Identifying the political potential of housing alliances for the production of post-crisis egalitarian cities: a transatlantic and transdisciplinary perspective.

This research focuses on the question: how do housing alliances impact the governance and development of post-crisis cities? Housing alliances not only implement urban policies through their members, but also aim to improve the institutions of affordable housing provision. In the midst of a multifaceted housing crisis in Europe and the US, several housing alliances have emerged and become invigorated. These have further democratized their own operations from a bottom-linked perspective (conciliating bottom-up and top-down logics) by co-learning between housing organizations and institutions, democratizing communication and decision-making, and fitting the housing system to the needs of all. Yet their institutional impact on shaping “cities for all” has been underexamined. This study unlocks this impact by studying four housing alliances through transdisciplinary and transatlantic lenses and with a triple ambition: (1) to further develop the concept of bottom-linked governance, the neo-welfare state and an egalitarian city; (2) to identify the potentials of housing alliances to advance bottom-linked governance in promoting egalitarian cities; and (3) to make concrete suggestions on how research can better support urban policy makers and housing advocates. By reflecting on advocacy strategies and governance-formation processes led by housing alliances, this research aspires to provide suggestions for democratizing housing governance systems and materializing egalitarian cities.

Keywords:Housing alliances, bottom-linked governance, egalitarian urban development

Disciplines:Housing markets, development, management, Urban and regional development, Urban and regional planning policy, instruments and legislation, Urbanism and regional planning