Transformations in Relations Between Humans and Environment in Urban Policies: A Praxeological Perspective

Introduction: Using practice theory, this study explores the evolving role of more-than-humans, such as animals, plants, ecosystems, in urban policy-making particularly in response to entangled crises like COVID-19, climate change, and socio-economic instability. It highlights the importance of incorporating non-humans into governance strategies to enhance urban resilience.

Goals and Methods: The research addresses the complexity of a practice of urban policy-makings by employing a combination of qualitative methods. According to Schatzki, practices consist of various interconnected elements: material arrangements, bodily actions, general understandings (know-how and skills), rules, and teleoaffective structures (goals, purposes, and emotional orientations toward practices). The study uses ethnography, scoping reviews, expert interviews, individual-in-depth interviews, media analysis, and a review of urban strategic documents to capture these elements in a comparative case study of two Polish cities - Kraków and Wałbrzych. The research aims to extend practice theory's ability to account for more-than-humans theoretically and to see if the combination of these qualitative methods is sufficient for describing urban policy-making as a practice and its dynamics.

Results: The research is expected to reveal how the elements of a practice and the relations between them change in response to crises. The study is a contribution to qualitative methodology focused on human-non-human interactions. Practice theory, understood as a heuristic tool, enhances the use of qualitative research findings by revealing the interconnections and relationships between different elements of practices. Additionally, the results will make it possible to see whether the multi-method approach is (in)sufficient for answering such complex research question.

Conclusions: This study will contribute both to urban policy development and practice theory by offering methodological tools that enhance our understanding of human-non-human interactions. It aims to inform more adaptive and inclusive urban governance models while advancing practice theory’s ability to capture the complex transformations in urban practices driven by crises.