prof. dr. ulrike guérot

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Prof.Dr.UlrikeGuérot

DanubeUniversityKrems

TheTownoftheEuropeanRepublic

DearRectorofLüneburgUniversity,DearMajoroftheTownofLüneburg,DearRichardDavidPrechtastheSpin-doctorofthisUtopiaconference,Deardistinguishedfaculty&Guests,

ItismyutmostpleasuretoopentheFutureFestivalofUniversityLüneburg2021.IamverythankfulthattheUniversityofLüneburghasframedthetitleofthisKeynote:“TheTownoftheEuropeanRepublic”.ThisisfantasticasitalludestomyownutopiandesignforEurope.ItprovidesmewiththeopportunitytodescribehowIseetheupcomingrelationshipbetweenEuropeanditstownsin2049,whichistheyear,whichIsetasstartingyearoftheEuropeanRepublic.

Tostimulateyouvisually,youwillbeseeingduringmypresentation–inthebackground-theposterofaninitiativeoftwentyItalianmajors,whodecidedtoentitle–inthereal(!)world-theircities“CittàdellaRepubblicad’Europa”.iTheyhaveadded“CittàdellaRepubblicad’Europa”ontheir“Ortseingangsschilder”.Yet,perhapsitisaEuropeanproblemthattheonlinetranslationserviceLeodoesnotknowatranslationfor“Ortseingangschilder”.J

Yet,hereweare:insomepartsofItaly,theTownoftheEuropeanRepublicisnotinthefuture,itisreality.IwouldlovetoseethetownofLüneburgreachingouttotheseItalianmajorsandbecomingthefirstGermanCittàdellaRepubblicad’Europa…

Inthisshortkeynote–Iwasaskedtotalkforsome15minutesinEnglishandwithoutPowerPoint–IwilldevelopfouraspectsofthefutureTownoftheEuropeanRepublic:

1.) Firstly,IwillgobacktowhatweretheroleofthetownsintheMiddleages.2.) Secondly,IwillbrieflytalkabouttheresearchofnamelySaskiaSassenfromColumbiaUniversity

andtalkaboutthenetworksofmoderntowns.3.) Thirdly,Iwilltouchuponsomearchitecturalfeaturesofthesetowns.4.) Fourthly,Iwillfocusonthepoliticaleconomyofrural/urbandivisionsandIwillsketchoutsome

questionswithrespecttotheirgovernance.

AsthiskeynotewillbeuploadedasPDFwithsomeliterature,referencesandcharts,youcanleanbackandlisten,andreadorprintitlateragain.

1. Let’sstartwithsomespotlightsonthehistoricalroleoftowns.

Townsare,werewateris:rivers,lakesorOceans.ParisorVienna,LyonorPrague,Marseille,CologneorHamburgarewatertowns.Thesocialstrataofatownfollowsthewind,whichgoesEastinEurope.ThisiswhytheBourgeoisiealwayslivesWest,whereasthedirtyproductionareasareEast.

Townswerethefirstembodimentsofdemocracy,meaningpublicactionintheAristoteliansense:theAncientAgoraintheGreekworldweremarketplaces;theRepublicofVeniceortheRepublicofGenua

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wereindependenttowngovernments.The“FreieReichsstädte”inGermanyortheHansestädtewereactuallynotkeentointegratetheDeutschesReichofBismarck.Untiltoday,theofficialnameofHamburgis“FreieHansestadtHamburg”.LongbeforetheinventionofNation-States(or“Flächenstaaten”),townshademblemsandforgedthecoreidentityoftheircitizens.Townsweretheentitiesinwhichthepublicspherewasdeveloped:TheKingsandKurfürstenhadtheirresidenciesintown,whereastheChurchesoftenownedthecountrysideandthelands.Townswerealsotheplace,wherecivilizationdeveloped,asNorbertEliasdescribes:TheArtsandthebankingsystem,publicbathesorparks,theatreorconcerthalls:allareproductofurbanlivingculture.ii

EachTownhadtheirNoblesse:theFuggerofAugsburg,theMedici’sofMilano.ThisaccountsalsoforthosetownscalledtodaysecondaryortertiarytownssuchasBrünnorAntwerpen,WürzburgorBourdeaux,EdinburghorGdansk.Allhaveafeudalpast,whichmakestheirarchitecturalbeautyoftoday.Medievalballotsystems,towncouncilsor“Schöffengerichte”werepara-democraticorrepublicangovernancesystemsofthetownBourgeoisie.Untiltoday,FreieWählergemeinschaften,mostlyliberal,arekeytomanagetowns:Stralsundforinstancehassome40%shareof“FreieWählergemeinschaften”inlocalelections:Citizenscarefortheirtowns,beyondandindependentlyfromparties.

