Municipalities need to be the spark of “Neighborhood Mappings” deal with the issue to increase the economic prosperity of the city and establish peace.
Globalization and Productivity
Globalization is a process, which directly affects productivity. Global economies want to keep control of production tools all around the world and allow authoritarian management of productivity. Deindustrialization is a process appeared with globalization, and it supports the idea of globalization. The crises which capitalism has fallen into in the last twenty years, co-date with the widespread adoption of globalization policies. The crisis happened in 1990 had shown its impact in Mexico, Asia, Brazil; the crisis took place in early 2000’s affected Turkey and Argentina. Those cases exemplify the regional economic crises. The starting point of the global economic crisis of 2008 is the deindustrialization policies. With the direct impact of global economies, the crisis quickly transcended the regional level of influence and turned into an intercontinental crisis.
Strengthening Local Productivity
Without taking the level of influence and point of origin into consideration, those crises that escalated as a result of globalization, raise the need for strengthening of productivity and means of production in local level. Strengthening local productivity levels is suggested as a solution method of such crises. The development of regional development strategies by the member states of the European Union when they faced the 2008 global economic crisis, clearly proves the local economic organization as a solution method to put into action as they started in Greece.
Cities -which are directly affected by globalization- are the places where the rent is organized and shared at local level. Egalitarian and fair policies are expected to be implemented for the sharing of local economic power. The processes that prepare the environment for the authoritarian collection of local productivity under the influence of globalization, begin to destroy the culture of urban spaces. As the culture that life keeps on accumulating continues on vanishing; social problems such as migration, social and economic problems, poverty, income injustice, and ostracization are increasing.
Management Issues
Globalization continues to increase income injustice while making it difficult to manage. The unbalanced sharing of rent, the collection of means of production in one hand, the enrichment of the rich and the poorer of the poor are the main causes of the problems currently arising in the cities. With all these, problems such as corruption of cultural opportunities, drug addiction and lack of security in cities are encountered. Equality of opportunity is being damaged day by day due to increasing privatization in cities.
Since the formation of cities as habitats, migration as a result of uneven growth at the local level is the first problem that is faced. Globalization policies increase the income imbalance among individuals day by day. Migration to large cities is accelerating as income imbalance increases between geographical regions. As a result of this, poverty increases in the periphery of cities, and it becomes impossible to meet the needs day by day. As a result of living spaces making life difficult live; decreasing the quality of such services like local policy, deterioration in urban centers, health, education, and infrastructure emerges spontaneously.
Local Policies
Social policies that affect the country in general, are not programmed according to the needs of the local and programs put forward in line with global pressures are the main source of problems. In this environment where urban planning has become impossible, it is natural that local governments cannot produce policies when the problems caused by rapid population increases are evaluated on a local scale. It is becoming increasingly difficult for municipalities to identify and find solutions to the needs of the public on a micro-scale.
Globalization and deindustrialization policies seem to cause similar problems in many European countries. Globalization and deindustrialization policies seem to cause similar problems in many European countries. Over 20% of youth unemployment in Greece and Spain, finding 25% of the urban proportion of young unemployed university graduates in Turkey raises issues that directly affect the face the day.
Urban Focus
Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, has a population of over 4 million today. As it is known, İzmir, which is one of the fastest migrants, receives immigration from Southeast and Eastern Anatolian Regions after the 1980s and from big cities such as Istanbul and Ankara after 2015. It is known that the well-established habitats of İzmir such as Kadifekale and Gültepe in the city center are the migration centers.
Rapidly changing population structure of migration centers has achieved different stories in ten years. Kadifekale (Pagos), which also became the center of urban transformation, has been subjected to an influx of refugees after the civil war in Syria and has been faced with completely different problems after the event. The Syrian question, which is the most striking example that wars as a result of globalization directly affects cities, should also be examined in detail.
The places most affected by globalization policies are the centers of big cities. The current situation of Konak district shows how cities are affected by globalization. Reviewing the example of Konak, which summarizes this situation, can provide a better understanding of the process.
Current Situation in Konak
Local governments, from residential facilities to traffic regulation, from green areas in the city to transportation, education, culture and art services; it has authority and responsibility for a range of services that an individual needs from birth to death. Being able to assess the public services needed and applied at various stages of human life will be guiding the framework of the social policies they will produce for local governments.
Konak in Numbers
370.662 people live in Konak district of İzmir. (TÜİK, 2018) A baby born in Konak can open its eyes to one of the six state hospitals and nine private hospitals of the Ministry of Health. Vaccines of the baby can be given in 20 maternity health centers.
A child can go to one of the four pre-school institutions opened by the state, as they start their education, and by the age of six, they can start one of 44 primary schools. After attending primary school, they can continue their education in 39 secondary schools. When they enter high school entrance exams, they can continue their education at one of the 10 Anatolian High Schools, 16 Vocational and Technical Anatolian High Schools, 2 Imam Hatip High Schools or 38 private high schools.
