Adieu 2011 - The Year of the Public Realm

For some time a few in the environmental design professions have wondered what will the popularity of online networks, social media, and virtual worlds signify for the social life of public spaces. What value beyond normative convention would the traditional brick and mortar public realm symbolize…

The year 2011 witnessed countless socio-political uprisings worldwide. And yes, the internet and social networks were incisive tools to the organization of countless protests.
Nevertheless, when the citizenry around the globe felt it necessary to standup for freedom, liberty, and social justice, it was the public plazas, squares and parks which provided the epicenter for civic expression.  For weeks, or quite often months, the populous appropriated the public environment to voice, demand and/or express their discontent for an assortment of circumstances they deemed unwarranted.  
From Tahir Square in Egypt at the heart of the Arab Spring, to the various iterations of the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) which sprung-up in various cities around the world, it was the brick and mortar public spaces (in the US often private/public venues) that served as the incubator of civic life and social cohesion. Let’s see what’s in store for the rediscovered public realm in 2012.