Urban Futures – serie

Emerging infectious disease outbreaks have transformed the very nature of urban life worldwide, even as the extent and experience of pandemics are shaped by the planetary urban condition. Pandemic Urbanism critically investigates these relationships in a world faced with its first pandemic on a majority urban planet.The authors reveal the social and historical context of recent infectious disease events and how they have variously transformed the urban fabric. They highlight the important role played by socio-ecological processes associated with the global urban periphery – suburban or post-suburban zones and hinterland areas of “extended” urbanization – changing mobility patterns, and new forms of urban governance and pandemic response. The book develops novel insights for post-pandemic urban governance and planning grounded in the quest for social and spatial justice. In doing so, it reveals a paradox at the heart of pandemic urbanism: urban life enables contagion to spread easily, yet at the same time offers unique possibilities to contain and respond to disease outbreaks.Multidisciplinary in approach and written by experts in the field, this book is an invaluable primer on the origins, pathways, and management of infectious disease.

This volume studies the urbanisation trends of medium-sized cities of India to develop a typology of urban resilience. It looks at historic second-tier cities like Nashik, Bhopal, Kolkata and Agra, which are laboratories of smart experiments and are subject to technological ubiquity, with rampant deployment of smart technologies and dashboard governance.The book examines the traditional values and systems of these cities that have proven to be resilient and studies how they can be adapted to contemporary times. It also highlights the vulnerabilities posed by current urban development models in these cities and presents best practices that could provide leads to address impending climate risks. The book also offers a unique Resilience Index that can drive change in the way cities are imagined and administered, customised to specific needs at various scales of application.Part of the Urban Futures series, the volume is an important contribution to the growing scholarship of southern urbanism and will be of interest to researchers and students of urban studies, urban ecology, urban sociology, architecture, geography, urban design, anthropology, cultural studies, environment, sustainability, urban planning and climate change.

This is the first book in Polity's new 'Urban Futures' series.At the beginning of the twenty-first century, proclamations rang out that gentrification had gone global. But what do we mean by 'gentrification' today? How can we compare 'gentrification' in New York and London with that in Shanghai, Johannesburg, Mumbai and Rio de Janeiro? This book argues that gentrification is one of the most significant and socially unjust processes affecting cities worldwide today, and one that demands renewed critical assessment.Drawing on the 'new' comparative urbanism and writings on planetary urbanization, the authors undertake a much-needed transurban analysis underpinned by a critical political economy approach. Looking beyond the usual gentrification suspects in Europe and North America to non-Western cases, from slum gentrification to mega-displacement, they show that gentrification has unfolded at a planetary scale, but it has not assumed a North to South or West to East trajectory – the story is much more complex than that.  Rich with empirical detail, yet wide-ranging, Planetary Gentrification unhinges, unsettles and provincializes Western notions of urban development. It will be invaluable to students and scholars interested in the future of cities and the production of a truly global urban studies, and equally importantly to all those committed to social justice in cities.

This is the first book in Polity's new 'Urban Futures' series.At the beginning of the twenty-first century, proclamations rang out that gentrification had gone global. But what do we mean by 'gentrification' today? How can we compare 'gentrification' in New York and London with that in Shanghai, Johannesburg, Mumbai and Rio de Janeiro? This book argues that gentrification is one of the most significant and socially unjust processes affecting cities worldwide today, and one that demands renewed critical assessment.Drawing on the 'new' comparative urbanism and writings on planetary urbanization, the authors undertake a much-needed transurban analysis underpinned by a critical political economy approach. Looking beyond the usual gentrification suspects in Europe and North America to non-Western cases, from slum gentrification to mega-displacement, they show that gentrification has unfolded at a planetary scale, but it has not assumed a North to South or West to East trajectory – the story is much more complex than that.  Rich with empirical detail, yet wide-ranging, Planetary Gentrification unhinges, unsettles and provincializes Western notions of urban development. It will be invaluable to students and scholars interested in the future of cities and the production of a truly global urban studies, and equally importantly to all those committed to social justice in cities.

