Ordinary Places of Postmigrant Societies: Dealing with Difference in West and East German Neighbourhoods

The starting point of the contribution is the question of how the dynamics of social encounters in the city are shaped by specific migration histories, local discourses, economies and policies. Against this background, the article analyses the perceptions and localised practices in dealing with social difference and diversity in a comparison of East and West German neighbourhoods. However, this is not about a hierarchizing evaluation, but about understanding urban encounters in the migration society as contestations of social and class recognition, which are played out at different levels and in specific urban places. Based on narrative interviews and field observations, it is shown how urban coexistence is experienced and negotiated in everyday settings between routines and new conflicts. A postmigrant perspective—as a heuristic point of entry—aims to take hegemonic understandings of societal belonging and exclusion under migration-related conditions into question

Mesenchymal Differentiation and Organ Distribution of Established Human Stromal Cell Lines in NOD/SCID Mice

Two human stromal cell lines were established previously from bone marrow-derived primary long-term cultures by immortalization using the SV40 large T antigen and cellular cloning. After irradiation, the fibroblast-like cell lines L87/4 and L88/5 support hematopoietic differentiation of allogeneic cord blood cells in vitro. The stromal cells do not express CD34 and CD50, but some adhesion molecules and integrins, such as CD44, CD54 and CD58. Their expression profiles on RNA and protein levels are suggestive of their osteogenic potency. The quality and quantity of osteocalcin and osteopontin protein expression depended on the culture conditions. Expression of the osteogenic markers increased over time in culture, especially in cells growing in clusters. The stromal cells also expressed collagens I and V, but did not show any expression of collagens II and III. The potentially osteoblastic stromal cells were transplanted into NOD/SCID recipient mice by intravenous injection and were found in various mesenchymal organs up to 10 weeks after transplantation. Osteocalcin-positive human stromal cells could be detected in the bone marrow, thymus, liver, brain and gut of the recipient animals. In summary, there is evidence that human bone-marrow-derived stromal cells have to be considered mesenchymal progenitors, persistently expressing osteogenic markers in vitro and in vivo. Copyright (C) 2001 S, Karger AG, Basel

Die Region Halle-Leipzig: Neugliederung und Kooperationsansätze

As far as the new Laender of the Federal Republic of Germany are concerned, the Halle-Leipzig region is marked by an especially great development dynamics on the one hand but on the other, this old industrialized economic region suffers from serious structural problems. From these general conditions arise high demands on instruments of regional planning and management. When looking for regional political solutions administrative delimitations and beginnings of intercommunal cooperation are important factors of influence. Due to a strong increase in the establishment of shopping centres in particular in the urban regions of the two core cities of Halle and Leipzig there is a great need for action. A large number of failings caused by insufficient coordination amongst private investment activities and public planning are to be noted here. Among others, problems arise from the approval of a large number of trading estates and large-scale retail projects without considering the actual surface required and the consequences to be expected for hierarchy of urban centres. Already now it is obvious that for a long time both the lack of regional development concepts in the phase of strongest industrial location and the questionable reorganisation of the Laender and districts with its negative effects will have an influence on the development perspectives of the region. Thus, the drawing-up of the new border between Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt right through the agglomeration of Halle-Leipzig created an extremely unfavourable starting point for planning activities. In order not to spoil the region's prospects by further mistakes in regional development it is urgently necessary that the state and regional development plans come into effect as soon as possible and that political and economic decision-makers come together to work out solutions for the whole region. However, the administrative bodies necessary for an understanding of the participants and for the establishment of a regional network have still to be created. In Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt a division of labour between authorities of regional planning and town-hinterland associations to be established still is urgently necessary. As far Karin Wiest The Halle-Leipzig Region - Administrative organisation and beginnings of cooperation Europa Regional, 1(1993)2, pp. 1-11 as the cooperation of the two Laender is concerned, optimal concepts of action for the agglomeration of Halle-Leipzig are impeded by differing legal bases of planning and formalities. In this context, the possibility of establishing regional districts is being discussed in order to make political structures more efficient and to be closer to the problems. A union of the towns and districts to form a common planning region of Halle-Leipzig in the sense of a regional district, however, would involve another administrative reform which in the medium term is not possible to realise and is, therefore, no realistic alternative for the near future. In order to ensure a positive development of the region in the long run regional functions of cooperation an management bound to solid institutions cannot be renounced with. However, the scope of these institutions should not be limited to discussions and exchange of information but include concepts of action suited to realise all-regional interests

