Towards the recovery of the metropolitan river corridors. The case of the Besos basin in the Barcelona metropolitan region

The paper examines the strategies developed over the past 30 years in favor of the recovery of rivers and streams in the Besos basin. The analysis reflects a shift from administration lead pedagogy to community based actions, as well as the progressive recognition of the riverscape's social value. Therefore, in current regeneration processes, a geo-ethnographic diagnosis is required and seems strategic in order to understand river areas as lived spaces and propel citizen engagement. The knowledge of the existing mechanisms of public use and citizen appropriation will activate local community involvement and, ultimately, foster true community-based regional projects around metropolitan river corridors.