Ella Dewaele
English version
Urbanization in global perspective
1
,Lecture 1: Welcome to the urban age?....................................................................... 6
What is urbanization? What is a city? ..................................................................... 6
First perspective on cities................................................................................... 6
Second perspective on cities .............................................................................. 7
Third perspective on cities .................................................................................. 9
So, it can be complicated ................................................................................. 10
How and why do cities matter? ............................................................................ 11
The urban age .................................................................................................. 11
What does ‘the urban age’ even mean, if anything? ............................................... 16
The urban age? ................................................................................................ 16
Pros and cons of using ‘examples’ when thinking about cities? .............................. 17
Using examples in urban cities ......................................................................... 17
Lecture 2: global cities in a global economy ............................................................. 18
The world city hypothesis .................................................................................... 18
‘the global city”: starting point ............................................................................. 23
Producer services ............................................................................................... 23
Network relations between global cities ............................................................... 26
Specification of a world city network (WCN) ......................................................... 27
Measurement of the WCN: data ........................................................................... 28
Lecture 3: How, why and for whom are ‘Alpha global cities’ magnetic? ...................... 30
City rankings to ‘understand’ cities ...................................................................... 30
The world most liveable cities? ............................................................................ 31
An auto-ethnography of the World Cities Forum in Shanghai .................................. 31
What do city rankings tell us? .............................................................................. 32
Re-appraising ‘Alpha global city’ London .............................................................. 33
Alpha city london ............................................................................................. 33
London is deeply unequal ................................................................................ 34
Migrant divisions of labour................................................................................ 35
London's housing market ................................................................................. 37
‘alpha city’ London?......................................................................................... 38
Whose story is ‘Alpha global city’ London? ........................................................... 38
Massey: world city London ............................................................................... 39
2
,Lecture 4: Urban studies beyond metrocentricity ..................................................... 40
Introductory concepts ......................................................................................... 40
Metrocentricity ................................................................................................ 40
Centers of calculation in science ...................................................................... 42
Centers of calculation in urban studies ............................................................. 42
Provincializing metrocentric urban knowledge ................................................... 43
Alternative readings of the global urban condition ................................................. 44
Postcolonial approaches ................................................................................. 44
Learning from Abu Dhabi’s trajectory through the lives of South Asian men ......... 44
Globalizing cities ............................................................................................. 45
The global moment in multicultural Birmingham’s economic development ......... 45
A world of small and medium-sized cities .......................................................... 46
The competitive advantage of small cities ......................................................... 46
Lecture 5: Extended urbanization ............................................................................ 47
From the urban age to extended urbanization ....................................................... 47
A (sub)urban planet ............................................................................................ 48
Debunking the urban age ‘myth’........................................................................... 50
Desakota ........................................................................................................... 52
Post-suburbia in the US ....................................................................................... 54
The nebular city .................................................................................................. 56
Implications ....................................................................................................... 58
Lecture 6: Comparative Urbanism ........................................................................... 60
Why this focus on comparing cities? .................................................................... 62
Cities beyond compare? ..................................................................................... 63
Comparative typologies ...................................................................................... 64
Individualizing comparison .................................................................................. 65
Universalizing comparison .................................................................................. 65
Variation-finding comparison .............................................................................. 65
Encompassing comparison ................................................................................. 66
Conjunctural urbanism ....................................................................................... 66
Lecture 7: Urban policy mobilities ........................................................................... 67
Preamble: city branding ...................................................................................... 67
3
, homogeneity and conformityin urban policy-making .......................................... 68
Policy transfers/mobilities................................................................................ 69
Example: Bilbao’s ‘Guggenheim effect’ ................................................................ 70
Bogotá ............................................................................................................... 71
Some other recent insights .................................................................................. 75
Lecture 8: The dramatic transformation of the Chinese urban landscape .................. 76
Compressed urbanization ................................................................................... 76
Booming Shanghai .............................................................................................. 77
Shenzhen ........................................................................................................... 78
Four theses on China’s urbanization .................................................................... 79
The logic underlying China’s urbanization ............................................................. 79
Macro-institutional background: pre-reform era (1949-1977) ................................. 80
Unstable urbanization (1949-1977) ...................................................................... 80
Macro-institutional background: post-reform era (1978-present) ........................... 81
Rapid urbanization since 1978 ............................................................................. 81
Urbanization of people ........................................................................................ 82
Migration......................................................................................................... 82
Chunyun ......................................................................................................... 83
Hukou ............................................................................................................. 84
Urbanization of land: urban expansion ................................................................. 87
Land urbanization > population urbanization ........................................................ 88
Urbanization of land: land financing ..................................................................... 88
Urbanization of land: inter-city competition .......................................................... 89
New urban spaces .............................................................................................. 90
Critical issues..................................................................................................... 92
Pollution ......................................................................................................... 92
Traffic jams ..................................................................................................... 92
housing prices and the housing bubble ............................................................. 93
Informal housing ............................................................................................. 93
Nail houses ..................................................................................................... 94
Revisiting Friedmann’s four theses....................................................................... 94
Lecture 9: what if mayors ruled the world? ............................................................... 95
