Ioannina: Bridges of Participation

Urban planning often overlooks the gender gap, leading to discrimination not just in major cities but also in smaller provincial towns. Ioannina (a medium size city in the Northwest of Greece) is no exception. With the “Ioannina: Bridges of Participation” project, we set out to highlight these issues and advocate for more inclusive urban policies.

Over the past decade, numerous urban interventions have reshaped Ioannina and its mobility networks. However, these changes primarily cater to specific groups -mainly able bodied, male private car users. The absence of a gender-sensitive perspective in urban planning continues to marginalize women, gender-diverse individuals, people with disabilities, older adults, and LGBTQI+ persons.

The project aims to raise awareness about the gendered nature of urban space among Ioannina’s residents and municipal staff, fostering a more inclusive city for all.

We implemented a series of interactive initiatives, including:

Three experiential workshops with women residents of Ioannina
These workshops aimed to:

• Increase awareness of how gender influences urban experiences.
• Explore feelings of comfort and safety in public spaces.
• Collect residents’ perspectives on the city’s inclusivity through experiential mapping - exploratory walks using specific criteria to assess urban accessibility.

Publication: Feminist Mapping - The Experience of ‘Ioannina: Bridges of Participation’
At the end of the program, we compiled the publication Feminist Mapping - The Experience of ‘Ioannina: Bridges of Participation’ documenting the project’s findings and policy recommendations for local authorities.

Animation: Reimagining Cities – A Feminist Perspective

To further illustrate the importance of feminist urban planning, we produced the animation"Reimagining Cities – A Feminist Perspective" explaining its meaning and significance.