2007 marks a
new epoch when the majority of human beings on the
planet live in cities. What this work explores is how
cities coalesce, develop and thrive and how they
remake themselves for better or worse. The parasitic
relationship cities have with Nature, the webs of
trade and immigration they rely upon to survive, how
they feed and water themselves and dispose of waste
are examined in a sweeping exploration of what the
city is. This book will stand alongside other
comparable major studies, for many years to come.
What is offered
is an explanation of cities in crisis and
demonstrates why the State has failed and must fail
to end the urban crisis. What is analyzed is the
spatial structure of the metropolis, metropolitan
governance, urban redevelopment policies, housing
problems, grass roots activism, the fiscal log jam of
cities and urban planning. How and why decisions are
made, and ho stands behind them are questions raised
and linked together in a historical perspective
unique in studies of the city.
How and why
have cities become command centres for the world
economy? These global cities have distinctive
commercial, residential, and spatial features and
give place to financial and cultural activities that
are most consequential for everyone, regardless of
where they live. The development of such influential
cities is intimately related to the emergence of
modern telecommunications, the growth of
multinational corporations and the generation of a
world economy with an increased movement of cultural
symbols and artifacts across all national borders.
Does
globalization menace cities as we know them? Are
cities able to exercise democratic control and
strategic choice when multinational corporate
competition increasingly limits the importance of
place? The city is the foundation of democracy and
citizenship, yet is widely misunderstood as a
geo-political space prone to playing a growing role
in shaping the 21st century.
DIMITRIOS
ROUSSOPOULOS is a well known urban-focused activist.
He has worked in the field for some thirty years, in
several cities, organising grassroots democratic
opposition to mega urban development and the
destruction of neighbourhoods. He has also pioneered
urban democratization and a new definition of
citizenship in the city, through his public speaking
and writings.
250 pages,
5.5x8.5, bibliography, index
Paperback ISBN: 978-1-55164-334-2 $19.99
Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-55164-335-9 $39.99
Urban Studies
June 2009
