In the last two decades, the involvement of civil society in policymaking has sought to respond to numerous challenges worldwide. In many cases, participatory processes have provided political agendas with new inputs and enhanced citizenry trust towards elected officials. Zooming in the Mediterranean area, the pervasive crisis of real economy and politics, together with the impact of austerity measures on society, has highlighted the need to tackle new forms of marginalization through participation.
The growing commitment with participation has put Lisbon under a new light in the last few years. Looking at the BipZip Programme, launched in 2011 by the Municipality of Lisbon, the intervention on urban areas affected by social, economic and territorial issues has assumed a new social and political weight. Furthermore, the political representative of the BipZip Programme has recently argued that it is time to enhance participatory mechanisms towards co-governance systems.
Taking inspiration from this declaration, the article aims to discuss the BipZip Programme principles, mechanisms, and achievements at the light of new possible steps. The paper will finally address the “good intention” expressed by the political representative on the need of cogovernance by questioning the walkability of such “road” in Lisbon.
