Governing Ourselves: Citizen Participation and Governance in Barcelona and Manchester

Georgina Blakeley

International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 2010, vol. 34, issue 1, 130-145

Abstract: Abstract Barcelona and Manchester have become paradigmatic examples of ‘governance‐beyond‐the‐state’, ‘new localism’ or ‘local state entrepreneurialism’. Whatever the label, citizen participation has become a key feature of governance in each city. This article argues that a useful way of understanding the developing relationship between governance and citizen participation is through the analytical perspective of governmentality. This perspective illuminates two paradoxes that characterize the new governance arrangements in these two European cities. The first paradox is that the power of the state is not necessarily diminished despite the emerging plurality of actors involved in governance. The second paradox lies in the fact that the spread of participatory practices as an integral element of new modes of governance does not necessarily lead to citizen empowerment. Résumé Barcelone et Manchester sont désormais des exemples paradigmatiques de ‘gouvernance au‐delà de l’État’, de ‘nouveau localisme’ ou d’‘entrepreneurialisme de l’État local’. Quelle que soit l’étiquette, la participation citoyenne est devenue un trait caractéristique de la gouvernance de chaque ville. Pour comprendre le lien qui se tisse entre gouvernance et participation citoyenne, on adoptera avec profit la perspective analytique de la gouvernementalité. En effet, celle‐ci éclaire deux paradoxes propres aux nouveaux dispositifs de gouvernance dans ces deux villes européennes: le premier paradoxe est que la puissance de l’État n’est pas forcément diminuée malgré la multiplication des acteurs impliqués dans la gouvernance; le second tient au fait que la propagation des pratiques participatives, en tant que composante des nouveaux modes de gouvernance, ne conduit pas forcément à une autonomie accrue des habitants.

Date: 2010
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