About the course

This course covers theories and processes of contemporary urban development from a variety of perspectives – it aims to introduce students to key concepts in, and approaches to, politics in cities, as these have emerged and developed over time. Themes include, but are not limited to, political and economic power in cites, the role of ‘elites’, urban government finance, the politics of local economic development policy, the multidimensional role of culture in urban change, and the emergence of forms of urban governance. Case studies are largely drawn from cities in the United States and the United Kingdom, reflecting the development of core ideas in mainstream urban politics largely in these contexts.