2024-11-22T02:04:06-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/130798286/berlin-s-make-city-festival-puts-the-focus-back-on-residents Laura Amaya 2015-07-01T04:42:00-04:00 >2015-07-05T08:41:30-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/8a/8av6my19rrt19d58.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>During the tempestuous postwar years, Berlin was a city divided. Occupied by Soviet powers in the East and western Allies in the West, the city was split into separate states, and in 1961, the Berlin Wall was built between the two. Nearly thirty years later,&nbsp;Berlin's reunification process began with a loosening of The Wall's border restrictions in 1989, followed by eventual demolition in the early 1990s. By that time, the urban schism between East and West had become striking &ndash;&nbsp;The East, capital of Soviet East Germany, saw the erection of mass housing blocks lining wide avenues with little character. The West, on the other hand, stood as an exclave of capitalist democracy, representing a juxtaposition of individualism against communist ideals. Coming to terms with a convoluted past therefore stands at the center of Berlin&rsquo;s urban identity.</p><p>Berlin has since evolved to become an increasingly integrated city, in that citizens are taking an active part in its development. The multimodal ...</p>