Die Stabilität von Wohngebieten in schrumpfenden Stadtregionen Sachsens - eine Analyse charakteristischer Problemkonstellationen

Die Stadtentwicklung in Ostdeutschland wird seit Ende der 1990er Jahre zunehmend durch sozialräumliche Differenzierungen unter den Bedingungen eines starken Bevölkerungsrückgangs bestimmt. Systematische Erkenntnisse zur Segregation in den Stadtregionen der neuen Länder fehlen jedoch bislang. Die empirischen Ergebnisse einer umfangreichen Haushaltsbefragung des Forschungsverbundes Stadt und Region in Sachsen sollen hierzu einen Beitrag leisten. Im Zentrum der Studie steht die Frage nach den Perspektiven unter schiedlicher Quartierstypen (Plattenbau, einfacher und gehobener Altbau, sowie Eigenheimsiedlungen und Geschosswohnungsneubaugebiete, die nach 1990 im Umland der Großstädte geschaffen wurden) in den sächsischen Großstadtregionen. Dabei wurden dreizehn Wohnstandorte in Chemnitz, Dresden und Leipzig hinsichtlich der vorhandenen Bevölkerungszusammensetzung, selektiver Mobilitätsprozesse und der subjektiven Zufriedenheit der Bewohner analysiert. Auf der Grundlage dieser Indikatoren und mit Hilfe der Konzepte ”Stabilität” und ”Instabilität” werden die Quartierstypen in schrumpfenden Stadtregionen charakterisiert und damit spezifische Problemkonstellationen bzw. Potenziale transparent gemacht. Die festgestellten Entwicklungen in den untersuchten Wohngebieten verdeutlichen die Problematik einer zukünftigen Polarisierung innerhalb der sächsischen Großstadtregionen zwischen langfristig funktionsfähigen Gebieten einerseits und Teilräumen mit wachsen den sozialen und raumstrukturellen Problemen andererseits. Viele der Ergebnisse deuten auf eine kritische Entwicklung in den untersuchten Großwohnsiedlungen, in den einfacheren Gründerzeitgebieten aber auch zum Teil in den neu entstandenen Geschosswohnungssiedlungen außerhalb der Stadtgrenzen hin. Die Situation in den Eigenheimgebieten und im repräsentativeren Altbau stellt sich dagegen verhältnismäßig unproblematisch dar. Die Analyse der Untersuchungsgebiete zeigt zwar, dass zu charakteristischen Wohngebietstypen durchaus generalisierbare Aussagen möglich sind. Diese allgemeinen Segregationstendenzen werden jedoch von differenzierteren Entwicklungen auf Grund spezifischer regionaler und lokaler Einflussgrößen überlagert, die letztendlich über die Perspektiven des einzelnen Quartiers entscheiden.Since the end of the nineteen nineties, urban de velopment in East Germany has been increasingly characterised by differentiation of social space under the conditions of a severe erosion of the population. At the moment there is no systematic in sight into segregation in the urban regions of the new German federal states. The empirical results of an extensive household survey carried out by the Research Association of City and Region in Saxony is intended to make a contribution to this. The study centres on the question of the perspectives of different kinds of housing districts (tenement blocks, simple and gentrified old buildings, as well as freehold family home estates and new housing estates with small apartment blocks which were constructed in the surroundings of large cities after 1990) in the areas of large Saxon cities. In this, thirteen residential areas in Chemnitz, Dresden and Leipzig were analysed with regard to the existing population composition, selective mobility processes and the subjective satisfaction among the population. These indicators and the concepts of ”stability” and ”instability” are used to characterise the housing district types in shrinking urban regions, thus highlighting specific problem constellations or potential. The development observed in the surveyed housing estates emphasises the problems of future polarisation within the large urban regions of Saxony between areas that will function in the long term on the one hand and smaller areas with growing social and space-structural problems on the other hand. Many of the results suggest a critical development in the surveyed large housing estates, in the more simple estates cons tructed around the end of the 19th century and also in some cases in the newly constructed small apartment block estates outside of the city limits. Conversely, the situation in the freehold family home estates and in gentrified old buildings is relatively unproblematic. The analysis of the surveyed areas shows that although generalised statements can be made on characteristic residential areas, these general segregation tendencies are overshadowed by differentiated development on the basis of specific regional and local influential parameters, which will ultimately decide the perspectives of the individual districts

