You\u2019ve probably never heard of Norwich. Located on the United Kingdom\u2019s picturesque east coast, this small urban center held the title of England\u2019s second city until the Industrial Revolution. Today, however, it\u2019s home to just 200,000 people, and almost nobody outside Britain can point to it on a map. But that may not be the case for long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to the 2017 State of the Nation report, Norwich ranks among the country\u2019s worst areas for social mobility<\/a>. Meanwhile, reeling from Brexit uncertainty, the UK\u2019s economy recently posted its worst quarterly GDP figures<\/a> in five years. In the face of economic stagnation and poor local conditions, a group in Norwich has decided to take action in pursuit of a future based on hope, solutions, and global connections. At the beginning of 2018, city residents and local organizations came together and began campaigning for Norwich to be recognized as the UK\u2019s leading city for sharing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Norwich Sharing City<\/a> collective brings together municipal authorities, voluntary organizations, universities, and businesses to raise awareness of the sharing activities happening in Norwich, primarily through an events program. They\u2019re also arranging public discussions intended to generate new ideas for citizen-led projects to help overcome issues such as food waste, plastic pollution, and traffic congestion on the local level. During Global Sharing Week (June 3\u201310), the collective will project a sharing animation onto Norwich Castle, a 900-year-old monument overlooking the city, and they\u2019ll soon start crowdfunding monthly donations through the Open Collective<\/a> platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor me, the sharing city concept is an opportunity to look closely at how communities, towns, and cities work and how they might operate in the future. The next generation are starting to shape their culture and environment in ways that reflect how they feel about their society,\u201d says Stefan Gurney, executive director of Norwich\u2019s Business Improvement District<\/a>, an organization working as part of the collective. \u201cWe see the sharing city as a real opportunity for people, communities, and businesses to work together in new and innovative ways.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With globally renowned and well-funded cities such as London, Manchester, and Edinburgh within easy reach, it\u2019s perhaps surprising that Norwich has chosen to pursue the sharing city title. Locals, however, are quick to list Norwich\u2019s unique advantages. \u201cWe have a good mix of academic institutions and small businesses here, making the city a great place to pilot new things,\u201d says Ali Clabburn, founder of the global car-sharing platform Liftshare<\/a>, which has been based in Norwich for 20 years. \u201cSmall businesses can change and pick up new habits fast, and the same is true of the individuals working within them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Gurney, Norwich\u2019s size also gives it a unique and attractive position. \u201cIt helps the local community engage and really feel like part of the city. That encourages independence and thinking differently, which is really the ethos of Norwich, in my eyes,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kate Cooper is co-founder of a social enterprise called We Wear the Trousers<\/a>, which promotes sustainable fashion and new business models for the industry. Before launching her nonprofit in May, Cooper worked across Norwich\u2019s sharing economy in a variety of roles, including launching a swap shop for clothes. She argues that Norwich has long held the credentials to be a sharing city, but current efforts are helping make connections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSharing has always been what people in Norwich do naturally, but calling it the \u2018sharing economy\u2019 has given it a fresh feel and a kind of legitimacy. Helping citizens feel like they\u2019re part of a global movement has really captured the city\u2019s imagination. There\u2019s such power in naming things,\u201d Cooper says. \u201cA couple of years ago, even though people were sharing, we didn\u2019t quite have the language to talk about it. Now we have momentum, and we\u2019re ready to lead the UK.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With a strong and collaborative voluntary sector<\/a> and a fast-growing tech and startup scene<\/a>, Norwich is already an active sharing economy location. So, is the campaign to see Norwich recognized as the UK\u2019s leading sharing city just a marketing scheme focused on showcasing activities the city is already engaged in? Or are new projects arriving, too?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou need both fresh projects and awareness-raising. You need someone to be at the vanguard, to have thought of it first, to have the drive and energy to start making things happen,\u201d Gurney explains. \u201cThe current sharing activities in Norwich provide the credentials to push for recognition, and this allows others to make the case for funding and support, knowing that the infrastructure and environment work. But you need fresh initiatives, too. The moment you\u2019re stood still, you stagnate and fall behind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Norwich aims to tell a compelling story about its commitment to sharing and garner national and international attention as a modern, free-thinking, and vibrant city. The collective also hopes to create a stronger sense of community and encourage peer-to-peer projects that can improve social mobility, as well as help local businesses look to the future: at uses of technology, the changing high street, and new ways of doing business. According to Clabburn, the social benefits of sharing are considerable as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSharing can pretty much solve our city\u2019s transport crisis, given the right resources. It could wipe out congestion, improve air quality, and give access to work or services for everyone who needs this,\u201d he explains. \u201cApply that to health, skills, food, or accommodation, and the potential is enormous. All it takes is a few people being brave and pushing for the potential they see.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n But as with any ambitious campaign that sets out to challenge the status quo, Norwich has hurdles to overcome if it is to succeed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe biggest obstacle will always be the knowledge and understanding,\u201d Gurney says. \u201cWhen you\u2019re the first people pushing at the door to drive change, you\u2019ll always come up against inertia and people who believe something like the sharing city will never work in Norwich.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n That sort of negativity certainly has the potential to slow things down. In the UK, budgets and campaigns are often concentrated at the national level, with smaller cities left with a \u201ctrickle down\u201d from London and a lack of urban autonomy. \u201cFor some in Norwich, there is a tendency to just accept what others deliver or do what they tell us,\u201d Gurney says. \u201cBut we must support those with the motivation and ideas to make our city better. People are the key asset in sharing cities. They have to buy into it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bureaucracy, too, could quickly dampen the passion of Norwich\u2019s proactive citizens. This is especially true of millennials, who are both the driving force behind the Norwich Sharing City collective and the most likely to be put off if traditional forces stand in the way of the future they envision. \u201cIf people get onboard and then stop things from happening, they shouldn\u2019t be on the bus in the first place,\u201d Clabburn says. \u201cOther UK cities are already taking note of what we\u2019re doing. We want to be a world leader, and that means moving fast.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201csharing cities\u201d concept has huge power in terms of uplifting cities that have not had the opportunity to share their knowledge and culture in the past. For decades, the phrase \u201cDo Different\u201d has been the local motto in Norwich, encapsulating a citywide ethos of creative and independent thinking. While the Norwich Sharing City collective is at the beginning of its campaign, it might not be long until more people around the world have heard of Norwich and England\u2019s second city reclaims its title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This story is part of the series \u201cBuilding a City,\u201d examining the opportunities and challenges of the sharing economy in different cities. Read the previous installment:<\/em>How Rwanda\u2019s Capital Became an African Tech LeaderKigali\u2019s knowledge-based sharing economy is an example for other cities looking towards the futuremedium.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Could a collaborative approach to urban living put Norwich on the global map? Lauren Razavi Jun 12, 2018 \u00b7 (Medium.com) You\u2019ve probably never heard of Norwich. Located on the United Kingdom\u2019s picturesque east coast, this small urban center held the title of England\u2019s second city until the Industrial Revolution. Today, however, it\u2019s… Continue reading ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Norwich1-1024x768.jpeg\")
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