City cards: a tool to promote rights and belonging for all?
Can European cities follow the example of New York in promoting inclusion and access to rights for all residents by issuing local citizen cards? A transnational exchange hosted by the city of Liège on December 2, 2024 brought together a range of experts and practitioners to discuss the practical aspects of city card projects currenlty underway. City cards are a popular idea. Four of the ten WELDI partners are planning to make city cards a central element of their Action Plans, and many other cities, including Zurich, Bern, Berlin, Hamburg and Lyon, have similar projects. These projects are an expression of local commitment, but also of the growing contradictions local faced by governments as national policies become increasingly restrictive towards residents with a precarious status.
