Several members of GEMOTT participated in the World Planning Schools Congress 2026 (WPSC 2026), held in Helsinki (Finland), one of the leading international congresses in the field of urban planning. The group was represented by Pablo Villar, Serena Mombelli and Enric Martells, who presented their latest research, and by Oriol Marquet and Monika Maciejewska, who participated in various sessions and activities.
The contributions presented reflect the diversity of GEMOTT’s research lines, all of which focus on the relationship between urban planning, mobility, and city transformations.
Pablo Villar presented the paper Pedestrianization and Retail: A New Trigger of Commercial Gentrification in Barcelona?, in which he presented the results of his research on the impact of pedestrianization policies on commercial gentrification in Barcelona. The study concludes that pedestrianization, on its own, does not drive a significant transformation of the commercial fabric, while factors such as tourism pressure and real estate market dynamics play a much more decisive role.
Serena Mombelli presented two research projects. The first, Mobility of care and urban proximity: Exploring how spatial context shapes caregivers’ mobility horizons, explores how proximity to daily services can contribute to reducing the organizational burden associated with the mobility of caregivers. The second, Media framing and political discourse of Barcelona’s urban transformations (2016–2024), analyzes how the media and political discourse have constructed the narrative around Barcelona’s urban transformations in recent years.
Enric Martells presented the paper Who benefits from urban proximity? Insights from five Spanish 15-minute cities, a comparative research study on Barcelona, Madrid, Granada, Palma, and Valencia that analyzes the social distribution of urban accessibility. The results indicate that the high levels of accessibility characteristic of the 15-minute city model do not constitute a privilege restricted to higher-income groups, but rather an urban feature present across different social profiles.
Participation in WPSC 2026 has allowed the group to share its latest research results, establish new international connections, and incorporate new perspectives on current challenges in urban planning, mobility, and spatial justice. Overall, the contributions presented highlight the main research lines that GEMOTT is currently developing, focused on daily mobility, accessibility, urban proximity, transformations of public space, and their relationship with equity and citizen well-being.
Related publications
- Villar Abeijón, P., & Marquet, O. (2026). Pedestrianization and Retail: A New Trigger of Commercial Gentrification in Barcelona? Applied Geography, 173, 103947. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2026.103947
- Mombelli, S., Verlinghieri, E., Furlong, J., Maciejewska, M., & Marquet, O. (2026). Mobilities of care and cognitive labour: Can urban proximity reduce the organisational burden of everyday mobility? Under review in Journal of Transport Geography.
- Mombelli, S., Cubells, J., Villar Abeijón, P., & Marquet, O. (2026). Media framing and political discourse of Barcelona’s urban transformations (2016–2024). Under review in Cities.
- Martells, E., Marquet, O., & Maciejewska, M. (2026). Redistributive urbanism and proximity-based access in Spanish cities, between exclusion and preference for distance. Under review in Urban Transitions.
