Politics is changing: We are moving from a world based on Government towards a world of Governance. When political institutions are transformed, when new political actors enter the scene, when democracies face new challenges - then the spaces where politics happens will also be adapted. But the relation between politics and space is not a one-way-street. W. Churchill famously said that "first we shape our buildings, then our buildings shape us". Political spaces heavily influence if people engage politically, what they do and what results from their actions. So how can we consciously use spatial design to make a difference in the political sphere?

Many new townhalls use, for example, glass facades to signal transparency. Some integrate apolitical functions to attract visitors. Others are designed like coworking spaces to shake off the dusty image of 20th century bureaucracy. Are these the right moves? What more can we do? And what is going on outside of traditional political spaces?