lobo-negotiatingcultural-2009.pdf (1 MB)
Negotiating cultural difference in everyday life : some insights for inclusionary local governance
With the waning of state-sponsored multiculturalism, local governments in Australia have assumed leadership and responsibility for establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships with stakeholders to promote diverse and inclusive cities. Engaging with residents often through consultation processes and interacting with key institutions, local governments aim to value local knowledge and mobilise citizen participation. This social interactive approach to building local knowledge in places officially and popularly identified as socially disadvantaged and culturally diverse, however, is fraught with interethnic tensions if cultural practices unintentionally priviÌege whiteness. In this paper I argue that such tensions can also give rise to moments of affective ambivalence that ate productive if it leads to the acknowledgement and questioning of white privilege within the formal agencies of government. Such questioning provides the possibility to value the voices of local residents and engage in meaningful intercultural dialogue. This paper draws on indepth interviews with planners, elected local councillors and residents in the City of Greater Dandenong, Melbourne, to illustrate the potential that the affective dimension of living with cultural diversity has in building governance capacity and inclusive understandings of citizenship.
History
Event
State of Australian Cities Conference (4th : 2009 : Perth, Western Australia)Pagination
1 - 24Publisher
Promaco ConventionsLocation
University of Western Australia, PerthPlace of publication
[Perth, W. A.]Start date
2009-11-24End date
2009-11-27ISBN-13
9781863081566ISBN-10
1863081569Language
engNotes
Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright owner.Publication classification
E1 Full written paper - refereedCopyright notice
2009, Promaco ConventionsTitle of proceedings
SOAC 2009 : City growth, sustainability, vitality and vulnerability : Proceedings of the State of Australian Cities National Conference 2009Usage metrics
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