mean uniqueness, and in that case all cities are unique by virtue alone of their unique geographical location. Identity is a human expression and there are many identities co-existing in our cities. The beauty of it, is that no matter where you go, you can find members of your own 'tribe'. People you 'identify'with. So we are truly global citizens already and there will never be the danger of 'loosing' our identity. We are only at danger of having many of the identities co-existing in the urban space, surpressed by hatred, racism, xenophobia, religious fundamentalism, paticularly of the dominant groups who usually define what is the identity of a city/country. Identity is not fixed in time or space, because cities change and grow with time, and so do their citizens as they absorb foreign customs, ideas, technology, culture, no city stays the same, no culture is pure and so how can we really talk about identity of a city?

by dastenras

Feb 2, 2007 12:32:25 PM cite

Estimado Don Constantin von Barloewen: De manera atenta me dirijo a usted desde la secretaría de FISEC, para pedirle que se contacte con nosotros a la siguiente dirección : secretaria@forofaro.com. Nuestra web http://www.forofaro.com/ y nuestra revista están a su disposición para que nos conozca http://www.fisec-estrategias.com.ar/. Nuestro presidente, el profesor Rafael Alberto Pérez desea contactarlo Cordialmente Helena Vergara Silva Secretaria FISEC

by FISEC

Sep 19, 2006 1:27:35 AM cite

The first answer stems from the need for cities to build monuments. Looking to history, even, looking to Bebelplatz Square as an example, human beings through the ages have needed monuments to call their own ? Which brings the answer to th e second question. We need to stop thinking of design, building, from the point of view of cost in monetary terms alone. There must be taken into consideration, perhaps even the first consideration, the esthaetics and ethics of what ever might be planned. There need to be a movement away from ?Good Enough? costing, towards social value costing when thinking of building in a city. The remains only so much room, it remains incumbent on us to use it well.

by RedSevenOne

Sep 13, 2006 6:51:34 PM cite

Support small, local businesses.

by Judy0123

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Antoschka - Ekaterina Moshaeva: I´m an artist and I know a lot of people. And each person is an artist. It needs only an opportunity to open itself. And artists make cities not different from each other with architecture, with cultural life, with pictures and so on. These are differences and these differences come through times. It´s a big cultural treasure. Today we go to museums and see these Greek sculptures or beautiful paintings of old masters and they inspire a lot of new artists and new generations. We can protect cities from sameness with our creativity. It gives people the posibility to show their own creativity. And it could be a wonderful, fantastic result. I am working with children and I give them possibility to explain me some things. I learn a lot of things from these children, even from children, their totally natural fantastic points of view for simple things. I learn also from young people. [...]

by Antoschka - Ekaterina Moshaeva

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Abbas Beydoun: I am not sure whether the cities are really threatened by sameness, but if that is happening now we can not stop it and we will not be able to change this fact. What i know that the European cities are different from each other and the modern cities are dissimilar to each other and to the other cities and they are anarchic. However, these anarchic cities are changed to be type and exemplar. Although the suburbs and the architecture of these cities are diverse, the cities generally look somehow similar. We may feel that the chaos and the diversity of these cities lead to disorder, but this disorder will become gradually a system and a nice life.

by Abbas Beydoun

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Alvaro Restrepo: This question hast to do with the homogenization of the planet. We all should make an enormous effort in order to preserve the architectonic heritage, the traditions, the costums and the festive celebrations of each city. That is the only way to keep save the identity. In my opinion that is a responsability of the goverments. And it is true, as I said before, we travel but we don't really feel that we are travelling because somehow everything looks exactly the same, doesn't it?

by Alvaro Restrepo

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Ana Lucy Bengochea: By protecting the cities and disclosing those areas which give the city values, which gives us culture, make us taking care of those places, make us preserve historical centres, preserve histories, museums, make us having real histories which give value to feeling us like a part of people, like a part of a community of Honduras

by Ana Lucy Bengochea

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Andries Botha: Thank you for the question Sara. I don’t know whether we can protect cities from sameness. Seems to me that there is a – things are built, things are absorbed, in a manner which is a response to a very very effective and efficient and seductive global media campaign. Global distribution of goods. However, on the other hand, you know I’d like to say, that Taiwan would be different to Johannesburg. Because, Taiwanese people, as they absorb global culture, absorb it in a unique way. So, I think we can keep valorizing, what it is that makes us particular, makes us unique as a people, and the belief that the valorization of that particularness will never be less, it cannot possibly be less. However, we will absorb that global input in a unique way, and we shouldn’t be afraid that it will be less. So I would imagine that a global Pakistani city would be completely different to a global American city. The food that we eat, the smells, certainly the people, how they absorb and transform global culture, and in addition to that I really do believe governments do have responsibilities to actively promote multimedia and how it absorbs global culture and assimilates it into its locality. I think that’s what really needs to happen to create that uniqueness.

by Andries Botha

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Angaangaq Lyberth: Answertext will be available soon.

by Angaangaq Lyberth

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Anthony Arnove: I think again this is something I am going to leave to people who have far more knowledge and insight than I do. But, I will say just to reference an earlier question that I think there is a lot to be learned from Mike Davis’ book, Planet of Slums, about the direction cities are going, which is -- a direction which is quite frightening. And the trend of course is towards more sameness and towards destruction of local cultures, local knowledges, and so that is a concern that I think we are only beginning to get our head around and understand about. Mike Davis really does a lot to help us begin to ask the right kinds of questions about that.

