Opinion

“No matter how big or small the city, they function best when they’re thinking about their origins as human settlement, their imaginaries constructed by the people who live in them,” believes Ali FitzGibbon, Senior Lecturer in the School of Arts, English & Languages at Queen’s University. FitzGibbon delivered a thought-provoking keynote speech at this year’s Eurocities Culture Forum in Belfast, exploring the forum’s theme: “Culture as the connector.”

Drawing from Belfast’s rich cultural history, personal memories and reflections on the future of cities, FitzGibbon asked cities: “If what we want is to be connected, what does success look like? I’m trying to introduce some ideas about other ways of thinking about it.” She added that her “general prompt for action is about considering methods of care and sharing in ways that we think about connectedness. So how could you embed that? What would that look like?”

Connection in an urban setting

Using Belfast’s history, personal anecdotes from the 1994 ceasefire and the evolution of the city’s cultural institutions, FitzGibbon illustrated how cities are built on connections—spanning centuries and embodying shared memories, events and aspirations. Cities, FitzGibbon argued, much like culture itself, are continually fracturing and re-forming, creating new opportunities for togetherness and shared experiences. Connection is therefore complex and both personal and shared.

Drawing on the work of Belfast writer Glenn Patterson, FitzGibbon highlighted how cities are shaped by shared narratives and dreams, long before they are physically built. “Cities are essentially human constructions,” she added. “We get very caught up in thinking about the infrastructure of roads, public spaces and buildings, but the essence of them is a construction of human endeavour.”

Culture plays a pivotal role in this, allowing citizens to dream up new futures, to form connections that transcend geographical, historical and emotional barriers. In this sense, cities are never finished; they are continuously being imagined and re-imagined, evolving as their people create new ways of relating to each other and the world.

“Care-full” cities: a vision for the future

With this in mind, FitzGibbon called for cities to think beyond traditional measures of success and to question how connections are formed and sustained. “In a room full of people who are involved in setting policy and very often being put under pressure to come up with proof that something has been measured well, how do you hold space for the arbitrary connections that get made in a particular place?” asks FitzGibbon.

In her experience, there has been too much focus on measuring and proving the impact of culture. “It’s a necessary part of public administration, but it’s sometimes counterproductive. The ability to question the purpose of measuring the impact of culture is important. It’s a real power that cultural officers and committees have,” she explained.

Instead, she urged city planners, cultural leaders, and policymakers to embed care into the very fabric of their work and to take inspiration from improvisational strategies, like welcoming the unknown, which are already used in creative activities and organisations. “Artists have always made alternative ecologies. They have always resorted to DIY systems, and these are forms of sharing and caring that are valuable ways to look at connection,” she added.

To embrace a “care-full” approach would mean, for example, that cities provide spaces for unscheduled, spontaneous activity, particularly in third spaces such as community centres and artist-led initiatives. These spaces allow citizens to engage in solitary moments while still connecting with the broader community.

Cities should also reimagine public spaces and transport systems to ensure that people feel safe and free to attend cultural events, even if they are alone. They become places where everyone, regardless of background, has the opportunity to connect, participate and feel at home. “If we shift towards care, we head towards a more powerful force for culture in thinking how we refashion cities, as essentially human and connected,” she insisted.

Connections in a digital world

“There has also been a very strong tendency to look at the digital as the solution to connectedness,” FitzGibbon continued. “As wonderful as technology can be, there are problems with exclusionary approaches.” While smart cities have made strides in improving e-governance and infrastructure, they also require a ‘tech-savvy’ profile that still excludes certain people in our societies. She also insisted that technology should remain a tool and not a connection in itself.

FitzGibbon touched on the growing sense of isolation many people feel despite living in densely populated areas. With more people working remotely, shopping online, and commuting in silence with headphones on, human interaction has been reduced, leaving many feeling disconnected.

On the other hand, cities can offer positive ways of feeling “together, alone,” such as sitting quietly in a cafe or contemplating art in a gallery, which can offer a different yet profound sense of connection. FitzGibbon recollected a youth arts project she once led, where a young boy shared his desire to simply listen to music rather than perform. It reminded her that connection does not always mean active participation; sometimes, it is about holding space for stillness and reflection.

A call to re-imagine the future

Just as FitzGibbon’s experience in Belfast in 1994 was filled with uncertainty and hope, so too are the connections we form today. These links, often fleeting and intangible, are what will shape the cities of tomorrow.

Through culture, community and care, cities can thrive as places of connection, sparking new ideas and opportunities for all. Cities, in FitzGibbon’s view, are not just the sum of their buildings and roads; they are vibrant, evolving spaces of human connection, waiting to be re-imagined and transformed.

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Dr Ali FitzGibbon is a Senior Lecturer in Creative & Cultural Industries Management at Queen’s University Belfast. Her research has focused on leadership and ethics in arts and cultural production, particularly looking at the sustainability of cultural ecologies and creative freelancers. She has built an extensive career as a cultural consultant for public bodies, local authorities and cultural companies in the UK, Ireland and internationally, principally on considerations of strategic development, succession planning and change management as well as creative evaluation. She was an advisor on the Belfast/Derry European City of Culture bid in 2017 and has worked on a range of city-level projects and bids in the UK and Ireland. Previously she worked as a multidisciplinary producer and programmer for over 25 years in outdoor events, performing arts and youth arts.