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Have you ever walked past a piece of derelict land and wondered who owns it and why it’s been left neglected for so long? It’s a question worth asking, but one that’s often overlooked. What should we do with these spaces? Are they destined to become yet another reflection of a system driven by profit and financial interests? Or could they be reimagined as something meaningful—something that genuinely benefits the community instead of just serving economic agendas?

We don’t often stop to think about who decides the fate of these spaces or why they’re left to fall apart. But maybe we should. These forgotten patches of land sit there, crumbling and neglected, waiting for someone to decide they’re worth doing something with. It’s not that we don’t notice—it’s more that we’ve just come to accept it as normal. Spaces are left to decay, caught in some limbo between what they were and what they might become, while the rest of us just keep walking by, hardly questioning the sense of it.

Why don’t we challenge this more? Why do we accept that land, a finite and shared resource, can be managed and manipulated by a minority for financial gain while communities are left with unmet needs? The reality is that we are aware, but we’re trapped within a system that feels absurd and, at times, powerless to change. Perhaps it’s time we push harder, ask more questions, and demand a reimagining of the spaces we call home.

Or is it best to leave as it is - the dereliction itself has value as a site of resistance or critique—a reminder of the system’s failures. In this sense, leaving the land untouched might serve as a more radical gesture than transforming it into a space that conforms to the communal or ecological ideals.