Grounded Urban Practices (GUPs) refer to alternative initiatives engaging cities and public space that have emerged over the past decade in response to economic and political shifts. They engage space as an agent for change, an approach known as spatial activism, and share three main characteristics: a) being grounded, community-based and bottom-up; b) adopting a critical position vis-a-vis the status quo, market forces, government policies and conventional practice; and c) experimenting with alternative methods and tools, as well as legal, financial and organizational models.