During the roundtable discussion held as part of the “Health in Brussels 2050” symposium, experts in health and architecture explored the socio-spatial conditions necessary for an alliance between cure and care. The discussion revealed that the organization of our living spaces, which is focused on efficiency and profitability, inadequately addresses the needs of vulnerable populations, including the elderly, children, the ill, and racialized groups. These generic spaces exacerbate inequalities and limit access to appropriate care, especially regarding housing, which is crucial for health.
The participants identified three levels of action: urban planning, housing, and intermediate spaces. Initiatives such as Maison Biloba and Pass-ages demonstrate the importance of designing inclusive housings that foster social connections and shared governance. These innovative projects place dignity, autonomy, and human needs at the center of care spaces.
Finally, the current crises—housing, environment, and care—call for a rethinking of urban policies. In response to overmedicalization, participants advocated for holistic approaches to urban and architectural planning that prioritize individuals and their vulnerabilities. Therefore, a profound transformation of social paradigms is necessary to reconcile care and spatial justice.
What is already known about the topic?
History has proven it: urban planning and architecture shape public health, and vice versa. In Brussels, contemporary crises – housing shortages, environmental inequalities, and the weakening of the care sector – exacerbate barriers to access to adequate care and a healthy living environment. In the face of these persistent inequalities, the question is no longer merely to observe them, but to identify the concrete levers through which architecture and urban planning can address them.
What does this article bring up for us?
This article contributes to the reflection by combining the analysis of quantitative data with the study of concrete initiatives in Brussels that are reinventing the paradigms of care and the management of vulnerabilities. It highlights innovative models, such as Pass-ages and the Maison Biloba, where care is embedded in a collective and participatory dynamic, creating socio-spatial conditions conducive to an alliance between cure and care. The article emphasizes the importance of all scales, from the domestic sphere, where housing plays a crucial role in health, to intermediate scales (day centers, communal spaces in co-housing, etc.) and the public space, in the organization of care. It also underscores the importance of local solidarity networks in this dynamic. By exploring how certain projects rethink the relationship between cure and care, the article opens up alternative perspectives to the predominance of technicality, the difficulty of reconciling efficiency and care, and the pursuit of profitability in hospital and residential institutions. Finally, it highlights the growing aspiration of citizens to engage in health governance, calling for a systemic transformation of the spatial organization of care in urban environments.