What can an ageing block of flats tell us about welfare provisioning, austerity and inequality? In the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster in London and the increase in other housing incidents around the world, pressing questions have been raised about the role of the state in caring for its citizens by providing housing that is safe, comfortable and affordable.
My doctoral research addresses these questions by analysing how Romanian inhabitants are involved in the care and refurbishment of their building, when the state has retreated from those responsibilities. It examines the inhabitants’ capacity for self-organization, with a focus on the daily life of a block administrator overseeing the maintenance and repair of his ageing building. In doing so, it explores how inhabitants come to terms with the uncertainties of a rapidly changing society – one caught between the vulnerabilities of both socialism and capitalism.