by Anthony Arnove

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Anuradha Koirala: I think that we can do something to make the city proud. There should be no war, no discrimination for woman, [inaudible]. You need to [inaudible] and I think, with all this we will be the city will be protected from sameness and we can retain the identity of the city by its deeds.

by Anuradha Koirala

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Anuradha Mittal: Well, I remember going to Zurich Airport and seeing Starbucks. That was the only coffee shop at the Zurich Airport. Or you go to China and I’ve seen McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken or I go to Delhi and I see the same McDonald’s or I go to Prague and I see the same McDonald’s. As long as we allow the takeover of the places where we live which you call home to become into something else that instead of just a sharing that it has become monopolization of just one culture. As we find languages disappearing around the world into one language, for example, English being spoken more and more in different parts of the world, it actually does not bring us together. It does not unite us. What we find is basically we are all becoming replicas of the United States or its corporations and that is not a good symbol for any of us. It is the start of destruction.

by Anuradha Mittal

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Ashok Gangadean: For me this question is like the prior question. Can we really keep a unique identity as individuals while becoming a global citizen? And the calculus of awakened awareness opens enormous space in which we can both be in common ground and yet realize our deeper individuality. But then the artificial boxes of our egomental and ego structures and ego culture and ego consciousness. And this question is the same for locations and ecologies, local ecologies. All of our local cities have the unique, or could have, the unique features and distinctive charm and special strengths and yet be part of a global community. So that the question of identity, retaining unique identity, while overcoming artificial differences, identity of different cities, it’s the same issue. And it seems to me as we enter a global age and there is a pull to commonality, that does not take away the uniqueness of our cities. Of our cultural ways, of our unique personal identities, of the food we eat and the local. May we always have the unique cuisine that enriches the diversity, enriches our global community and the uniqueness of all great cities like the City of Berlin. Sitting here in East Berlin, in this wonderful square, looking around us, are the incredible uniqueness of this place. We want to retain places like that all around the world and I think this is possible to do.

by Ashok Gangadean

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Audrey Kitagawa: I think there has been an increase in ordinances that speak to preserving historic buildings, historic sites as a way of preserving the unique identities of cities and to, and this actually creates a way of preventing the incursion of sameness. But as I had previously indicated, these are concurrent things, sameness, that we find all over the world. Being able to buy the same product, the same foods from the same food chains from one city to the next. At the same time, having these laws that are being implemented that seek to preserve historic sites, communities with civically minded people that understand the importance of preserving their culture, the uniqueness of their buildings, more and more becoming advocates and activists for preserving the uniqueness of history and culture coming to the forefront as well. So I think this is already being done. That doesn't mean that more cannot be done, but it is, also speaks to the political will of the leaders that understand the importance of creating the space for people to be able to celebrate and honor their culture, their -- and their history.

by Audrey Kitagawa

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Avi Primor: If we care for to keep the cultures. If we care for, that the power, the superiority, the federal power, the national power, the global power, whatever power, won’t destroy cultures, but will understand to leave a lots of autonomies of different kinds to the local popularisation like education, language, culture. If we care for, that not one language is destroying the other languages. Today there exits a danger, especially when we go on like that, we will have shortly English as the only language in the world. English will be the only language which will keep remained to us. That means only one language, one culture, one colour. Everything will be uniform and made in the same kind of manufacturing. Look at the cities in America! The all look the same, because there is an uniform culture in America. In Europe there is a multifarious culture. We have to care for that is stays like that and then the cities will keep their nature and won’t become uniform. Yes, that’s a question of willing. That’s a question of local power. That’s the question of subsidiarity, where everybody keeps that what he is doing most efficient. If we do that in that kind of way, we will keep the cultures and if we don’t do that, we will have a global culture, a uniform language. Everything will be uniform. Everybody will wear exactly the same clothes; will live in the same houses. The world will become a boring place.

by Avi Primor

Sep 9, 2006 3:45:00 PM cite

Benjamin Fahrer: How can we retain the identity of different cities? Earlier question, what’s the future of the city? It depends on what city and yet there’s a sameness about the energetics of the city but yet there’s also a very different feeling from the people who inhabit the city. Again, the people behind me, these are very different people than the people in Italy, not so much different maybe, but for me from San Francisco or you go to Johannesburg -- very different. So, the people who live within the city can protect it from sameness and by preserving the cultural heritage of the city. What is it that makes that city? What is it that makes Berlin, Berlin? And how can we honor that? And how can we make that more? How can we promote the uniqueness of each city and honor it? Not in a competitive model but in a way that is constructive. And then how can these cities then interact together, to honor each other and to make relationship between each other? So they’re not trying to replicate everything the same. In the States, you have cities that are the same by having the same malls, they have the same shops, they have the same and a lot all over. Same cities happening, same development happening in the cities and in the country even. It’s about finding the value in the uniqueness, finding the value in what that can contribute to the whole and then the diversity, really honoring the diversity that we all have and really giving artistic license to those designers and architects to not homogenize our cities. It is beautiful here, this is my first time to Berlin, and seen that 90% of the country of the city was destroyed and now rebuilt, it’s unique.

by Benjamin Fahrer