When arriving and settling in a new place for the first time, neighbourliness becomes a crucial factor in creating a shared sense of belonging. The Young Foundation has done some work on ‘neighbourliness’. It is a way to negotiate the choices people have in helping their neighbours during time of great need, but at the same time respecting boundaries which allow people to retain their sense of privacy. Respecting boundaries is articulated as a key aspect of good neighbourliness. The Foundation identified two types of neighbourliness; ‘manifest neighbourliness’ defined as the observable social interaction and exchange of help and goods; and ‘latent neighbourliness’ defined as the feelings or inclination towards neighbourliness which turns into actions during times of great need. In their view, latent neighbourliness is more appropriate in the modern world where society is focused on the individual. Closely connected with neighbourliness is sense of belonging, however, the Foundation argues that a sense of belonging to a neighbourhood does not necessarily lead to neighbourly behaviour and increased civic engagement. At the same time, a lack of belonging and feelings of isolation do not necessarily lead to anti-social behaviour. Nonetheless, people can instinctively sense acceptance from groups such as family, colleagues, the neighbourhood and society.
The public realm also plays an important role to support neighbourliness. For example, real or perceived levels of safety will have an impact, as do poorly designed and maintained public spaces. The key is that public spaces need to function as places that encourage social interaction, create memories and meaning, and are welcoming and safe.
In spatial terms, sense of place, or the meanings and attachment to a place held by the collective in defining its identity, has been commonly referred to as place attachment. It combines the physical setting, human activities, and human social and psychological processes associated with the setting. A place is a centre of meaning based on human experience, social relationships, emotions, and thoughts. According to Tuan the sense of place is based on the length and depth of experience within the place, whereas Relph argues social relationships in the place is the basis of attachment rather than the physical landscape itself. Therefore, place attachment is the nature of the bond between people and the place where they settle. For new settlers, these bonds take time and are built through extensive interaction with a place. People may begin to define themselves in terms of that place. They cannot really express who they are without inevitably taking into account the setting that surrounds them.
For groups from different cultural backgrounds, their identity is closely associated with a psychological attachment to familiar symbols. Spatial features are important, such as a temple or uses of the space such as cultural celebrations. The question, is how can a collective identity be created where there are diverse cultures?
Some commentators argue that a communal identity can only be created when there is an overarching collective identity. Collective identity nurtures diversity but does not privilege difference. In other words, an approach that encompasses a set of values rather than giving primacy to a single value. Collective identity develops through a shared experience, a common culture, or lifestyle. All places are imbued with multiple meanings. Lynch noted that the identity of a place distinguishes it from other places but that this identity may vary between people. Some suggest individualistic place meanings; a given place will contain as many different meanings as there are people using the place. This suggests that inclusive place identities will accommodate multiple identities without singling one out, and become accessible to all social groups. There is often a symbiotic relationship between people’s attachments to their area and their experience of public spaces.
Places like markets tend to attract people from all backgrounds because they offer opportunities for casual social encounters, lingering, and buying. For many people, local social networks are a principal source of attachment to place. Other factors such as continuity in place and people’s perception and response to demographic and physical changes in their neighbourhood also lead to place attachment. A strong sense of belonging is created by use of local facilities and distinctiveness. Layouts of housing, the nearby presence of public buildings or the cultural diversity of the area could distinguish, either favourably or unfavourably, the area from other places.
The big question is how to begin creating a strong sense of belonging and place attachment? What process can be used to build places where people want to hang out? PPS suggest implementing bottom-up strategies that recognize citizens as the experts. They believe places guided by the wisdom of the community build a strong partnership between the public, private and third sectors. PPS identify a number of key actions to foster a sense of shared community:
- Create places where people can stop to sit and chat with each other, such as putting a bench out in front of your house
- Tame traffic in neighborhoods by making streets so interesting that people naturally slow down to see what is going on.
- Develop new activities for teens that make them want to get involved in the future of their neighborhood instead of feeling excluded and alienated from the community.
- Introduce new kinds of park activities, such as gardens catering to certain groups — for example, children, seniors, or various ethnic groups — or a bread oven that is used to cook community dinners.
- Improve safety and security in a neighborhood by encouraging people to do things like saying hello to everyone they see. This can change the spirit of a community faster and more effectively than a police presence will ever do.
- Bring new kinds of people to the local neighbourhood centre with creative campaigns that deliver social and economic benefits for the place.
- Promote new opportunities for social interaction and community pride by introducing activities from different cultures, such as bocce ball courts, casitas, or an evening promenade.
- Make kids healthier by developing innovative programs so they can safely walk or bike to school.
- Establish more effective community-based planning processes that result in less arguing, more public input, and a general level of agreement on what to do to make the community better.
- Foster new types of businesses that not only make money but also have more far reaching impacts — for example, rent fun and unique bikes to people who don’t ordinarily ride bikes, like seniors, disabled people, and young children.
- Champion your local hangout by making it a ‘Third Place’ such as a coffee shop, café or other spot where everyone feels welcome and can strike up a conversation with their neighbours.
- Provide clean public restrooms through enterprising programs that grow out of partnerships between businesses and the neighbourhood association.
The importance of place attachment and sense of belonging is what binds people together no matter what their cultural background. If we are to achieve the benefits of cultural diversity in our cities we need to create the opportunities to get to know each other. In my opinion, it’s the public spaces of the neighbourhood where social encounters happen and where there is the greatest opportunity for building social capital and neighbourliness.
Noha is author of the book ‘Bridging Cultures: the guide to social innovation in cosmopolitan cities’ available on Amazon at http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bridging-Cultures-Social-Innovation-Cosmopolitan/dp/1517157188