A child residing in Konak can visit 10 museums; can play in 273 parks in 112 neighborhoods and spend time with friends. 178 of these parks are the responsibility of Konak Municipality and 95 of them are the responsibility of İzmir Metropolitan Municipality.
A young person from Konak can go to five cinemas and watch theaters in 12 stages. If a young person wishes to continue their education in a university, they may be entitled to study at eight universities in İzmir. A young person living in Konak can benefit from Konak Municipality’s nine sports centers. It can participate voluntarily in approximately 20 different social projects implemented within the boundaries of Konak.
Eliminating Injustice
If a young person wishes to start working in Konak after the end of their education, they may work for 32.495 Limited Company and 10.778 Anonim Company. (January, 2018) They also may be a partner to 944 cooperatives in İzmir. If the young people want to be self-employed according to his craft, they can join the 16.145 business owners in Konak. (January, 2018)
Considering the living spaces, there are 167.051 households in Konak where a family can live and these houses are located in 68.618 buildings. Considering all businesses, a workplace in Konak can be one of 73.851 different places. (January, 2018)
The wealth of 112 neighborhoods within the boundaries of Konak Municipality makes this district located in the center of İzmir different from all other living areas. If it is intended to develop a social policy with the assumption that these differences are wealth, actions can be taken are very easy to do. It is necessary to put forward a structural form that will blend these differences of Konak, increase interaction and serve as an example for metropolitan districts on a similar population scale.
Cituation of Konak
Konak reached its current limits before the 2014 local elections. It has an eclectic structure where most extremes are accommodated by the addition of migration centers. Today, Konak is the most unsuccessful district in İzmir according to the average in the transition from elementary school to high school, but also hosts the most successful students from Izmir. Substance addiction is most intense in Konak, one of the first preferences of bourgeois as a living space.
Inevitably, a solution that will be put forward according to Konak’s unique situation is an example for other districts on a similar population scale. There is a need for a method to eliminate injustice in Konak. With the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, poverty reduction, turning cities into sustainable living spaces, education and access to renewable energy resources can guide us in developing this solution. At the same time, the approach to the method may allow the method to be expanded.
Solution
A mapping study showing the balance of income should be made starting from cities between 100.000-750.000. For example, if a district has 50 neighborhoods, a map can be drawn from the current situation analysis and socio-economic status determination research to be done in 50 neighborhoods. Each district will have its dynamics. Considering this dynamic, “Neighborhood Mappings” should be considered and the neighborhoods struggling to survive at different levels of the city should be introduced. Why is that important? Everyone needs to feel at peace first. Neighborhoods with high income levels and neighborhoods with low income levels will see that when they come together, they have a lot of value to offer to each other. And the cavities will start to fill slowly by itself. We can take the first step to stop the “derivation economy” by a “derivation organization”.
Neighborhood Mappings
As the income level increases, people start to buy their needs more and as the income level decreases, people have to meet their needs by themselves and have to solve them by collective work methods. Preparing the ground for social solidarity is possible to create such an economy that the whole income injustice of the district can be radically, surely and firmly destroyed. Cooperatives can come into play immediately to create a derivation economy and to achieve a legal form of this organization. Cooperatives based on urban solidarity can turn into a balance element as a social business model. Types of cooperatives that can be established in order to achieve urban balance and eliminate “urban deprivation”: Service and Solidarity Cooperative, Production and Marketing Cooperative, Education Cooperative, Consumption Cooperative.
A Pilot Application for Neighborhood Mappings
Considering Konak in particular, it is possible to match two main neighborhoods as a pilot application. With Alsancak-Kadifekale and Çankaya (Hatay District) – Zeytinlik (Tepecik District) pairings, applications such as sharing instead of purchasing, social solidarity instead of social assistance, community oriented service generation and networking can be implemented instead of utilizing the services provided by the capitalist economy.
The strengthening of the city requires the demolition of social walls and the building of trust in the city. The residents of Alsancak spending time in Kadifekale regularly and providing them with whatever is needed for those living in Kadifekale; The residents of Kadifekale hosting those coming from Alsancak and share what they know about daily needs… Instead of being stuck in the narrow lawn amphitheater of Konak, the people living in Kadifekale can walk around Alsancak without prejudice and the establishment of a system of solidarity to jointly embrace the cultural richness of the city can be a sign for the solution of all social problems between the streets.
Local governments should be the pioneers of the solution. Municipalities, as institutions, need to take action in the local authorities’ areas of interest. Municipalities need to be the spark of “Neighborhood Mappings” deal with the issue to increase the economic prosperity of the city and establish peace. Once the system is established, solidarity is so contagious that it can cover the whole city.
P.S: Translated from Turkish by Yiğit Düzenlioğlu