2.2.1 Conceived space

Space is planned for – by managers, architects, community workers, gardeners, engineers, and so on. These plans for physical space can be more or less inclusive.

At the exclusionary end of the spectrum, plans are devised on high by senior officials and/or political leaders and are put into practice. Black city residents understand these dynamics well, as construction projects have often been used in the past to break up and move on Black residents from settled and established locations and communities because real estate developers want to cash in on an area’s potential for generating profit (e.g., Davis and Wiener, 2021). Leadership activity can resist such top-down approaches and insist on alternatives.

At the inclusive end of the spectrum are various techniques of participatory planning, where communities give voice about the kinds of designs they need within their communities. The process of moving with a community and conceiving space collectively is a form of creative leadership. Conceiving space can be expansive, involving the design of whole cities, or sections of cities, but can also be much more limited in scope, ranging from small housing developments to individual properties that are built with conceived domestic spaces designed to meet the needs of local communities (such as incorporating space for religious traditions and practices).