Books in the Regions and Cities series

The past thirty years have seen a proliferation of new forms of territorial governance that have come to co-exist with, and complement, formal territorial spaces of government. These governance experiments have resulted in the creation of soft spaces, new geographies with blurred boundaries that eschew existing political-territorial boundaries of elected tiers of government. This book provides a deeper understanding of space and place, territorial governance and network governance.

The world has changed profoundly since the publication of the influential book Technopoles of the World. As policy-makers and practitioners attempt to harness science, technology and innovation to create dynamic and vibrant cities many wonder how relevant Manuel Castells and Peter Hall''s messages are today. Twenty years later, this book returns to their concepts and practices to update their message for the 21st century. Making 21st Century Knowledge Complexes: Technopoles of the World Revisited argues that the contemporary technopole concept encompasses three new dimensions. Firstly, building synergy between partners is vital for the success of complexes. Secondly, the correct governance arrangements are critical to balance competing interests inevitable in any science city project. Thirdly, new evaluation mechanisms are indispensable in allowing policy-makers to steer their long-term benefits. Through twelve case study chapters and a detailed comparative analysis, this book provides academics, policy-makers and practitioners with critical insights in understanding, managing and promoting today''s high-technology urban complexes.

While the levels of socio-economic segregation in European cities are still modest compared to some parts of the world, the poor are increasingly concentrating spatially within capital cities across Europe. This book offers a systematic and representative account of the spatial dimension of rising inequalities.

This consolidation of Wales as a regional/national space of social and economic governance, with increasingly sharp territorial definition has refocused attention on the dynamics of spatial difference within the country. The authors of the book analyse the impact of the changes and the way the Welsh localities stack up against one another, with important conclusions for the economy, policy and governance.

As London sought to use the Olympics to achieve an ambitious programme of urban renewal in the relatively socially deprived East London it attracted global attention and sparked debate. This book provides an in-depth study of the transformation of East London as a result of the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Government and event organisers use legacies of urban renewal to justify hosting the world¿s leading sports mega-event, this book examines and evaluates those legacies.

This book contains a collection of cutting-edge empirical research on the regional level determinants of new business formation and its effect on regional welfare and growth. This book was published as a special issue of Regional Studies.

In recent years, European societies and territories have witnessed the spatial impacts of a severe financial and socio-economic crisis. This book builds on the current debate concerning how cities and urban regions and their citizens deal with the consequences of the recent financial and socio-economic crisis.

This book examines the vast and largely uncharted world of cultural/creative city-making in Asia. It explores the establishment of policy models and practices against the backdrop of a globalizing world, and considers the dynamic relationship between powerful actors and resources that impact Asian cities.

Higher Education and the Creative Economy critically engages with the complex interconnections between higher education, geography, cultural policy and the creative economy. While it has a strong UK component, it also includes international perspectives, specifically from Australia, Singapore, Europe and the USA.

Software has become essential to the functioning of cities. It is deeply embedded into the systems and infrastructure of the built environment and is entrenched in the management and governance of urban societies. Software-enabled technologies and services enhance the ways in which we understand and plan cities. It even has an effect on how we manage urban services and utilities. Code and the City explores the extent and depth of the ways in which software mediates how people work, consume, communication, travel and play.

Software has become essential to the functioning of cities. It is deeply embedded into the systems and infrastructure of the built environment and is entrenched in the management and governance of urban societies. Software-enabled technologies and services enhance the ways in which we understand and plan cities. It even has an effect on how we manage urban services and utilities. Code and the City explores the extent and depth of the ways in which software mediates how people work, consume, communication, travel and play.

Creative industries have become fundamental in signalling the economic wellbeing of cities and urban regions. Workers who are attracted to the sector tend to have strong preferences when it comes to the neighbourhoods they want to live in, with factors such as job availability and urban amenities playing a large part in their decision. Skills and Cities analyses these factors and looks at the implications for urban and regional policy across a range of European cities.

The aim of this edited volume is to explore the opportunities and challenges presented by different forms of territorial policy and governance. Drawing on conceptual debates and empirical research from the UK and other international contexts, the contributors engage with issues around the politics and governance of territorial development, economic development, planning and regeneration, and the environment.

Most developed economies, including single-industry and resource dependent rural or small town regions, are transforming rapidly as a result of social, political, and economic change. Collectively, they face a number of challenges as well as new opportunities. This international collaboration describes a critical political economy framework that will be useful for understanding these transitions. Transformation of Resource Towns and Peripheries describes the multi-faceted process of transition and change in resource dependent rural and small town regions since the end of the Second World War.

Innovation varies fundamentally between countries ¿ and public policies can be determined according to different societies¿ needs (e.g. energy technology, environmental technologies). This comparison between countries and continents featuring a range of world experts helps develop a fuller picture of innovations and their social basis.

In recent years, smart specialisation has been a key building block of regional economic and development policy across the European Union. Governing Smart Specialisation contributes to the emerging debate about the role of the `entrepreneurial discovery process¿ (EDP), which is at the heart of smart specialisation strategies for regional economic transformation. Particular focus in placed on what methods, procedures and institutional conditions are necessary in order to generate information that helps buttress policy decisions.