The urban century manifests itself at the peripheries. While the massive wave of present urbanization is often referred to as an 'urban revolution', most of this startling urban growth worldwide is happening at the margins of cities. This book is about the process that creates the global urban periphery – suburbanization – and the ways of life – suburbanisms – we encounter there. Richly detailed with examples from around the world, the book argues that suburbanization is a global process and part of the extended urbanization of the planet. This includes the gated communities of elites, the squatter settlements of the poor, and many built forms and ways of life in-between. The reality of life in the urban century is suburban: most of the earth's future 10 billion inhabitants will not live in conventional cities but in suburban constellations of one kind or another. Inspired by Henri Lefebvre's demand not to give up urban theory when the city in its classical form disappears, this book is a challenge to urban thought more generally as it invites the reader to reconsider the city from the outside in.

The urban century manifests itself at the peripheries. While the massive wave of present urbanization is often referred to as an 'urban revolution', most of this startling urban growth worldwide is happening at the margins of cities. This book is about the process that creates the global urban periphery – suburbanization – and the ways of life – suburbanisms – we encounter there. Richly detailed with examples from around the world, the book argues that suburbanization is a global process and part of the extended urbanization of the planet. This includes the gated communities of elites, the squatter settlements of the poor, and many built forms and ways of life in-between. The reality of life in the urban century is suburban: most of the earth's future 10 billion inhabitants will not live in conventional cities but in suburban constellations of one kind or another. Inspired by Henri Lefebvre's demand not to give up urban theory when the city in its classical form disappears, this book is a challenge to urban thought more generally as it invites the reader to reconsider the city from the outside in.

Urban Inequalities offers a masterful and critical introduction to key issues and processes shaping contemporary cities, drawing on a whole host of economic, social, spatial, legal, environmental, and planning and design perspectives. In addition to the continuing power of ‘older’ bases of urban inequality – racial and cultural discrimination, gender inequity, legal exclusions, informality and shelter deprivation – it examines significant emergent patterns, including the increasing polarization and concentrations of wealth at the top of urban economies.Moving across diverse urban settings, the book considers how urban inequality is organized and lived not only in terms of income, wealth or property, but also in consumption inequalities, uneven access to urban goods and legal protections, spatial segregation and disparities, environmental risks and injustices, and patterns of health, safety and vulnerability. The text concludes by exploring design and planning interventions to address forms of inequality in a range of urban contexts.Blending theoretical acumen with engaging empirical illustrations, Urban Inequalities will be necessary reading for students and scholars across the social sciences studying this hugely consequential phenomenon in an increasingly urbanized world.

Urban Inequalities offers a masterful and critical introduction to key issues and processes shaping contemporary cities, drawing on a whole host of economic, social, spatial, legal, environmental, and planning and design perspectives. In addition to the continuing power of ‘older’ bases of urban inequality – racial and cultural discrimination, gender inequity, legal exclusions, informality and shelter deprivation – it examines significant emergent patterns, including the increasing polarization and concentrations of wealth at the top of urban economies.Moving across diverse urban settings, the book considers how urban inequality is organized and lived not only in terms of income, wealth or property, but also in consumption inequalities, uneven access to urban goods and legal protections, spatial segregation and disparities, environmental risks and injustices, and patterns of health, safety and vulnerability. The text concludes by exploring design and planning interventions to address forms of inequality in a range of urban contexts.Blending theoretical acumen with engaging empirical illustrations, Urban Inequalities will be necessary reading for students and scholars across the social sciences studying this hugely consequential phenomenon in an increasingly urbanized world.

Global Urban Politics: Informalization of the StateIn what ways has global urbanization affected the political process? This book offers a reflection on the transformations of urban politics worldwide in the past four decades, from interpersonal street-level politics to transnational governing institutions.Organized thematically, the book examines urban social movements, diversity politics, environmental politics and security politics at a global level and argues that living in an urban world calls for a profound rethinking of how we act politically. Through ethnographic incursions into the worlds of youth activists, domestic workers, rioters, barrio bandits and peripheral villagers, among others, from Mexico City and Hanoi to Montreal and New York, the book makes a number of theoretical propositions to redefine the field of urban political studies.Extending the view of urban politics beyond municipal and metropolitan institutions to the broader political process in cities, this book will be invaluable to advanced students and scholars interested in our urban future. For, as Boudreau convincingly suggests, global urban life is political life.