Der Leipziger Wohnungsmarkt: Teilmärkte und sozialräumliche Differenzierungen

Using the example of Leipzig, this article describes connections between the specific accommodation market situation in East Germany and problems of city development. The development of demand in some partial accommodation markets is particularly of interest against the backdrop of demographic, social and economic restructuring. The special circumstances of newly forming property structures characterise in the long-term the supply situation considerably. I nexpensive real estate offers, high vacancy levels and some bottlenecks in the provision of accommodation for low-income groups are characteristic for the situation in the Leipzig accommodation market. A growing offer of perfectly modernized accommodation is faced with a continual reduction in the city population. The considerable exploitation pressure which buildings and properties are subjected to is in contrast with the low level of income available to the local inhabitants. The very high repair costs and the professionalisation of the ownership structures of old buildings are considerable causes why the dilemma of the Leipzig accommodation market is particularly apparent within the city districts built in the period of promoterism (1871/90). The need to catch up in terms of owner-occupied houses and the extension of the offer in this sector, especially around Leipzig, has revealed itself to be a further, central problem for the future development of the partial markets within the city. Severe migration losses and a low level of demand from young, economically secure and high disposable-income households are essential reasons why the situation in the city centre residential areas of Leipzig is now considerably different than in comparable city regions of West Germany, which in the last decades have been characterised by population growth and prosperity. Gentry fication processes are therefore almost exclusively initiated by those offering real estate. The demand-related preconditions for the process of gentryfication are, on the other hand, hardly present, not least as a result of the lower real income and a low proportion of younger households preferring old city centre buildings. In general, the social structure and the disposable income of the city population suggest that a very large proportion of the Leipzig households will remain dependent on inexpensive, rented accommodation with functional facilities. The vacancy and, in some areas, surplus supply are therefore not a signal to in the future leave the development of the accommodation market subjected to the forces of a free market. We must not forget in this context that even if the Leipzig population stagnates at a low level, we should presume in the medium-term an increase in the demand for accommodation. Development of assets, individualisati on tendencies and the reduction in average household size which goes hand in hand with this, as well as changed living preferences will, in the long-term, effect a sustained increase in the required accommodation. With the changed living place preferences of the population, new property circumstances and the voluntary and involuntary migration which this causes, it becomes clear that the development of the accommodation market is, at the same time, a decisive factor for the structural transformation of partial city regions and for the formation of the new, socio-regional structure in Leipzig

Soziale Grenzen in Städten: Repräsentationen von Wohngebieten in den neuen Ländern