Lastly,butperhapsmostimportantly,townswereclosed.Therecitizens,whohadtownrights–andthoseexcludedfromthetowns:theGesindel,ragtag,peasants,themoboroutlawed.Townshadtownwallsandwaterbridges,tokeepthemallaway.Merchantsneededtownpassestosneakthroughthecitygate.Please,remindthelatterforthefollowing.

2. Networksoftownsarenothingnew.

TheHanseisprobablyoneofthemostexcitanthistoricaltowncooperationalongtheBalticsSea.Yet,townslonginghistoricaltraderoadsareequallyimportant,forinstancethetownsalongtheFrenchrouteforCommerceoftheChampagne,orthetownsalongtheSilkRoadfromBeijingtoBelgrade.AlineoftownsformswhatiscalledinEuropethe“BlueBanana”,stretchingfromAmsterdamtoVienna,TriestandBucharest.

ColumbiaProfessorSaskiaSassenhasshowninherresearchiiithatmoderntownshavemoreincommonthantownswiththeirown“Hinterland”.Forinstance,SaôPaolo,NewYorkandAmsterdamaretighttogetherthroughcoffeebeans,whicharecollectedaroundSaôPaolo,ratedatStockMarketsinNewYorkandshippedtoEuropaviaAmsterdamHarbor.Theeconomicbasisofthesethreegianttownsiscoffee.Amsterdam,ineconomicstrata,hasmoreincommonwithNewYorkthanperhapswithLeiden.GlassFiberorbroadbandconnectionsundertheearthoftheOceanslinkNewYorktoLondonorFrankfurt,butnotnecessarilyNewYorktoSaltLakeCity.Townnetworksfollowcommerceroutsandnotcountryborders.RegionalcapitalslikeMunich,DallasorBarcelonahaveinternationalrelationdepartmentsandsomethinglikea“foreignpolicy”asidefromtheirreciprocalstatedepartments.Townsactuallyshapepolicies.Itwasquiteamoment,whensomeAmericanTownslikeDetroitorPhiladelphiaannouncedtosticktheglobalclimategoalsoftheParisagreement,whereastheTrumpAdministrationhadwithdrawnfromit.AnneHidalgo,theMajorofParis,decidingon“GreenParis”,buildingvélo-streetsandbanningcarsmaydomoreforFrances’environmentalpolicythantheFrenchMinisterfortheenvironmentmay.IfyoubuyanelectricalvéloinParis,yougetsome400,-Eurocashfromthetownadministration.Townswilldrivethetransformationtoaclimateneutral,digitalandsustainablefuture–ifweagreeonthefact,that“sustainability”isnotalureforongoingconsumptionunderdifferent

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technologicalmodalitiesandsurfaces.ivUnfortunately,15minutesarenotenoughtodiscussindetail,whether“smart”isthenewcodefortheinfantilisationofhumankind.ThatiswhatstunningCatalanPhilosopherMarinaGarcèsfromUniversitySaragossawritesinherbook:“Foranew,radicalenlightment”.vItseemsasiftheworldhasdecidedthatadigitalizedworldisabetter,becausesmarterworld.Fortheremaining8minutesofmykeynote,Iwillsticktothisassumption.AlthoughIactuallybelievethatdigitalizationandArtificialIntelligenceisatechnictoreinstitutepatriarchate–controloverwomen–intimeswherewomenclaimtoomuchpower.

