Mapping children's presence in the neighbourhood

Within the work of Gert Biesta, public spaces are considered as the main fields where processes of civic learning can take place. Learning is always “in place and time”. Place matters, not only as a spatial background or set of conditions , but as a pedagogical process in itself. So in order to facilitate processes of civic learning we need to understand how spaces function as a co-educator in its own right.. In my PhD I studied how the neighbourhood can be understood as a co-educator. The processes through which children are socialised into a given order are not universal, nor neutral. One might state that children grow up into very different orders. The neighbourhood is an important factor into these diversified socialisation processes, but the neighbourhood is also made by its residents and users themselves, including children. This emphasises that socialisation is a relational process and not a functional oneway introduction of children into a prescribed social ordeIn this contribution, a methodological framework will be developed for understanding and studying the neighbourhood of children as a co-educator. The basis of this framework is formed by the synergy between spatial, social and personal dimensions of the neighbourhood

Segregation, mobility and encounters in Jerusalem: The role of public transport infrastructure in connecting the ‘divided city’

This paper assesses ways in which urban segregation is shaped and transformed by Jerusalem’s public transport network, enhancing mobility and potential group encounters. We suggest that segregation should be understood as an issue of mobility and co-presence in public space, rather than the static residential-based segregation that continues to be a central focus of debate in urban studies. We explore public transport infrastructures, considering how their implementation reflects the variety of ways that transport can have impact: segmenting populations, linking populations and/or creating spaces for interaction or conflict between the city’s Jewish Israeli and Arab Palestinian populations. Space syntax network analysis suggests that in the case of Jerusalem, access to public transport is multi-dimensional: as well as providing access to resources, it shapes opportunities for spatial mobility that may either overcome or reinforce area-based housing segregation. We discuss these opportunities in the light of Jerusalem’s on-going ethno-national division in an increasingly fractured urban reality