Rethinking the Creative City

Cities from all over the world are undergoing change and transformation, and some are developing interesting models of social and urban innovation, mostly out of necessity and only with hindsight do they see themselves as 'creative cities'. For at least a decade now the 'creative city' label has been used in some cases as an aspiration and in others as a brand, an unquestioned byword for enhanced urban competitiveness and boosted attraction factors. Following the global financial meltdown, cities more than ever need inspiration and forward-looking thinking. This is why we welcome the start of a frank and open debate about both the positives and the negatives of the 'creative city' approach. Here is an article on this subject published by Lia Ghilardi in the Czech architecture magazine ERA 21 in August 2009.

C. Landry: Creativity @ The Crossroads

Centre for Cities: Get Real with the Creative City

C. Leadbeater: The Completely Creative City

A. Pratt: Creative cities – the cultural industries and the creative class

GJ. Hospers and CJ.Pen: A View on Creative Cities beyond the Hype

O. Mould: Ranking Creative Cities: an exercise in futility?

M. Nathan: The Wrong Stuff

J. Peck: The creativity fix

Swedish Municipal Cultural Planning

Cultural Planning is now firmly embedded in both policy and practice in Sweden. For those who can read Swedish, here is a very useful Handbook compiled by the Cultural Planning Network together with the Association of Swedish Municipalities. To get the Handbook please go to: www.sklkommentus.se

URBACT Report

The report Cities Facing the Crisis was launched at the Annual Conference of the EU programme URBACT held in Liege at the beginning of December. The video featured here summarises the findings of the report and presents the key issues debated during two days of intense discussion and exchange.


URBACT cities facing the crisis (Part 1)
Uploaded by urbact. - Up-to-the minute news videos.

Rethinking Cultural Policy

Culture Shock is a new paper by Demos calling for change in cultural policy, its function and delivery in the light of the changes taking place in technology, society and cultural production and consumption. You can download the paper here

Beautification or Regeneration?

Thousand of volunteers dig in for I-70 project in Indianapolis
Could this be how the Big Society looks like? The killer answer is in the comment at the bottom of this article

Mercer 2010 Quality of Living Survey

European cities still dominate the top ten ranking for quality of living with Canada, Australia and New Zealand also featuring.
Vienna scores highest for overall quality of living, while Calgary the Eco-city league's top dog.
Watch the short video discussing the criteria for city ranking.
Ranking tables and descriptions are to be found here.

The Other Side Of Branding

For all those cities that are battling for pole position in the urban league... David Brier says...