3. Leavingtheinfantilisationquestionaside,theTownoftheEuropeanRepublicwillbesmart&digital.

TheTownoftheEuropeanRepublicwillhave,asmainarchitecturalfeature,ahugetrainstationinitscore.Railwaystationswillbethenewairportsin2049,oneyearbeforeEuropeattainsclimateneutralityin2050.Thecurrentpandemictriggered,asoneofitsconsequences,theEuropeanRescuePackagefromJuly2020,worth750BillionEuro.Amongotherthings,themoneyisspendtobuildahigh-speedtrainnetinEurope,fromCopenhagentoBudapestandfromHamburgtoBarcelona.TheEuropeanhigh-speedtrainneedisthenewEuropeanSubway,namedMETROPA:youtakeforinstancetheMetropa-line6andyougostraightfromHamburgtoBarcelonain6stationsonly.viItisapitythattheEuropeanCommissioncouldnotbringtogethertheconsortiumbetweenSiemensandAlstomin2019,buildingaEuropeanhigh-speedtrain,butperhapsthingswillstillchange.Flyingtaxisusingsolarenergywillpickyouin2049fromtherailwaystationandbringyoutohotel,oraconducter-lesstram,likeinZurich.Atthehotel,anAndroidwillwaitforyouatthereceptionandleadyoutotheair-conditionedroom,whichyoupaywiththenewcryptocurrencytheECBhasbeenissuingintheyearsafterthepandemic.FriedrichvonBorrieshasdesigned,inaway,thefuturetownoftheEuropeanRepublicinhisbook“Weltentwerfen”.viiIfyouwanttogetafirstimpressionofthisfuturetownoftheEuropeanRepublic,Irecommendatriptothe17thArrondissementofParis,aformerBanlieuforworkers,closedtotheBoulevardClichyandverydirty.EmmanuelMacronhasdecidedtomovetheofficesofPalaisdeJusticetothisshabbyplaceandbuildanautonomousundergroundtraintothe17thArrondissement.Inaddition,acompletelynewarrangementofhousingblockswasbuiltforthecivilservantsworkingatPalaisdeJustice,withnew,energyneutralconstructionmaterial,mainlywoodandglass,surroundedbygreenplants.Noneofthesehousingblockslookssimilar;theyareallofdifferentstyle,colorandmaterial.Thehousingblocksgottheirsupermarketandtheirpark:aJapanese-styleRefugiowithplacesforsportsandforkidsandsomefountains,becausethearchitecturesanticipatedearthwarming.Someofthehousingblockshavelandingplacesfordronesevery10thfloororso.Thisfuturistic17thArrondissementisanexampleofwhatAnneHidalgocallsthe“15minutestown”:everythingyouneedisavailablewithin15minutes,bethatabakeryoradoctor.Insomeway,livinginParis(orBarcelonaorBerlin)willbesomehowmeaninglessin2049:youneverleaveyourKiez.The“15minutestown”willbeahorizontalnetworkof“Kiezes”orArrondissments,inwhichtheoldtownParisintramurosisnolongerthecenter.Metropolitanareasoragglomerationswillnolongerfunctionaroundmarketplaces,churchesorhistoricaloldtowns,featuringaCastleoraprominentmuseum(liketheUffizi,thePradoortheLouvre).Thiswillchangethesocialstrata:thenew17thArrondissementinParisis“Posh”,andnolongeraworkersspaceliketheold17thArrondissement.

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4. Whowillbein?

Therealquestion,similartothemiddleages,willbe,whoisinthe”15minutestown”–andwhonot?Moderngentrificationprocessesarepushingtheworkingclasspeople,migrantsandunderdogs–whichsomealreadycallthenewfeudalslaveryclassviii–evermoreoutsideofthetowns.Thenewpoliticalquestionthusmightbe:whohascitizens’rightsandwhonot?ThequestionofthepoliticallinkagebetweenthefuturetownsoftheEuropeanRepublicandtheirsurroundingsmightbecomethemostimportantthingtolookatinpoliticalscience:whocaresforthecountryside?Somesciencesfictionnovelspushthesegregationuptothefactthattowns,inthenearfuture,willbecometheonlyplaceswithdecentlivingconditions-forinstancefilteredairandconsumablewater,letalonemobilityorculturalinfrastructure-whereasthecountrysidewillincreasinglydeterduetonumerousenvironmentaldisaster.Ruralareaswillbecomethegarbagedepositofthemetropolitanareas,whereasvegetableandgreenswillbecultivatedininfraredgreenhouseswithinthetownsandmeatwillbeproducedinvitro.Livingintownswillbecomeafeudalprivilegeforthefewinthemiddleofdevastatedlandscapesforthemany.

