Trust and authenticity - the most important basis for sustainable urban development

Leila Rudzki from the Chair of Didactics of Visual Communication on the successful Wichlinghausen neighbourhood project StraßenOase!

"Let's close a street - and green it" was the initial idea for the participatory research and urban development project StraßenOase! that Leila Rudzki from the University of Wuppertal had together with her later project partner Liesbeth Bakker from Ideaalwerk, an initiative for sustainable urban and neighbourhood development. As a lecturer on the Master's degree programme in Public Interest Design, she and her doctoral supervisor Axel Buether did not want to teach students mere theory, but wanted to contribute to actively shaping the city by means of a concrete project.
"So we travelled together directly to the place that would later become StraßenOase!, Wichlinghauser Straße," she says enthusiastically. "It is really special for all the senses and yet characterised by contrasts: the beautiful aqueduct, coupled with the extreme volume of speeding cars that only slow down briefly in front of a fixed speed camera, as well as the enticing aroma of the adjacent restaurants. I also immediately grew fond of the local people and their passion."

Different project partners - common goal

The StraßenOase! in Wuppertal-Wichlinghausen was initiated and realised with interdisciplinary participants. In addition to those mentioned above, it also included the city of Wuppertal, BOB Kulturwerk e.V., the "Platz für alle" initiative, students from the Public Interest Design master's programme and the VierZwoZwo neighbourhood office.

Using a setback as an opportunity

"Originally, we had a plan that seemed too utopian for local politicians: to temporarily calm a 50-metre section of Wichlinghauser Straße and transform it into a green neighbourhood oasis with seating, shaded areas, communal dining, music and cultural life," explains Rudzki. And although the administration had already approved the idea, it was stopped by local politicians three weeks before it was due to start. "We had actually prepared everything very well with the city council and had even already hired a road construction company," she continues, "but then one party voted against it at the political committee meeting, even though we had endeavoured to get all parties on board from the outset. That was a real shock at first, because we were back to square one." Some of those involved then left the project, disillusioned, but a quickly arranged crisis meeting made it clear that those who remained wanted to realise StraßenOase! even more. Rudzki explains: "Everyone sat down together at a table on the BOB campus - initiatives, students, people from the neighbourhood and associations. And at this meeting, so many ideas came from the students, everyone wanted to realise the StraßenOase! from the bottom of their hearts. A creative wave emerged from this honest exchange. Everyone wanted to keep going and see what was still possible." And so a neighbourhood festival was prepared in Wichlinghausen.
The organisers received spontaneous support from numerous local companies, such as the landscaping company Leonhards, which delivered a large number of trees weighing several tonnes on a heavy-duty transporter at short notice and contributed to the extraordinary greenery. "As if out of nowhere, Wuppertal DJ PSPAGEL42 also joined the party, delighting visitors on his own dancefloor. Local organisations provided fantastic food. Residents organised yoga, children's activities and even a live stage with music plus a concluding political discussion. And all this in just three weeks!" The ban got everyone moving: as a team, as a neighbourhood, as a democratic community.

66 residents actively participated

Fortunately, there was a lot of interest in a neighbourhood project right from the start, if only because of the neighbourhood office. "Together with the manager, Andreas Röhrig, we thought about what was already happening here, which players were already involved and which should be approached. Of course, we also went door-to-door, visited the kiosks and supermarkets and got in touch with the operators. We were allowed to display posters and postcards in their shop windows," says Rudzki about her involvement during the planning phase. Participation begins with trust. And the success proved her right. "Through the festival and the joint process, we were able to make democracy visible in everyday life in the immediate neighbourhood. The StraßenOase! festival made people feel what democracy means, namely talking to each other, finding solutions, allowing mistakes, accepting and wanting to understand the ideas and opinions of others, remaining curious, meeting each other and still moving forward together." The festival took place on 13 July 2025 and impressively demonstrated what co-creation in the public sphere can mean. One sentence in particular stuck in Leila Rudzki's mind that day: "Democracy was tangible here today".

Old neighbourhood rethought with the support of the development fund

Various measures are needed to rethink your street in an audible and visible way. "You first have to understand the neighbourhood in its own logic," says Rudzki, "four things are central for me: dialogue, cooperation, openness and joy." When people experience that their ideas are taken seriously, real commitment develops. However, this attitude requires time and the ability to listen, as well as the courage to take unconventional paths. "Together, we not only shaped the city, but also built trust - and that is perhaps the most important foundation for sustainable urban development, because the citizens are the experts in the neighbourhood." The financial support from a municipal development fund, which specifically finances small, citizen-oriented ideas that have a direct impact on the neighbourhood, was also helpful. "Thanks to this support, we were able to actively involve many people in a relatively short space of time: Students, neighbours, local business people, volunteers, politicians and members of the administration. New networks, collaborations and friendships were formed. This has resulted in new working groups that are still thinking about what Wichlinghausen could look like in the future, especially with regard to a transport concept."

StreetOasis! Can also be used in many places

The project works with a so-called location-flexible modular principle and can also be used in other locations. "The project is deliberately designed to be open and flexible," explains the scientist, "you just always have to bear in mind that every neighbourhood has its own residents and needs. In any case, StraßenOase! is not a rigid concept, but a collection of tried-and-tested tools that can be used to customise participation. The important thing is to get people on board, involve politicians and take each neighbourhood seriously." Every neighbourhood has its own dynamics, challenges and dreams. In Wichlinghausen, in this case, it was the desire for traffic calming and a better quality of life. "The decisive factor is that the method adapts - never the other way round. So the principle is: listen, adapt, develop and realise together."

The influence of civil society

StraßenOase! is a role model for participatory urban design, as it creates something new from setbacks and promotes public debate on topics such as mobility, climate and the common good. The influence of civil society in the ongoing process is crucial. "With StraßenOase!, the citizens had almost complete freedom of choice - and that's exactly what made the difference. You get into a totally creative process, like cogwheels that interlock, and then all the parts turn harmoniously like clockwork," notes Rudzki. There was certainly a formal framework, a financial limit and legal requirements such as fire service access or safety concepts, but beyond that, everything was coordinated, discussed and designed together. "'The meaning of politics is freedom', said the philosopher Hannah Arendt. That's exactly what we lived: freedom through joint action in the public sphere. When plans are made over people's heads, frustration and mistrust arise. This is also proven by the Harvard Grant Study, which has been running for 85 years and says that the greatest recipe for happiness is good relationships. Having a say and feeling connected makes you happy in the long term."

At the end of last year, Rudzki received the first Third Mission Honour Award from the University of Wuppertal, sponsored by Knipex, for her commitment as runner-up. "This is a wonderful recognition for our joint project and shows what happens when commitment, research and passion come together," concludes the scientist, who now wants to focus on finalising her doctoral thesis on the planned topic of participation as a design principle.

Uwe Blass

Leila Rudzki has been a research assistant at the Chair of Didactics of Visual Communication since 2022