Towards a Convivialist City. Introduction to Mastered Use

Urbanism is a field in which the search for “more” and “bigger” has led to the elaboration of oversized projects prioritizing prestige over peoples’ needs. Fighting against such excesses and the scandalous inequalities they produce is a convivialist obligation in the quest for a better life. For this to be achieved, it is essential that urban policies can be discussed and co-constructed with the actors concerned, including the ordinary people who live and work in the city, and move through and know its spaces – those who Parisian architect Jean-Marie Hennin calls the “masters of use”. In the context of today's urban communities, how can we move from a democracy of rhetoric to an effective democracy ? This article discusses this fundamental issue in the perspective of Convivialism.