Let’sassumeherethatthecounter-narrative,theoftendescribed“Landflucht”-trend,includingslow-foodagriculturewillnotmaterialize.Inthiscase,theemergenceoftownsasdominantpoliticalactors,butclosedentities,witheachhavingaslumfortheGesindelintheirsurroundings,willprobablybedecisiveforshiftsintheparliamentaryandrepresentativesystemsoftodays“Flächenstaaten”,whichallsufferfromasubstantialrural/urbanvoterdivide.CurrentelectiondatainEuropepointtoenormouscleavagesbetweenstructurallyweakanddepopulatedruralareasinwhichitishardtokeepanyinfrastructurealive;andtheMetropolitanareasor“Hipster”townsdraggingthebrains,wealthandculture.TheredandcosmopolitanViennasurroundedbyturquoise,ruralAustria,ortheEasternpartsofPolandindifferencetothesparklingtownsofWarsaw,Wroclaw,orGdanskareexamplesforthis.StudyingthepoliticalconnectionbetweentheRegionsandEuropeisthecoreideaofourresearchprojectREGIOPARL,whichyoucanvisitintheinternet.ix

WithintheREGIOPARLprojectwehavecollectedregionalpoliticiansworriesaboutthosedevelopments,demonstratingtheirhugeawarenessofphenomenalike“braindrain”,emigrationofregionalinhabitantstocitiesandregionsfallingbehindtheirdominantmetropolises.Hence,itwillbedecisivewhetherregionsareableandwillingtoshapetheirfutureproactively.OurfieldworkintheGerman-speakingcommunityinEastBelgiumcanbedescribedasgoodpractice,evenmoreassomekindoflaboratoryhowthiscouldwork:Futureregionshavetobecomecross-borderregionsforsure,usingmultilingualismandadministrativeandculturalsynergieswiththeirneighboringregionsinanintelligentandmeaningfulmanner.Concerningtheirrelationshipwiththeirmetropolises,regionalpoliticiansinEastBelgiumdiscussedthisasanadvantagesinceyoungerpeoplehavethechancetostudyinthemajorcitiesofthetriangleBelgium,FranceandGermanyandhencetendtostayintheregionalarea.

TheGiletJaunesinFranceareprecursorsforlandupraiseagainstthecosmopolitancitizensinthetowns,andinthis,theyresembletoLaVendée:thepeasantsupraiseof1793to1796againstthetroupesofthefirstFrenchRepublic,causingsome30.000death.ThebothdeindustrializedanddepopulatedareasoftheUK,theUS,PolandorFranceandelsewherearethefertilesolefornationalandpopulistforces.Thepoliticalquestionisthusobvious:mightweseeaprocessinwhichthetownssegregatefromtheruralareas?Mayweexperiencetheendofthe“Flächenstaat”?xMayweseeadevelopmentinwhichthecitizensofthetownsandthoseoftheregionsdon’tvotetogetheranylonger,asthecleavagesbetween

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themcannotbebridgedanylonger?Orworth,inwhichtheruralpeopleareoutlawedanddon’tvoteatall?Astateinwhichcitizenrightsareonlyforthoselivingintowns?

Thismaysoundbothhorrible,dystopian,andnotpossibleatalltoyou.Yet,thetaskofakeynoteistoprovoke.Therefore,IwouldliketotouchuponGiorgioAgamben’s“HomoSacer”xitheoryofsovereignty,inwhichheispeelingoutsovereigntyofthestatecontext,andreframingitas“righttoban”.Thosearesovereignwhohavetherighttobanothers.With–asforecastspredictxii–some70%ofpeoplethatwillbefallingoutoftheclassicalproductionprocessduetothealgorithmsociety,thequestioniswhetherthesepeoplewillalsofalloutofthepoliticaldeliberationprocess–awayforthemeritocraticelitesinthetownstosecuretheirownmetropolitanwell-being.ConceptssuchasUnconditionalBasicIncome,whichisalreadyisahugemovementinEurope,xiiistepinhere.Yet,feedingeconomically“superfluouspeople”doesnotmeantograntthempoliticalrights.Agamben’sHomoSaceristhemenwhoisworthless,butcannotbekilled.Heissimplybanned,meaningkickedofthepoliticalprocess,which,indigitalizedtimes,iseveneasiertodo.Banningpeopleonlineisverycheapinthe“smart”world:whoisnotontheplatformsofthetowns-say:whoisexcludedfromClubhouse-issomehownon-existentinpoliticalterms.Asthepost-pandemicworldhasmovedintoatwo-dimensionalsphereanyway,itisveryeasyNOTtoseealltheanalogueleft-behinda,allthesepostmodernHomoSacers,living–orstarving–outsideofthetownsandtheirfancyhomeofficeorhomeschoolingscreens.

