Urban public spaces can transform the life of neighborhoods and cities and, therefore, need to be open to the social, cultural and technological changes that occur in society. From urban vegetable gardens to pet spaces, from rain gardens to art pavilions, life in today's cities has created new demands and ways of using and appropriating public spaces.
Urban public spaces were the scene of historical political and religious events, or a place for meetings and social affirmation, assuming a form more or less like the one we know today, with parks and squares, from the 19th century onwards. The Industrial Revolution, labor movements, and population growth led to its organization and functionality devoted to leisure. With the sum of these elements, parks and squares assumed standard functions in many places worldwide. A place in the city to be in contact with nature, with a playground for children and leisure areas for adults, where people can rest, practice sports, socialize and relax amid their routines.
Despite being familiar and truthful, this understanding of public spaces has been changing in recent years due to social transformations and the urban fabric around them. In recent years, besides the continuous increase in population and the densification of urban centers in some parts of the world, new programs have been added to public spaces and the routine of city dwellers, more accelerated and dynamic.
Environment and Pollution
We currently debate global warming and how we should transform our lifestyles to guarantee human survival. Cities and urban life need to change from their constructions and materiality to their functioning. As a result, many contemporary public spaces have proposed alternatives to increase green areas or treat contaminated ones. Urban vegetable gardens, rain gardens and many other solutions have provided public spaces with another way of dealing with nature, also seeking a more educational program.
Connected Spaces
Technology has transformed workspaces. With the internet, laptops and cell phones, many jobs have been able to move away from the office and become remote. In this way, many public spaces today are used as work and study spaces. The internet has also become a fundamental part of our routine beyond work. We communicate, consume and have access to much of the world's information through it. Spaces with Wi-Fi, tables instead of benches, and roofs are all installations that take these transformations into account.
New Ways of Living Together
Even though the family structure is one of the most variable aspects from place to place, there has been a transformation in many Western countries in recent years. Marriage and childbearing are declining, causing changes in the way people live together and the spaces where they coexist. If playgrounds once were the only equipment designed for families, today we have areas for dogs to play, outdoor gyms, skate parks, sports courts and many other possible programs that allow people to interact.
Street Art
Contemporary art broke with the limits of museums and placed itself in the city, opening up several possibilities for intervention, whether in graphic arts through the gables, pavilions and interventions or in outdoor exhibitions that seek to reach different audiences. These interventions do not require specific locations in public spaces. Space, people, and opportunities are enough.
New Types of Public Spaces
With the transformation of urban fabrics, new types of public spaces also emerge. If in the past squares and parks were the most common types of public spaces, today urban transformations bring new ones that also allow other forms of interaction: linear parks, parks that border rivers and streams, parks that rescue ancient ruins, and pocket parks, among others.
