Books in the Urban Studies series

How did American cities change throughout the 20th and early 21st century? This timely publication integrates research from American Literary and Cultural Studies, Urban Studies and History. The essays range from negotiations of the ethnic city in US literature and media, to studies of recent urban phenomena and their representations: gentrification, re-appropriation and conversion of urban spaces in the USA.These interdisciplinary and intercultural perspectives on American cities provide unique points of access for studying the complex narratives of urban transformation.

The Brazilian Constitution provides a remarkable set of social rights, including the right to housing. Despite this fact, struggles for decent living conditions have become key issues in the daily urban lives of many people in Brazil. Contesting the differentiated access to housing, social movements occupy empty buildings in the cities to challenge historically-rooted and excluding urban politics. Exploring the occupants' agency, Bea Wittger draws attention to the important role of female actors within the buildings. Through oral histories of participants of two squats in Rio de Janeiro, the book delivers a deep insight "e;from below"e; into their own perspectives on citizenship and gender.

Who wins and who loses in urban regeneration? What are the mechanisms at play?Francesca Weber-Newth looks at two neighbourhoods that are adjacent to large-scale regeneration schemes: the 2012 Olympic park in London and the Mediaspree waterside development in Berlin. By analysing how urban regeneration is experienced on the ground, her study counters the notion that Olympic-led regeneration is any different from other forms of neoliberal urban development. Adopting Pierre Bourdieu's view of the social world as made up of competitive >gamesculture< and >community< are strategically employed in the >game< of urban regeneration - to the benefit of some and the detriment of others.

Emerging forms of alternative economic frameworks are changing the structure of society, redefining the relationship between centre and periphery, and the social dynamics in the urban fabric. In this context, the arts can play a crucial role in formulating a concept of complex and plural citizenship: This economic, social and cultural paradigm has the potential to overcome the conventional isolation of the arts and culture in ivory towers, and thereby to gradually make the urban fabric more fertile. This volume faces such sensitive issues by collating contributions from various disciplines: Economists, sociologists, urbanists, architects and creative artists offer a broad and deep assessment of urban dynamics and their visions for the years to come.

In the past decades, international port cities have been strongly affected by global transformation processes, dramatically altering life and work around the ports, the built environment and public imagery of urban waterfronts. This volume focus on local stakeholders' perceptions and strategies in port cities in Europe and Latin America.