When Politics Became a Profession
Politics was not always a profession. There was a time when public office was treated as a burden of citizenship rather than a permanent career, a temporary duty rather than a salaried identity. Modern democracy changed that. It transformed politics from civic interval into professional ladder, producing a class of specialists whose chief expertise is not law, war, philosophy, or trade, but the acquisition and retention of office itself. The professional politician is not a law of nature but a historical invention, shaped by parties, mass media, advisers, and electoral machinery. And what history has invented, history can also undo.
Debate on Architectural Democracy, between John Keane, Saskia Sassen and Pedro Aibéo
This transcript has been condensed, edited and referenced for clarity. Full debate can be
Monthly Political Evenings of Lohja in English starting this February
Last year of 2021 I was a political candidate for the city council of Lohja. I got enough
Helsinki Energy Challenge’s waste of Energy
architecture, helsinki, finland, Architectural Democracy Democracy, politics, aibeo, energy, science, climate change challenge, hydrocarbons, helsinki, energy, challenge, biomass, waste, energy waste, 1million, 1 million euros, vapaavuori, fantasy, critic, laws of thermodynamics
How to be a political candidate without knowing the country’s language
Running for municipal elections as a foreigner in a small city near Helsinki, without
Today’s Master Plans benefits the masters
“In city planning, participatory democracy has largely increased inequality, not lessened it.” (Badger, 2020) There is a new masterplan
Architectural Democracy with the Latvian Urban Institute
On Saturday 18th May 2019, from 12:00-17:00 PM, I lectured on Architectural Democracy at the “Encouraging Participatory Activities by Artistic & Innovative Public Practices” at the small, but cozy Third Space Gallery in the heart of Helsinki, Finland.
Finnish MPs voting today on CETA without having read it!
We are sure none of the MPs read and understood this complicated and VERY long agreement. Please remind your local
The Direct Democracy Helsinki Group
Direct Democracy is based on the idea that people have to be responsible for their own mistakes so, collective thinking is very
Architectural Democracy in West Africa
The design of our cities is deeply diverse and political and ought to come from a multiple source of grass-roots solutions. Solutions ar