SUMMER SCHOOL, SS 2016
Prof. Dr. Philipp Misselwitz, Dr. Rachel Lee, Diane Barbe

Simulizi Mijini: Mapping Urban Narratives in Berlin

This Summer School is part of the ongoing Simulizi Mijini / Urban Narratives urban research project that is co-funded by the German Cultural Foundation with partners in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Berlin, Germany, from the fields of urbanism, art and publishing: www.urbannarratives.org

As Berlin's heritage is becoming rigorously institutionalised, the constraints of conservative conservation policies bracket the discourse on how to recognize and cultivate what makes the city distinctive. How can we challenge these positions and develop a new participatory approach to defining and mapping heritage in Berlin?

This Summer School seeks to address this issue through a transnational comparative programme exploring the dynamic interplay of old and new in Berlin and in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Heritage is approached 'from below', at the intersection of artistic, urban and design research and transcending the traditional scale of national heritage to address a more diverse range of sites and practices in the city. In the Summer School we will work together with students of Ardhi University, Dar es Salaam, to test and refine mapping and visualisation methods and tools developed in a Design Research Studio (SS 2016) and a Summer School in Dar es Salaam (March 2016) that have been developed to produce a collaborative online heritage 'map'.

We will focus on Berlin-Moabit and make a contribution to redefining and deepening our understanding of heritage and value in the two cities.