Im Rahmen des Beitrags wird der Frage nachgegangen, wie sich auf unterschiedlichen diskursiven Ebenen soziale Grenzen über raumbezogene Zugehörigkeiten und Differenzen reproduzieren können. Sozialräumliche Repräsentationen als intersubjektiv geteilte Vorstellungen bis hin zu Stereotypen, mit deren Hilfe Menschen ihre Umwelt begreifen und strukturieren, werden dabei als ein wesentliches Element der Verräumlichung innergesellschaftlicher Grenzen betrachtet. Analysiert werden einerseits Repräsentationen von Wohngebieten die in Zeitungsmedien und andererseits Repräsentationen von Quartieren die im Alltag von Gebietsbewohnern kommuniziert werden. Die Auswertung von Zeitungsartikeln zeigt, dass den großen Neubausiedlungen der DDR im überregionalen Mediendiskurs der vergangenen Jahre quantitativ die mit Abstand größte Bedeutung zu kommt. Diese Wohngebiete werden in vielen Artikeln als überflüssige Orte einer vergangenen Epoche oder fremde, ausgegrenzte Orte kommuniziert. Auf der Ebene des gelebten Alltags zeigt die Analyse von Gesprächen mit Bewohnern in Leipziger Altbauvierteln, dass gesellschaftliche Unterschiede zwischen bestimmten Lebensstilen und sozialen Positionen wirksam auf Stadträume übertragen werden. Die hier behandelten Quartiersbeispiele als Projektionsflächen für Zugehörigkeit und Differenz, erscheinen zwar relativ harmlos. Sie können aber veranschaulichen, wie soziale Unterschiede innerhalb der Gesellschaft in einen räumlich-materiellen Kontext gebracht werden. Die unterschiedlichen empirischen Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass die gesellschaftlich weitgehend geteilten Vorstellungen über städtische Räume Entwicklungen, die diesen Zuschreibungen entsprechen, befördern und ein wesentlicher Faktor des Wandels im Sinn wachsender sozialräumlicher Differenzen sind. (Autorenreferat)The article examines on various discursive levels the question as to how social boundaries can be replicated using spatial affiliation and differences. Representations of social areas, as different intersubjective perceptions and even stereotypes, with which human beings understand and structure their environment, are seen in this as an essential element of spatially defining boundaries within society. On the one hand, analyses are conducted on representations of residential areas communicated in printed media and on the other hand, on representations of districts that are generally communicated by inhabitants of the area in their everyday lives. Evaluation of newspaper articles shows that the major residential estates of former East Germany have, in a quantitative sense, by far the greatest significance in the nationwide media discourse over the last few years. In many articles, these residential areas are communicated as being superfluous places belonging to a past epoch or as foreign, disassociated places. Taking the level of everyday life, the analysis shows through interviews with inhabitants of old residential areas in Leipzig that social differences between certain lifestyles and social standings can be transferred effectively to districts. The districts taken here as examples appear relatively harmless as projective surface s for affiliation and difference. However, they can illuminate how differences within society can be placed in a spatial and material context. The different empirical results indicate that the socially quite distinct perceptions on urban areas promote developments that match these assignments and are an essential factor in the transformation along the lines of growing socio-regional difference. (author's abstract

Paradoxe Aushandlungen von Migration im Diskurs um die Leipziger Eisenbahnstraße

Verschiebungen bzw. wechselseitige Bedingtheiten von neuen gesellschaftlichen Ein- und Ausschlüssen im Prozess der Internationalisierung und Diversifizierung von Städten genauer zu betrachten, ist Ziel dieses Beitrags. Mithilfe der Paradoxie im Sinne eines heuristischen Zugangs werden scheinbar widersprüchliche Ein- und Ausschlüsse von Migration in einem langjährigen stadtentwicklungspolitischen Schwerpunktraum der Stadt Leipzig untersucht. Eine Analyse der lokalen Berichterstattung und stadtentwicklungspolitischer Dokumente zeigt, dass im Diskurs um die Leipziger Eisenbahnstraße eine klassische urbane Diskursfigur reproduziert wird. Dabei wird Migration einerseits als produktiver Faktor im Sinne einer ökonomischen Ressource verhandelt und andererseits als Faktor unproduktiver Devianz problematisiert. Da Formen der Inklusion gewünschter Zuwanderung an anderer Stelle an Ausschlüsse und Kontrolle unerwünschter Zuwanderung gekoppelt werden, entstehen paradox erscheinende diskursive Logiken im Umgang mit einem pluralisierten und stark durch Migration geprägten Stadtraum. Der Ausruf einer Parallelwelt, der an eine zu integrierende Migrationsbevölkerung gerichtet ist, sowie die Beschwörung der "Stadt der Vielfalt", die eher diffus und damit weitestgehend anonym bleibt, stehen jedoch im Widerspruch zu einer allgemeinen Anerkennung migrationsgesellschaftlicher Realität. Trotzdem oder gerade weil Leipzig eine Vorreiterrolle im ostdeutschen Kontext in puncto Migration einnimmt, entbehrt sie (noch) der Selbstverständlichkeit und bleibt eine hochgradig sensible Angelegenheit.Urban diversity discourses imply paradoxical configurations which, especially on the level of urban neighbourhoods, can be read as the inclusion of desired migration in connection with the exclusion of non-desired migration. In order to focus on novel shifts or rather the reciprocal conditioning of social in- and exclusions in the process of the internationalization and diversification of cities, the authors refer to the notion of paradox in the sense of a heuristic approach. Based on this, the paper examines seemingly contradictory in- and exclusions of migration in a long-standing key area of urban development policies. An analysis of the local media coverage and urban development documents demonstrates that in the discourse around Leipzig's "Eisenbahnstraße", a classical discursive figure is reproduced. It debates migration on the one hand as economic resource and problematises it, on the other, as a factor of unproductive deviance. Because of the fact that forms of social participation are bound to exclusions and control elsewhere, apparently paradoxical discursive logics emerge in the dealing with a pluralised urban space strongly shaped through migration. The fact that the invocation of a "parallel world" is explicitly directed towards a migrant population while the discourse on the "city of diversity" remains diffuse and largely anonymous, contradicts the general recognition of the realities of plural immigration societies. Despite or rather due to Leipzig's pioneering role as regards to migration in the Eastern German context, migration (still) lacks the matter of course and remains a highly sensitive issue