Global Urban Politics: Informalization of the StateIn what ways has global urbanization affected the political process? This book offers a reflection on the transformations of urban politics worldwide in the past four decades, from interpersonal street-level politics to transnational governing institutions.Organized thematically, the book examines urban social movements, diversity politics, environmental politics and security politics at a global level and argues that living in an urban world calls for a profound rethinking of how we act politically. Through ethnographic incursions into the worlds of youth activists, domestic workers, rioters, barrio bandits and peripheral villagers, among others, from Mexico City and Hanoi to Montreal and New York, the book makes a number of theoretical propositions to redefine the field of urban political studies.Extending the view of urban politics beyond municipal and metropolitan institutions to the broader political process in cities, this book will be invaluable to advanced students and scholars interested in our urban future. For, as Boudreau convincingly suggests, global urban life is political life.

This volume discusses the nuances of cultural phenomena in the transforming urban landscape of Indian cities. It focuses on the role of globalization, transitioning economic patterns, and national urban policies in changing their urban landscape. The volume argues that culture is an important determinant of the emergent urban patterns. It decodes and determines the human centered inter-linkages among social, cultural, economic, and political aspects, and their reactions to the transformations in urban morphology to understand the spatial perspective and visualization of new emerging cultural phenomena. The book reflects on the contemporary global forces and currently operational national urban policies that have enforced new dynamics of consumption, lifestyles, and institutions. Further, it also examines the ways in which these forces come together to create new hybrid cultures which manifest in spatial practices.With detailed case studies of different cities, this book will be of interest to students, teachers, and researchers of urban planning, cultural studies, urban sociology, urban geography, history, urban design, urban conservation, and policy studies. It will also be useful for professionals working in the field of smart cities in India and abroad, planning authorities, urban scientists, cultural tourists, artists, local cultural enthusiasts, and those interested in studying the urban conditions of Indian cities.

This book offers an overview of India’s emerging digital economy and the resulting challenges and opportunities for urban workplaces. It examines contemporary economic and social transformations in India by focusing on how new technologies and policies are shaping urban work practices and patterns. The book emphasizes inclusive and equitable practices that consider the needs of the formal and informal sector workforce as essential to India’s urban development. Drawing on cross-disciplinary frameworks, it examines key issues related to work trends in the Indian urban economy and its digital landscapes, including Industry 4.0 and technology–labour nexus, smart cities and innovation, urbanism and consumerism, workplace transitions such as service industry and remote work, digital divide, skill development initiatives, and the impact of socio-economic inequalities and disruptions. The authors provide perspectives on the digital future of urban work in India and other emerging economies in the post-COVID-19 phase, and underscore the importance of enacting balanced policies, remodelling institutions, and equipping the labour force for adapting to new demands related to future employability and investments.This book will interest students, teachers, and researchers of urban studies, urban sociology, sociology of work, labour studies, human and urban geography, economic geography, urban economics, development studies, urban development and planning, public policy, regional planning, politics of urban development, social and cultural change, urban sustainability, environmental studies, management studies, South Asian Studies, and Global South studies. It will also be useful to policymakers, non-governmental organizations, activists, and those interested in India and the future of the global economy.

This book offers an overview of India’s emerging digital economy and the resulting challenges and opportunities for urban workplaces. It examines contemporary economic and social transformations in India by focusing on how new technologies and policies are shaping urban work practices and patterns. The book emphasizes inclusive and equitable practices that consider the needs of the formal and informal sector workforce as essential to India’s urban development. Drawing on cross-disciplinary frameworks, it examines key issues related to work trends in the Indian urban economy and its digital landscapes, including Industry 4.0 and technology–labour nexus, smart cities and innovation, urbanism and consumerism, workplace transitions such as service industry and remote work, digital divide, skill development initiatives, and the impact of socio-economic inequalities and disruptions. The authors provide perspectives on the digital future of urban work in India and other emerging economies in the post-COVID-19 phase, and underscore the importance of enacting balanced policies, remodelling institutions, and equipping the labour force for adapting to new demands related to future employability and investments.This book will interest students, teachers, and researchers of urban studies, urban sociology, sociology of work, labour studies, human and urban geography, economic geography, urban economics, development studies, urban development and planning, public policy, regional planning, politics of urban development, social and cultural change, urban sustainability, environmental studies, management studies, South Asian Studies, and Global South studies. It will also be useful to policymakers, non-governmental organizations, activists, and those interested in India and the future of the global economy.

