International Conference on Urban Studies "Celebrations, Aspirations and Expectations"

Website https://urbanstudies.lcir.co.uk/ | Edit Freely

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Deadline: December 05, 2019 | Date: May 09, 2020

Venue/Country: Cambridge, U.K.

Updated: 2019-09-05 21:59:16 (GMT+9)

Call For Papers - CFP

9 May 2020 – Cambridge, UK

organised by London Centre for Interdisciplinary Research

Cities are born out of a specific necessity arising at a given moment in time and develop their own ethos based on a unique mentality and ideology, and a certain set of social values and cultural attitudes. Concrete, physical structures and systems, as well as abstract, conceptual notions work together in complex and complicated ways to articulate not only the symmetries and consistencies but also the paradoxes and contradictions of distinct urban and metropolitan areas. They are designed as leading centres of economics or politics, finance and commerce, governance and international administration, research and development, education and media, art and culture, entertainment and tourism. The scope and purpose of making a city are significantly important but the human factor is decisive since the city dwellers are the ones who insert their individual stories of identity into the communal biography of the municipal setting.

The conference aims to explore the interdependence between the cities and their people, the mutual power they exercise upon each other, with cities absorbing individuals and humans conquering urban spaces. It will also focus on the various aspects that characterize the world’s capitals, conurbations and metropolitan regions, their strengths and achievements, challenges and opportunities, problems and solutions, as well as the realities of the 21st century that are placing increasing pressures upon both cities and their inhabitants: overpopulation, overconsumption, poverty, deforestation, pollution, climate change, etc. And last but not least the conference will investigate the heterogeneous nature and the romantic fascination exerted by urban areas.

The main objective of the event is to bring together all those interested in examining the intersections between their professions and/or interests and some distinct aspects of metropolitan life, providing an integrated approach for the understanding of the mechanisms that lie behind the undisputed global centres.

Topics include but are not limited to several core issues:

arcology – principles and practices

urban architecture and planning

landscape urbanism

radical planning

the mind of the city

supercities and the self

past, present and future

city limits and limitations

travel and transport

commuting and mobile consumerism

economies of urban agglomeration

ecological education

recycling and waste management

economic growth and social responsibility

urban agriculture

landscapes and cityscapes

renewal and transformation models

the ethics and morality of the city

environmental health

global warming

gentrification and displacement

home and homelessness

landscape architecture

overcrowding and overpopulation

suburban colonization

smart cities, intelligent communities

progress, productivity and productivism

place identity and human experience

public spaces and social interaction

urban patterns of behaviour

addiction, crime and deviation

neighbourhoods and sustainability

terrorism and counterterrorism

local history and cultural heritage

historical, cultural and tourist landmarks

multiculturalism and exclusiveness

placemaking, race and ethnicity

urban legends

cities and cultural diversity

writing the city

media representations

wisdom and humour

Paper proposals should be sent by 5 December 2019 to: urbanstudieslcir.co.uk. Please download Paper proposal form.

Registration fee – 100 GBP

Conference venue TBC