eciec.eu | Entrepreneurial Cultures in European Cities

…this is the title of the current exhibition in the Tinell Hall at the History Museum of Barcelona: http://www.barcelonaconnectada.cat/en/

The categories of migrant and cosmopolitan go hand in hand when a major part of the inhabitants of Barcelona are of a greatly varied condition and position. Thanks to advances in communications and transport, these inhabitants weave together everyday economic, social and cultural links between very diverse worlds. The special interest regarding the ECEC project is the commercial drive of new entrepreneurs in Barcelona, leading to metropolitan microglobalisations. It has changed the physiognomy of many streets and specific industrial estates. In what are often very difficult conditions in the work environment, the appearance of a large number of small companies has revitalised activities that were in decline, such as small businesses, and has promoted new production and especially distribution activities, to such an extent that new unplanned commercial centres and areas have appeared in the city. This is a geographically relevant fact and has certain economic weight in Barcelona, as it has in other cities in which the process is at an even more advanced stage. A large part of these initiatives are based on transnational practices, which have their own exchange channels. This is one of the most characteristic features of this connected, cosmopolitan and entrepreneurial Barcelona, where quite a few migrants have become new economic agents of the city thanks to their transnational commercial practices.

You can also download information material about the exhibition in a pdf version: Connected_Barcelona