Thesis supervisor
: Valérie November
Thesis summary
: This thesis examines the conditions for the emergence of seismic risk in Istanbul—before the seismic disaster occurs—by studying the structures between geographical scales and the potential dialogues between actors and entities involved in this emergence. Particularly after the August 1999 earthquake in the Marmara region, the prospect of a potential major earthquake (olası depremi) in Istanbul has brought together the actors involved in the city's development to address the issue. The research is based on a qualitative survey to closely monitor the operators (scientists, engineers, public institutions involved in planning and disaster management, construction and real estate companies, associations) who, in the sense of the sociology of science and technology, are "interested" in seismic risk. The increasing complexity of the concept of "fabric" makes it possible to reconceptualize the modes of interaction between risks and urban spaces in a joint manner, based on two areas of analysis. The first strand explores the performative aspect of seismic risk in order to understand how this risk structures the organization of urban planning in Istanbul. In a context of economic and political instability, fragile buildings are a factor in seismic risk and bring together actors in the construction sector, while fragmenting the professional world of urban planning in return. The second strand examines, at the neighborhood level, the local assemblages at work in the fabrication of urban space, as material and social products of stabilized or unstable negotiations between urban planning actors and residents and their spokespersons (neighborhood mayors, associations, solidarity groups, or disaster education centers). The latter highlight alternatives for managing risks based on new knowledge. On the other hand, their reinstitutionalization at higher levels calls into question the standardization of local practices. The thesis highlights the complex relationships between risks that a priori belong to different categories. It emphasizes the idea that, as seismic risk is translated, seismic hazard is diluted in broader assemblages of actors, entities, and correlated risks. Through the prism of sociotechnical systems, the thesis sheds light on the delicate coexistence of these risks in the same place, if not their intertwining or even friction.
Keywords
: urban fabric, seismic risk, intermingling, sociotechnical systems, Istanbul
Thesis defense on Friday, September 8, 2023
Year of enrollment
: 2018
Doctoral school
: VTT – City, Transportation, and Territories
Composition of the jury
Laurent Devisme, Professor at ENSA Nantes (Rapporteur
)
Valérie November, Director of Research, CNRS (Thesis Director
)
Jean-François Pérouse, Senior Lecturer, University of Toulouse Jean-Jaurès (Examiner
)
Sezin Topçu, Research Fellow, CNRS CEMS-EHESS (Examiner
)
Elsa Vivant, Professor, Gustave Eiffel University (Examiner
)
Albena Yaneva, Professor, University of Manchester (Rapporteur
)