Everyday peace and formation of communities through encounters in urban space

Authors

• Anna Sofia Suoranta Tampereen yliopisto
• Karim Maïche Tampereen yliopisto

Keywords:

community, conflict, encounter, everyday peace, urban space

Abstract

Three quarters of Europe's population live in urban areas. City residents engage in daily negotiations about their belonging and coexistence through everyday encounters and conflicts. The processes of increasing diversity and coexistence are challenged by growing inequality, segregation, and polarization. The article looks at the dynamics of encounters in the context of everyday peace: how different identities and social positions affect negotiation processes in the everyday and the formation of urban space. In addition, we acknowledge and identify factors affecting the interaction processes. The research material for the article has been collected through ethnography, participatory observation and interviews in Helsinki, Finland, Malmö, Sweden and Marseille, France in 2021-2023. The article asks: how do encounters and use of urban space produce negotiations and tensions between people in different positions? How is everyday peace formed in everyday encounters and part of the formation of communities? How do different people negotiate about their belonging in shared urban space?