Private Profit in Public Places: RSxEAB

Private profit has been part of urban public spaces whenever and wherever commerce and cities have co-existed. Public markets in Babylon, Chinese legends attribute the invention of farmer’s markets to the mythical Emporar Shennong, the tianguis of Mexico and Central America date back to pre-aztec era and evidence of active trade along the nile goes back 10,000 years. 

Today, in cities like Berlin, we give the names of our concert halls and stadiums to corporations. Our streets and walls festooned with advertisements. In our parks we mix free access with entrepreneurs offering coffee, ice cream, cinema and drugs. From e-scooters to shopping malls and fleamarkets (“flowmarkets” to Berliners) – commerce and community interact and overlap as soon as we leave our homes. 

In this episode we will weigh the advantages and disadvantages of this arrangement. Our hosts, along with a panel of experts will look at where we gain from the private sphere and what we lose.  

Our panelists this time around are:

• Tuba Bozkurt, MdA (Member of the Berlin House of Representatives and of the Economic Committee, Greens)
• Tamara Lüdke, MdA (Member of the Berlin House of Representatives and of the Economic Committee, SPD)
• Sophie Menzel (Activist for free and accessible toilets, Chairwoman of „Das Buschfunk Bündnis e.V.“)
• Roland Stimpel (Pedestrian Lobbyist, Chairman of „Fachverband Fußverkehr Deutschland FUSS e.V“)

As always with this series we will look to the future and consider an ideal future for private profit in our public places. We look forward to your joining us for this conversation.

The event will be held in English and admission is free of charge, but please register as admission is very limited.  We look forward to you joining us.

You can listen to the Podcast here: https://www.radiospaetkauf.com/tag/news/