Frank Moulaert – författare

Academics, researchers, and students in regulation and governance, politics and public policy, human geography, social work, law, and economics will benefit from this in-depth exploration of the human relevance of commoning in contemporary neo-liberal times. Commoning activists, government officials, and practitioners will equally find this to be an invaluable read.

This book re-evaluates a rich scientific heritage of space- and history-sensitive development theories and produces an integrated methodology for the comparative analysis of urban and regional trajectories within a globalized world. The main argument put forward is that current mainstream analyses of urban and regional development have forgotten this rich heritage and fail to address the connections between different dimensions of development, the role of history and the importance of place and scale relations.

The proposed methodology integrates elements from different theories – radical economic geography, regulation approach, cultural political economy, old and new institutionalism – that all share a strong concern with time and space dynamics. They are recombined into an interdisciplinary (meta)theoretical framework, capable of articulating the overall problem of socio-economic development and providing methodological anchors for comparative case-study analysis, while recognizing context specificities. The analytical methodology focuses on key dynamics and relations, such as strategic agency and collective action, institutions and structures, culture and discourse, as well as the tension between path-dependency and path-shaping.

The methodology is then applied to eight urban and regional cases, mostly from Western Europe, but also from the United States and China. The case studies confirm the relevance of time- and space-sensitive analysis, not only for understanding development trajectories, but also for policy making. They ultimately highlight that, while post-war institutions were able to address systemic contradictions and foster a relatively inclusive development model, the neoliberal turn has led to reductionist policies that not only have resulted in an increase in social and spatial inequalities, but have also undermined growth and democracy.

This book re-evaluates a rich scientific heritage of space- and history-sensitive development theories and produces an integrated methodology for the comparative analysis of urban and regional trajectories within a globalized world. The main argument put forward is that current mainstream analyses of urban and regional development have forgotten this rich heritage and fail to address the connections between different dimensions of development, the role of history and the importance of place and scale relations.

The proposed methodology integrates elements from different theories – radical economic geography, regulation approach, cultural political economy, old and new institutionalism – that all share a strong concern with time and space dynamics. They are recombined into an interdisciplinary (meta)theoretical framework, capable of articulating the overall problem of socio-economic development and providing methodological anchors for comparative case-study analysis, while recognizing context specificities. The analytical methodology focuses on key dynamics and relations, such as strategic agency and collective action, institutions and structures, culture and discourse, as well as the tension between path-dependency and path-shaping.

The methodology is then applied to eight urban and regional cases, mostly from Western Europe, but also from the United States and China. The case studies confirm the relevance of time- and space-sensitive analysis, not only for understanding development trajectories, but also for policy making. They ultimately highlight that, while post-war institutions were able to address systemic contradictions and foster a relatively inclusive development model, the neoliberal turn has led to reductionist policies that not only have resulted in an increase in social and spatial inequalities, but have also undermined growth and democracy.

Strategic Spatial Projects presents four years of case study research and theoretical discussions on strategic spatial projects in Europe and North America. It takes the position that planning is not well equipped to take on its current challenges if it is considered as only a regulatory and administrative activity. There is an urgent need to develop a mode of planning that aims to innovate in spatial as well as social terms.

This timely, important book is for spatial planning, urban design and community development and policy studies courses. For academics, researchers and students in planning, urban design, urban studies, human and economic geography, public administration and policy studies.

Strategic Spatial Projects presents four years of case study research and theoretical discussions on strategic spatial projects in Europe and North America. It takes the position that planning is not well equipped to take on its current challenges if it is considered as only a regulatory and administrative activity. There is an urgent need to develop a mode of planning that aims to innovate in spatial as well as social terms.

This timely, important book is for spatial planning, urban design and community development and policy studies courses. For academics, researchers and students in planning, urban design, urban studies, human and economic geography, public administration and policy studies.

For decades, neighbourhoods been pivotal sites of social, economic and political exclusion processes, and civil society initiatives, attempting bottom-up strategies of re-development and regeneration. In many cases these efforts resulted in the creation of socially innovative organizations, seeking to satisfy the basic human needs of deprived population groups, to increase their political capabilities and to improve social interaction both internally and between the local communities, the wider urban society and political world.

