Global Cities Now? Current Perspectives in ‘Global Urban Studies’

Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) Urban

Geography Research Group (UGRG) Annual Conference, Thursday 5th - Friday

6th November 2009, Centre for Urban Theory, Swansea University, UK.

Call for Contributions

Contributions of papers and postgraduate posters are invited. Abstracts due

12th September 2009.

This year’s UGRG annual conference aims to provide a forum for researchers

working on, and contributing to debates about, the broad theme of

globalisation and the city. Global urban studies has a range of distinct sub-

literatures that focus on such matters as: the constitution of global cities;

how cities relate to each other through globalization; how cities try to achieve

global city status; how globalization affects different cities differently; global

city theory; critiques of the global-city concept; migration and the global city;

work in the global city; global cities as financial centres; cities of the Global

South; global city-regions; social polarisation in global cities, to name just a

few. We are seeking contributions from across the wide-range of research on

cities in globalization in order to reflect critical discussions, and bring together,

the wide variety of work being undertaken. We also welcome papers and

posters that address the role/status of cities in the current global financial

crisis. Themes for contributions might include (but are in no way restricted to):

> Global cities; World cities; Global city-regions

> Global urban hierarchies; Global urban networks; Inter-city relations;

Transnational urbanism

> Financial centres; Cities and the global financial crisis

> Global city status as a political project; entrepreneurial cities; cities in

competition

> Work in global cities; Migration and global cities

> 'Deglobalising' cities; the retreat of globalization; questioning the global-city

concept

> Globalizing cities (including ‘Cities of the South’)

> Provincializing the global city; ‘ordinary cities’

> Inequality and global cities; Global metropolitan cultures

Over two days, the conference will take the form of keynote presentations,

shorter papers, and include a poster session by postgraduate students. We

hope to leave plenty of time for discussion, stimulated by papers that engage

with globalization and cities - in research, methods or practice. Papers are

welcomed from researchers (including PhDs) at any stage of their careers.

The Poster Session is specifically designed for postgraduates to present their

work in a supportive environment and an award will be made for the best

poster.

The cost of attending the event will be confirmed later in the year, but will be

approximately: £50 waged; £25 unwaged/students.

If you would like to contribute a PAPER or POSTER, contact Richard Smith at

R.G.Smith@swansea.ac.uk or Margo Huxley at M.Huxley@sheffield.ac.uk.

Deadline for 250 word Abstracts is 12th September 2009.

Please note that the deadline for Registration is 2nd October 2009. Further

details about the conference, and how to register, will appear