Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life

“It is by definition invisible, part of the background for other kinds of work,” writes Susan Leigh Star, the late scholar of science and technology, in a classic article, “The Ethnography of Infrastructure.” It is embedded, “sunk into and inside of other structures, social arrangements, and technologies,” she adds. It is “transparent to use, in th

The Philadelphia studies suggest that place-based interventions are far more likely to succeed than people-based projects. “Tens of millions of vacant and abandoned properties exist in the United States,” write Branas and his team. Remediation programs “make structural improvements to the very context within which city residents are exposed on a da

Sociologists have consistently found that participating in organized sports teams increases social capital and leads to more participation in non-sports-related collective activities as well. A recent British study, for instance, reports “substantial correlations between measures of social capital and measures of sporting participation, both at the

What counts as social infrastructure? I define it capaciously. Public institutions, such as libraries, schools, playgrounds, parks, athletic fields, and swimming pools, are vital parts of the social infrastructure. So too are sidewalks, courtyards, community gardens, and other green spaces that invite people into the public realm. Community organiz