Call for Papers - ACSP-AESOP Panel Proposal

Resilient Urban Regeneration--Comparative Policy and Planning Lessons from and for UK and US Legacy Cities

Within the literature on urban regeneration, leading examples have emerged in part thanks to the UK's intricate policy web of regeneration initiatives. Cities such as Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool have experienced regeneration differently as they worked to become more resilient and sustainable cities. In contrast the US framework for regeneration focuses mainly on physical transformation of the built environment while separate policy frameworks guide social, cultural and environmental initiatives. As they continue to experiment with predominately one dimensional redevelopment and revitalization policies and programs, many of the well known Legacy cities in the US, such as Cleveland, Detroit and Buffalo, continue to lose population and struggle with their regeneration efforts.  At the same time, other US cities such as Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Indianapolis seem to be on the rebound, incrementally gaining population as they transform their communities with perhaps a more holistic blend of policies that tend to mirror elements of the UK regeneration legacy.

We are seeking to recruit 3-4 scholars from the US and UK to participate in a panel at the ACSP/AESOP Conference in Dublin, July 13^th-18^th, 2013 that would showcase a series of comparative case studies on the regeneration of UK and US cities. For this session we propose to create a regeneration policy typology through the conceptual framework of urban resilience. The typology will illustrate that different city types occupy different stages within the resilience cycle. A synthesis of the case studies will identify different regeneration city types and highlight how different types of cities can orchestrate core elements or ingredients to take a more strategic and resilient approach to the infusion of regeneration policies and programs. Although our comparative analysis is within the context of US/UK urban regeneration policies and programs, we are also open to scholars with case studies from Ireland (since it’s the site of the conference) and perhaps other major cities in Europe who have compelling regeneration stories.

In order to prepare the panel for formal conference submission, please submit proposals to us by January 8, 2013. All proposals and questions should be sent to Maggie Cowell, mmcowell@vt.edu or Joe Schilling, jms33@vt.edu

 

Thank you.