Green Commons in Contested Spaces: Fostering the Potential of Kuzguncuk and Roma Urban Gardens, Istanbul

Keywords: Urban gardens, Informal spaces, Actors, Istanbul
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

As public spaces face privatization and division among interest groups, collective organizations initiate commoning efforts to manage urban areas collectively and informally. In the mid-1980s, Istanbul underwent a similar restructuring, with its green commons pressured by private capital. The scope and limits of these urban green commons, resisting privatization, remain largely unexplored. In this paper, I aimed to analyze the development of two urban green commons, Kuzguncuk and Roma, both located in central areas of Istanbul. The first had significant government intervention while the second was developed informally. I collected data through semi-structured interviews, field observations, and unstructured conversations with different stakeholders during two field trips in Istanbul in August 2020 and March 2021. I found that both gardens faced substantial pressure from government and private interests to formalize and develop these spaces. Concerned with losing their gardens, groups of neighborhood residents organized gatherings and protests while supervised by civil society members. My study highlights the vital role of collaboration between neighborhood residents and civil society in contesting formal structures and preserving the informal character of urban gardens. Legal frameworks, including court rulings, are essential in recognizing these efforts, alongside the alternative visions of residents that enable this informality.