This volume studies the urbanisation trends of medium-sized cities of India to develop a typology of urban resilience. It looks at historic second-tier cities like Nashik, Bhopal, Kolkata and Agra, which are laboratories of smart experiments and are subject to technological ubiquity, with rampant deployment of smart technologies and dashboard governance.The book examines the traditional values and systems of these cities that have proven to be resilient and studies how they can be adapted to contemporary times. It also highlights the vulnerabilities posed by current urban development models in these cities and presents best practices that could provide leads to address impending climate risks. The book also offers a unique Resilience Index that can drive change in the way cities are imagined and administered, customised to specific needs at various scales of application.Part of the Urban Futures series, the volume is an important contribution to the growing scholarship of southern urbanism and will be of interest to researchers and students of urban studies, urban ecology, urban sociology, architecture, geography, urban design, anthropology, cultural studies, environment, sustainability, urban planning and climate change.

This book explores how cities are shaped by the lived experiences of inhabitants and examines the ways they develop strategies to cope with daily and unexpected challenges. It argues that migration, livelihood, and public health challenges result from inadequacies in the hard city—urban assets, such as land, infrastructure, and housing, and asserts that these challenges and escalating vulnerabilities are best negotiated using the soft city—social capital and community networks. In so doing, the authors criticise a singular knowledge system and argue for a granular, nuanced understanding of cities—of the interrelations between people in places, everyday urbanisms, social relationships, cultural practices, and histories. The volume presents perspectives from the Global South and the Global North and engages with city-specific cases from Africa, India, and Europe for a deeper understanding of resilience.Part of the Urban Futures series, it will be of great interest to students and researchers of urban studies, urban planning, urban management, architecture, urban sociology, urban design, ecology, conservation, and urban sustainability. It will also be useful for urbanists, architects, urban sociologists, city and town planners, policy makers, and those interested in a deeper understanding of the contemporary and future city.

This book explores how cities are shaped by the lived experiences of inhabitants and examines the ways they develop strategies to cope with daily and unexpected challenges. It argues that migration, livelihood, and public health challenges result from inadequacies in the hard city—urban assets, such as land, infrastructure, and housing, and asserts that these challenges and escalating vulnerabilities are best negotiated using the soft city—social capital and community networks. In so doing, the authors criticise a singular knowledge system and argue for a granular, nuanced understanding of cities—of the interrelations between people in places, everyday urbanisms, social relationships, cultural practices, and histories. The volume presents perspectives from the Global South and the Global North and engages with city-specific cases from Africa, India, and Europe for a deeper understanding of resilience.Part of the Urban Futures series, it will be of great interest to students and researchers of urban studies, urban planning, urban management, architecture, urban sociology, urban design, ecology, conservation, and urban sustainability. It will also be useful for urbanists, architects, urban sociologists, city and town planners, policy makers, and those interested in a deeper understanding of the contemporary and future city.

This volume discusses the nuances of cultural phenomena in the transforming urban landscape of Indian cities. It focuses on the role of globalization, transitioning economic patterns, and national urban policies in changing their urban landscape. The volume argues that culture is an important determinant of the emergent urban patterns. It decodes and determines the human centered inter-linkages among social, cultural, economic, and political aspects, and their reactions to the transformations in urban morphology to understand the spatial perspective and visualization of new emerging cultural phenomena. The book reflects on the contemporary global forces and currently operational national urban policies that have enforced new dynamics of consumption, lifestyles, and institutions. Further, it also examines the ways in which these forces come together to create new hybrid cultures which manifest in spatial practices.With detailed case studies of different cities, this book will be of interest to students, teachers, and researchers of urban planning, cultural studies, urban sociology, urban geography, history, urban design, urban conservation, and policy studies. It will also be useful for professionals working in the field of smart cities in India and abroad, planning authorities, urban scientists, cultural tourists, artists, local cultural enthusiasts, and those interested in studying the urban conditions of Indian cities.

This book examines the concept of smart cities in the context of the UN's sustainable development goals, through three Mediterranean port cities. It draws on the case studies of Dubrovnik (Croatia), Limassol (Cyprus), and Valletta (Malta), three smart cities on the Mediterranean that are important tourist cruising destinations; cities in small European states that are members of the EU; with sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List; important tourist cruising destinations with global recognition; promoted as safe tourist destinations; and locations for popular films and series. It analyses the three cities and assesses their success in achieving their goals of becoming inclusive, safe, adaptable, and sustainable.Based on extensive fieldwork and backed by big data qualitative analysis, the volume will be of great interest to professionals, scholars, and researchers of environment and sustainability, built environment, and urban studies.