Inconclusion:

BeforeIleafthefloor:ThisisobviouslynotthetownoftheEuropeanRepublicIwishtosee!Butweprobablyhavealotworktodoinordertofix-inacreativeway-theurban/ruralrelationshipbeforeitturnspoliticallynastyinEurope.InourresearchprojectatDanubeUniversity,wedevelopedamapinwhichweplacedthe52economicallymostimportanttownsofEurope,allintegrateddirectlyintotheglobalvaluechain.Withanalgorithm,wearrangedthattheyallget–innumbers-thesameamountofpopulationsurroundingthetown.Sometowns,whoarelighthousesinthedepopulatedareas,havealotofsurroundingspace;someotheraresmallterritoriesbecauseofthedensityofpopulation.WhatyouseeisamapofEuropewith52areas,whocovermoreorlessevenlytheEuropeanterritory.TheideaisthateachtownoftheEuropeanRepublicgetsentirelyresponsible–politicallyandeconomically-foritssurroundingsandthepeoplelivingthere,makingsurethateachtowninEuropehasthepoliticalburdenforthesameamountofcountrysidepeople.Thetowns,inaway,becomethenewstateentity-asitwasinthemiddleages.xivThese52areascouldbecomethepillarsofaverydifferentpoliticalrepresentationsysteminEurope,featuringahorizontalnetworkofregions,encompassingnationstateborders,witheachofthemhavinganimportanttownastheircenterpiece.Thesetownscoulddeploymoderntechnicsofcitizenparticipation,digitalagorasorcitizen’sassemblies,xvwhichanywaycannotproperlyfunctionin“Flächenstaaten”.

Thisisjustonefancyidea.ManyothersolutionsarepossibletokeepdemocracyandrightsforallcitizensaliveintheEuropeanRepublic,withoutbansandoutlawed.IfImadeyoucurious,comeandvisitourwebsite….

Thankyouverymuchforyourattention!

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Images

CittàdellaRepubblicad’Europa

Clichy-BatignollesMartinLutherKinginParis

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iSeewebsiteCittàdellaRepubblicad’Europa,http://onedemos.eu/iiForabriefhistoryoftownssee“TheSquareandtheTower:Networks,HierarchiesandtheStruggleforGlobalPower”byNiallFerguson(2018)iiiSee„TheGlobalCity:NewYork,London,Tokyo“bySaskiaSassen(2001)ivForthisthesissee„DigitaleNicht-Nachhaltigkeit“byIngolfurBlühdorn(2020)v„FüreineneueradikaleAufklärung“byMarinaGarcès(2017)viSeewww.METROPA.euvii„Weltentwerfen“byFriedrichvonBorries(2016)viii„DieRückkehrderDiener:DasneueBürgertumundseinPersonal“byChristophBartmann(2016)ixwww.REGIOPARL.eux„DieGrößederDemokratie:ÜberdieräumlicheDimensionvonHerrschaftundPartizipation“byDirkJörke(2019)xi„Homosacer:DiesouveräneMachtunddasnackteLeben“byGiogioAgamben(2016)xiiStudiedesEuropäischenParlamentszurSituationderArbeit2040xiiiSeetheinitiativewww.UBIE.euxivThiscorrelateswithnewtrendsintheUS,where,likeinArizona,whichpassedlegislationallowingcompaniestherighttocreatetownswithfulltown-rights.Theemployeesbecome“citizens”basedonstocksandsharesofthecompanytheyneedtobuy.xvSeethevastcontemporaryliteratureonBürgerversammlungen(DavidvonReybrouck,GegenWahlen),www.buergerversammlung.de,DonnatelladellaPortaetc.