Against the “Hard Squares”: How La Verneda Reclaimed Green Space and Identity
The scientific literature has explored the relationship between environmental justice and inequalities in the distribution and access to green spaces. This article analyses the neighbourhood of La Verneda (Barcelona) as one of the most successful cases of ecological urban transformation in Spain. Ba...
| Autores: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2026 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya) |
| Repositorio: | Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:recercat.cat:2445/226184 |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/2445/226184 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Sociologia urbana Zones verdes Verneda i la Pau (Barcelona, Catalunya) Urban sociology Open spaces Verneda i la Pau (Barcelona, Catalonia) |
| Sumario: | The scientific literature has explored the relationship between environmental justice and inequalities in the distribution and access to green spaces. This article analyses the neighbourhood of La Verneda (Barcelona) as one of the most successful cases of ecological urban transformation in Spain. Based on a Communicative Methodology approach that includes five in-depth dialogic interviews with residents and documentation from local institutions, the analysis identifies four core mechanisms driving the transformation: dialogic capacity building (through an adult education school), grassroots coalition-building (VERN and local associations), intergenerational design choices (spaces intentionally designed for mixed-age use), and symbolic place-claims (defense of the name La Verneda). These mechanisms contributed to measurable environmental and social outcomes reported by residents and illustrate how bottom-up processes can reconfigure urban planning trajectories. These findings contribute relevant lessons for contemporary ecological transitions in other urban peripheries. |
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