Sozialräumliche Differenzen in Großstadtregionen des mittleren und östlichen Europa: ein Überblick

Im Mittelpunkt des Beitrags stehen markante Stadtentwicklungsprozesse, die sich in mittel-/osteuropäischen Stadtregionen seit Anfang der 1990er Jahre vollziehen. Unterschiedliche Bedingungen des Wohnungsmarktes, spezifische demographische und sozioökonomische Strukturen in den Städten Vilnius, Budapest, Leipzig, St. Petersburg und Sofia sind Ursachen für den unterschiedlichen Verlauf sozialräumlicher Differenzierung. Bei aller Individualität lassen sich dennoch gemeinsame Trends der Stadtentwicklung erkennen: Die Suburbanisierung ist einer der bedeutendsten raumprägenden Prozesse in postsozialistischen Stadtregionen. Daneben repräsentieren abgeschlossene und überwachte Wohnkomplexe sowohl in Form neuer suburbaner als auch innerstädtischer Wohnprojekte einen wichtigen neuen Bestandteil der Wohnungsmärkte. Hingegen sind Gentrification-Prozesse im Sinn einer starken baulichen Aufwertung in Kombination mit dem Zuzug einkommensstarker und hoch qualifizierter Bevölkerungsschichten in die innenstadtnahen Bereiche in den betrachteten Städten nur punktuell zu beobachten. Die baulich homogenen Großwohnsiedlungen der sozialistischen Ära, deren Bedeutung für die Wohnversorgung zum Teil von erheblicher Bedeutung ist, sind von einem downgrading bedroht. (Autorenreferat)The article reviews segregation research in former communist countries exemplified by prominent socio-spatial structures and processes in Central-East European urban regions since the beginning of the 1990ies. The statement focuses on recent processes in the cases of St. Petersburg, Budapest, Sofia, Vilnius and Leipzig. Nevertheless there are different structures of the housing market as well as demographic and socioeconomic developments prevailing in these city regions, some common trends can be identified: a basic pattern is the popularity of the suburban single-family housing ideal. Also the emerging new gated communities most notably symbolize the change in post-socialist urban societies. On the other hand gentrification in terms of a significant structural upgrading combined with an influx of high-income, highly-skilled strata into inner-city areas appears so far to be limited to isolated cases. The large scale housing estates of the socialist period which are substantial for the housing supply of the population in CEE-Cities are partly endangered by downgrading processes. Against this backdrop comparative empirical studies with respect to variable and increasing social inequality in former socialist countries can be considered as a desideratum. (author's abstract