Crossmopollinate consists of junior researchers aiming to integrate transcultural studies with design thinking to facilitate outcome-oriented research projects. Our methodological guidelines encompass several key principles. Firstly, we advocate for a transcultural paradigm that acknowledges the intricate interconnectedness of cultures, offering a richer understanding of human experiences. Secondly, we emphasize horizontality, promoting non-hierarchical research methods and shared accountability within our research collective. Thirdly, our initial mode of operation is based at Heidelberg University, leveraging local resources and expertise while fostering student involvement and aiming to expand globally through partnerships. Additionally, we envision a transformative approach to research, creating an interdisciplinary network to address real-world challenges through transcultural studies. Finally, we prioritize visual methods such as photojournalism and video works to provide a more holistic understanding of complex situations, ensuring accessibility and impactful contributions to our field.
In our current project, titled Crossmopollinate Handbook for Urban Transformation in association with “Urban Transformation and Placemaking: Fostering Learning from South Asia and Germany,” funded by the DAAD, we aim to promote collective learning among the three urban nodes: Delhi, Kathmandu, and Heidelberg.
As part of the DAAD project, Prof. Dr. Christiane Brosius conducted a seminar titled ‘Knowing and Living (in) the City – Differently!’ which included an international excursion that took place in Heidelberg from July 2nd to July 8th, 2023. The workshop brought together 25 students and faculty members from various participating schools for a week of activities, including field visits, collaborative fieldwork, and discussions with professors, experts, and stakeholders who possess knowledge and experience related to urban environments.
During this week-long excursion, Crossmopollinate organized a series of workshops involving students from the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) in New Delhi, Kathmandu University, and Heidelberg University. Together, we strive to create an open glossary defining key terms associated with Urban Transformation. This glossary received contributions from students with diverse academic backgrounds, including Transcultural Studies, Art History, Architecture, Geography, Cartography, Cultural Heritage Studies, Urban Planning, and Anthropology. Currently, we are in the process of compiling this glossary.
Through this process, we hope to navigate several aspects of Urban Transformation, such as heritage and natural disasters, gentrification, commoning, the double-edged sword of visibility and invisibility, and the demolition of informal settlements in the cityscape. We aim to create a resource for researchers, artists, and activists, encouraging a critical perspective on often-overlooked aspects of urban life.
The workshops were designed to create a rhizomatic glossary of terms pertaining to Urban Transformation, as viewed through the lenses of various urban studies adjacent disciplines. We intend to move away from a linear, grid-like approach to meaning-making and towards an associative, mycelium-like assemblage. This glossary serves as the opening chapter of the Handbook on Urban Transformation. Our overarching goal is to explore the potential for co-producing knowledge through a locally situated, community-based structure. It acts as our starting point for devising a methodological framework for understanding the underlying structures and politics of changing cityscapes. We aim to create an open-source handbook that serves as a manifesto, journal, catalog, and pedagogical tool. This handbook seeks to abstract, democratize, and decolonize the act of mapping while critically assessing the historically contested modes of documentation. By making mapping a form of community expression and participation, we intend to chart not only spaces but also their sociopolitical implications. Our collective comprises a diverse yet interconnected set of disciplines inherently supporting mapping as a method that captures the multi-layered essence of urban life. We aspire to challenge prevailing notions of map authorship and place the community at the forefront of this endeavor.