Abstract

Civic spaces are sites where civil society can be nurtured and strengthened. They can serve as venues for associational and political life where diverse people meet and exchange ideas. This paper will explore the relationship between the intentional process of civic space production and the outcome of such process, including not only the civic spaces themselves, but also the tangential impacts the process affords. The civic space production process not only creates or preserves spaces, but the deliberative and participatory means of achieving that goal are as worthwhile as the intended outcome. Additionally, the production process and civic spaces created, individually and in combination, can help sustain a public interest in civic spaces and may well lead to the creation of future civic spaces. Located in Thailand is a nongovernmental organization that is facilitating the production of civic spaces within the wider goal of improving livability. The organization is named the Thailand Environment Institute, or TEI. Unlike other non-governmental organizations in Thailand that focus on specific, individual components of livability, TEI is attempting to address a broad range of livability components simultaneously while developing local institutional frameworks and capacities that sustain these efforts. Preliminary findings from a case study of TEI’s work with local authorities to enhance a civic space will be presented. Identifying and streamlining the best practices of civic space production can lead to the use of this approach on a wider scale in Thailand.