Barcelona presented its pioneering housing policies and urban governance approach on a global stage at Harvard University. This January, the city participated in a high-level symposium, sharing its experience alongside Manchester, Bogotá, and Atlanta. The event focused on reshaping municipal institutions for 21st-century challenges.
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The prestigious Bloomberg Centre for Cities at Harvard University hosted the Symposium on Institutional Innovation in Cities. Co-organised by The Institutional Architecture Lab (TIAL), the event gathered municipal leaders, international experts, and prominent academics. They explored how city governments can evolve beyond traditional, rigid structures to tackle modern problems.
Rethinking City Hall
Professor Sir Geoff Mulgan of University College London and Caio Werneck of TIAL introduced a core symposium theme: reimagining urban institutions as dynamic networks instead of static, top-down hierarchies. This framework, explored in TIAL’s research on “the city as a mesh,” provided a foundation for analysing complex, cross-departmental issues such as climate change, digital infrastructure, and community care.
Mar Jiménez, Commissioner for International Relations, represented the Barcelona City Council. Her presentation outlined the work advanced under Mayor Jaume Collboni’s leadership, spotlighting a key international initiative as a prime example of this new, collaborative approach.
Jiménez presented the Mayors for Housing alliance as a model of political and institutional innovation. This coalition unites 20 European cities to collectively defend the right to housing and lobby for stronger support from EU institutions. She argued that this collaborative effort demonstrates the need for inter-city coalitions to tackle global challenges that directly affect residents, a strategy previously seen when Barcelona and other cities urged the EU to take decisive action on the urban housing crisis.
Global Perspectives and Future Collaboration
A statement from the Barcelona City Council highlighted a key takeaway: effective innovation requires weaving together traditional pyramidal structures, modern digital platforms, and local networks.
Contributions from leading academics underscored the symposium’s intellectual weight. Participants included Rosabeth Moss Kanter, an innovation expert from Harvard Business School; political philosopher Roberto Mangabeira Unger of Harvard Law School; and urban policy expert Bruce Katz. Their involvement helped guide new research agendas and strengthen collaborative ties between academia and local government.
Barcelona has committed to continuing its participation in the international research programme led by TIAL and Harvard, which aims to design the city institutions of the future. This focus on new forms of urban governance resonates with ongoing local discussions, such as the debate over a potential ‘greater Barcelona’ metropolitan authority.
Barcelona and Boston Exchange Housing Solutions
In addition to the symposium, Commissioner Jiménez held a specific bilateral meeting with Boston counterparts, part of a twinning agreement between the two cities.
On 7 January, she met with Sheila A. Dillon, Boston’s Chief of Housing, and other senior officials to exchange experiences on common housing access challenges. Their discussion covered critical topics like tenants’ rights, rent regulation, and promoting affordable housing. They also addressed property market issues, including regulating tourist flats, seasonal rentals, and vacant properties. Both delegations shared strategies they are deploying to combat speculation and increase the supply of dignified, affordable homes for their citizens.