SINGOCOM - Social INnovation GOvernance and COMmunity building – is the acronym of the EU-funded project on which this book is based. Sixteen case studies of socially-innovative initiatives at the neighbourhood level were carried out in nine European cities, of which ten are analysed in depth and presented here. The book compares these efforts and their results, and shows how grass-roots initiatives, alternative local movements and self-organizing urban collectives are reshaping the urban scene in dynamic, creative, innovative and empowering ways. It argues that such grass-roots initiatives are vital for generating a socially cohesive urban condition that exists alongside the official state-organized forms of urban governance.

The book is thus a major contribution to socio-political literature, as it seeks to overcome the duality between community-development studies and strategies, and the solidarity-based making of a diverse society based upon the recognising and maintaining of citizenship rights. It will be of particular interest to both students and researchers in the fields of urban studies, social geography and political science.

For decades, neighbourhoods been pivotal sites of social, economic and political exclusion processes, and civil society initiatives, attempting bottom-up strategies of re-development and regeneration. In many cases these efforts resulted in the creation of socially innovative organizations, seeking to satisfy the basic human needs of deprived population groups, to increase their political capabilities and to improve social interaction both internally and between the local communities, the wider urban society and political world.

SINGOCOM - Social INnovation GOvernance and COMmunity building – is the acronym of the EU-funded project on which this book is based. Sixteen case studies of socially-innovative initiatives at the neighbourhood level were carried out in nine European cities, of which ten are analysed in depth and presented here. The book compares these efforts and their results, and shows how grass-roots initiatives, alternative local movements and self-organizing urban collectives are reshaping the urban scene in dynamic, creative, innovative and empowering ways. It argues that such grass-roots initiatives are vital for generating a socially cohesive urban condition that exists alongside the official state-organized forms of urban governance.

The book is thus a major contribution to socio-political literature, as it seeks to overcome the duality between community-development studies and strategies, and the solidarity-based making of a diverse society based upon the recognising and maintaining of citizenship rights. It will be of particular interest to both students and researchers in the fields of urban studies, social geography and political science.

In this Advanced Introduction to Social Innovation, Frank Moulaert and Diana MacCallum present a pioneering exploration of the relatively young field of ''social innovation''. Delving into the history of innovation, from the 17th century to the present day, the authors investigate the modern preeminence of social innovation in scientific and policy debates, public policy, and collective action in many social spheres. Identifying a range of socio-political and ideological stances, from ''caring'' liberalism to inclusivity and sustainability, this Advanced Introduction not only provides a compelling reflective survey of social innovation thought and practice, but also offers perspectives on what social innovation is, and what it should be.

Concise and perceptive, this timely introduction will serve as an excellent resource for students and scholars of social innovation. Moulaert and MacCallum''s insight into the explosion of social innovation in the 21st century will also offer practitioners a valuable guide for navigating socially innovative actions and processes.

Contributions from an international team of researchers, policy analysts and experts explore both neoliberal urban development policies and socially innovative initiatives, discussing different modes of solidarity action and commons building to ensure both access to land and housing security. Chapters also introduce a critical governance perspective to land tenure dynamics and examine the increasingly prominent hybridisation of land use rights systems and land markets, providing a state-of-the-art reflection of the field and contributing to an agenda for future research, policy and practice.

Academics studying urban and regional planning, social innovation, and commoning will find this book to be essential reading. It will also interest policy makers and civil society organisations looking for a stronger understanding of land dynamics and urbanisation in order to set up new forms of land governance.

Contributors include: P. Abramo, A.M. Brown, N. Busscher, N. Carofilis, C. Collado Solís, V. d''Auria Anitha, C.E. Estrada, L.A. Flores Hernandez, E.T. Gbeckor-Kove, A. Hasan, I. Hiergens, R. Krueger, A. Mehmood, L. Miranda, F. Moulaert, O.A. Nyapala, B. Pak, C. Parra, G. Payne, O. Peek, M. Quintana Molina, A. Sadiq, K. Scheerlinck, A. Suseelan, PVK Rameshwar, C. Tavares e Silva, G. Testori, S. Ud Din Ahmed, P. Van den Broeck, H. Verschure