4
English version
Urbanization in global perspective
1
,Lecture 1: Welcome to the urban age?....................................................................... 6
What is urbanization? What is a city? ..................................................................... 6
First perspective on cities................................................................................... 6
Second perspective on cities .............................................................................. 7
Third perspective on cities .................................................................................. 9
So, it can be complicated ................................................................................. 10
How and why do cities matter? ............................................................................ 11
The urban age .................................................................................................. 11
What does ‘the urban age’ even mean, if anything? ............................................... 16
The urban age? ................................................................................................ 16
Pros and cons of using ‘examples’ when thinking about cities? .............................. 17
Using examples in urban cities ......................................................................... 17
Lecture 2: global cities in a global economy ............................................................. 18
The world city hypothesis .................................................................................... 18
‘the global city”: starting point ............................................................................. 23
Producer services ............................................................................................... 23
Network relations between global cities ............................................................... 26
Specification of a world city network (WCN) ......................................................... 27
Measurement of the WCN: data ........................................................................... 28
Lecture 3: How, why and for whom are ‘Alpha global cities’ magnetic? ...................... 30
City rankings to ‘understand’ cities ...................................................................... 30
The world most liveable cities? ............................................................................ 31
An auto-ethnography of the World Cities Forum in Shanghai .................................. 31
What do city rankings tell us? .............................................................................. 32
Re-appraising ‘Alpha global city’ London .............................................................. 33
Alpha city london ............................................................................................. 33
London is deeply unequal ................................................................................ 34
Migrant divisions of labour................................................................................ 35
London's housing market ................................................................................. 37
‘alpha city’ London?......................................................................................... 38
Whose story is ‘Alpha global city’ London? ........................................................... 38
Massey: world city London ............................................................................... 39
2
,Lecture 4: Urban studies beyond metrocentricity ..................................................... 40
Introductory concepts ......................................................................................... 40
Metrocentricity ................................................................................................ 40
Centers of calculation in science ...................................................................... 42
Centers of calculation in urban studies ............................................................. 42
Provincializing metrocentric urban knowledge ................................................... 43
Alternative readings of the global urban condition ................................................. 44
Postcolonial approaches ................................................................................. 44
Learning from Abu Dhabi’s trajectory through the lives of South Asian men ......... 44
Globalizing cities ............................................................................................. 45
The global moment in multicultural Birmingham’s economic development ......... 45
A world of small and medium-sized cities .......................................................... 46
The competitive advantage of small cities ......................................................... 46
Lecture 5: Extended urbanization ............................................................................ 47
From the urban age to extended urbanization ....................................................... 47
A (sub)urban planet ............................................................................................ 48
Debunking the urban age ‘myth’........................................................................... 50
Desakota ........................................................................................................... 52
Post-suburbia in the US ....................................................................................... 54
The nebular city .................................................................................................. 56
Implications ....................................................................................................... 58
Lecture 6: Comparative Urbanism ........................................................................... 60
Why this focus on comparing cities? .................................................................... 62
Cities beyond compare? ..................................................................................... 63
Comparative typologies ...................................................................................... 64
Individualizing comparison .................................................................................. 65
Universalizing comparison .................................................................................. 65
Variation-finding comparison .............................................................................. 65
Encompassing comparison ................................................................................. 66
Conjunctural urbanism ....................................................................................... 66
Lecture 7: Urban policy mobilities ........................................................................... 67
Preamble: city branding ...................................................................................... 67
3
, homogeneity and conformityin urban policy-making .......................................... 68
Policy transfers/mobilities................................................................................ 69
Example: Bilbao’s ‘Guggenheim effect’ ................................................................ 70
Bogotá ............................................................................................................... 71
Some other recent insights .................................................................................. 75
Lecture 8: The dramatic transformation of the Chinese urban landscape .................. 76
Compressed urbanization ................................................................................... 76
Booming Shanghai .............................................................................................. 77
Shenzhen ........................................................................................................... 78
Four theses on China’s urbanization .................................................................... 79
The logic underlying China’s urbanization ............................................................. 79
Macro-institutional background: pre-reform era (1949-1977) ................................. 80
Unstable urbanization (1949-1977) ...................................................................... 80
Macro-institutional background: post-reform era (1978-present) ........................... 81
Rapid urbanization since 1978 ............................................................................. 81
Urbanization of people ........................................................................................ 82
Migration......................................................................................................... 82
Chunyun ......................................................................................................... 83
Hukou ............................................................................................................. 84
Urbanization of land: urban expansion ................................................................. 87
Land urbanization > population urbanization ........................................................ 88
Urbanization of land: land financing ..................................................................... 88
Urbanization of land: inter-city competition .......................................................... 89
New urban spaces .............................................................................................. 90
Critical issues..................................................................................................... 92
Pollution ......................................................................................................... 92
Traffic jams ..................................................................................................... 92
housing prices and the housing bubble ............................................................. 93
Informal housing ............................................................................................. 93
Nail houses ..................................................................................................... 94
Revisiting Friedmann’s four theses....................................................................... 94
Lecture 9: what if mayors ruled the world? ............................................................... 95
4
