La distribución del espacio público desde una mirada intercultural. El caso del Parque Calderón y sus alrededores en la ciudad de Cuenca

Abstract

This research presents an analyze of the distribution of public space from an intercultural perspective. Through urban regeneration processes, the relationships and exchanges among the population that converge in these spaces, such as: craftsmen/women, merchants, foreigners, tourists, among others. Mainly we focus on Calderón park and its surroundings. By space distribution we mean physical distribution of working spaces, the way jobs and activities are carried out, and the way in which organization, meeting, participation, consensus and dissent in public spaces also make up that distribution. Critical interculturality focuses on questioning social structures, institutions and relationships to break down a structure of colonial power and set up an integrated society with more equal opportunities, based on recognition, interaction, understanding and respect. The reflection I propose centers on gender, class, and ethnic discrimination and how it emerges in public spaces as well as how it is transformed through spaces of resistance and protest. The last section explores interculturality as marked by power and structural violence, meaning entrenched ethnic, religious, gender and class differences. It also presents a section on how government agencies may promote concrete actions through public policies for building a common good in public spaces. This research is qualitative with an ethnographic approach. I divide it into two moments: literature review and field work, and observation and interviews. It also analyzes the space of Calderón Park‘s gazebo (an iconic space) as a determinant of interculturality in public spaces through press archives. This research makes evident existing asymmetries and the lack of participatory processes in the construction of public space. In this sense, I argue interculturality has the potential to act as a means of forgrounding the right to the city for all by addressing social problems present in the city