This book examines the concept of smart cities in the context of the UN's sustainable development goals, through three Mediterranean port cities. It draws on the case studies of Dubrovnik (Croatia), Limassol (Cyprus), and Valletta (Malta), three smart cities on the Mediterranean that are important tourist cruising destinations; cities in small European states that are members of the EU; with sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List; important tourist cruising destinations with global recognition; promoted as safe tourist destinations; and locations for popular films and series. It analyses the three cities and assesses their success in achieving their goals of becoming inclusive, safe, adaptable, and sustainable.Based on extensive fieldwork and backed by big data qualitative analysis, the volume will be of great interest to professionals, scholars, and researchers of environment and sustainability, built environment, and urban studies.

This book explores how urban spaces encompass, shape and reconfigure the emotional landscapes and socio-cultural specters of their inhabitants. It highlights the arenas in which various politics and strategies of emotional relations are represented, created, enacted and regulated through the inhabitants’ lives and lifestyles. Exploring this, the chapters in the volume bring together and analyze the myriad forms of intersections within and between urban centers in India and the Indian diaspora, as well as ‘classed’ emotions. The authors embark on scholarly inquiries to highlight the complex and fluid dynamics through which urban spaces and the class of their inhabitants question, attribute, influence and perpetuate the diverse emotional states and responses, and vice versa – they examine the ways in which emotive subjectivities, relations, experiences and practices question and influence multiple urban formations, power dynamics and spaces. They reveal how emotional and urban landscapes are not only represented but are also affected by the social class of the denizens. Part of the Urban Futures series, the volume will be indispensable to scholars and researchers of urban studies, anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, urban planning, urban policy, public policy and architecture. It will also be of interest to the professional architects, urban designers, social geographers and policymakers.

This book explores how urban spaces encompass, shape and reconfigure the emotional landscapes and socio-cultural specters of their inhabitants. It highlights the arenas in which various politics and strategies of emotional relations are represented, created, enacted and regulated through the inhabitants’ lives and lifestyles. Exploring this, the chapters in the volume bring together and analyze the myriad forms of intersections within and between urban centers in India and the Indian diaspora, as well as ‘classed’ emotions. The authors embark on scholarly inquiries to highlight the complex and fluid dynamics through which urban spaces and the class of their inhabitants question, attribute, influence and perpetuate the diverse emotional states and responses, and vice versa – they examine the ways in which emotive subjectivities, relations, experiences and practices question and influence multiple urban formations, power dynamics and spaces. They reveal how emotional and urban landscapes are not only represented but are also affected by the social class of the denizens. Part of the Urban Futures series, the volume will be indispensable to scholars and researchers of urban studies, anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, urban planning, urban policy, public policy and architecture. It will also be of interest to the professional architects, urban designers, social geographers and policymakers.

Community is a central idea in urban studies but remains conceptually vague and empirically difficult to work with. Building on existing theories of community, Talja Blokland offers an important contribution to defining and understanding this key theme. Blokland argues that there has been too much focus on community as a stable construct, formed by durable relationships with kin, friends, social groups or neighbours. She draws attention to the non-durable, fluid encounters that constitute community, theorizing communities as shared urban practices in a globalizing world. The book proposes two core ways of thinking about community: the dimension of familiarity, defined by our ability to construct identities, and the dimension of access, defined by our freedom to enter and leave urban spaces. These dimensions form various urban configurations which enable us to experience and practise community in diverse ways. As this book maintains, community is after all an urban practice, not a fixed state of affairs.

Community is a central idea in urban studies but remains conceptually vague and empirically difficult to work with. Building on existing theories of community, Talja Blokland offers an important contribution to defining and understanding this key theme. Blokland argues that there has been too much focus on community as a stable construct, formed by durable relationships with kin, friends, social groups or neighbours. She draws attention to the non-durable, fluid encounters that constitute community, theorizing communities as shared urban practices in a globalizing world. The book proposes two core ways of thinking about community: the dimension of familiarity, defined by our ability to construct identities, and the dimension of access, defined by our freedom to enter and leave urban spaces. These dimensions form various urban configurations which enable us to experience and practise community in diverse ways. As this book maintains, community is after all an urban practice, not a fixed state of affairs.