Historic Cities and Sacred Sites


Book Description

This book contributes to a better understanding of why historic cities and sacred sites are important, and how cultural roots may influence and improve urban futures. It emphasises the need to include social and cultural dimensions in economic development and offers cases of best practice.







Old Cities, New Assets


Book Description

In the short span of some 50 years, starting with the founding of Santo Domingo at the end of the 15th century, the Spanish and Portuguese conquistadors established most of the cities that today are the cornerstone of urban Latin America. The monuments, buildings and plazas that make up this vast heritage continue to define the region's cultural identity and constitute a valuable asset for socioeconomic development. This book explores ways to bring private investors, developers and urban residents into the preservation process, which is beyond the scope of government alone. It describes the different approaches being used to involve these various stakeholders, including successful if not coordinated interventions by public and private interests in Cartagena, Colombia ; operation of a mixed-capital corporation in Quito, Ecuador; and a government-promoted private investment program in Recife, Brazil. The experiences of these three historic Latin American cities provide significant clues about conditions that attract investment, and show why sustained private involvement is the key to furthering heritage preservation in the region. (Adapté du résumé de l'éditeur).




Strong Towns


Book Description

A new way forward for sustainable quality of life in cities of all sizes Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States. Presenting the foundational ideas of the Strong Towns movement he co-founded, Charles Marohn explains why cities of all sizes continue to struggle to meet their basic needs, and reveals the new paradigm that can solve this longstanding problem. Inside, you’ll learn why inducing growth and development has been the conventional response to urban financial struggles—and why it just doesn’t work. New development and high-risk investing don’t generate enough wealth to support itself, and cities continue to struggle. Read this book to find out how cities large and small can focus on bottom-up investments to minimize risk and maximize their ability to strengthen the community financially and improve citizens’ quality of life. Develop in-depth knowledge of the underlying logic behind the “traditional” search for never-ending urban growth Learn practical solutions for ameliorating financial struggles through low-risk investment and a grassroots focus Gain insights and tools that can stop the vicious cycle of budget shortfalls and unexpected downturns Become a part of the Strong Towns revolution by shifting the focus away from top-down growth toward rebuilding American prosperity Strong Towns acknowledges that there is a problem with the American approach to growth and shows community leaders a new way forward. The Strong Towns response is a revolution in how we assemble the places we live.




Tourism and Responsibility


Book Description

This book discusses the responsibility, or otherwise, of tourism activities in Latin America and the Caribbean. It considers issues such as the reduction of poverty through tourism and the conflict between increasing volumes of air travel spent in our continuing search for pleasure and the resulting contribution to global warming. The authors believe that tourism can only be adequately assessed through a consideration of how it fits into the structure of power. It is also argued that tourism cannot be analyzed without a consideration of its impacts on and links with development. This relationship between tourism, responsibility, power and development is explored in chapters covering both the macro and the micro level of responsibility. The authors look at methods of practising tourism responsibly or irresponsibly at the personal, company, national and international levels. The questions and dilemmas of "placing" responsibility in the tourism industry are examined throughout. Widely illustrating all these themes and issues with examples and case studies from throughout the sub-continent, this book will be of importance to students and academics and to the work of practitioners of development and tourism-related projects run by both governmental and non-governmental aid and development agencies.




Merger Mania


Book Description

Outside the United States, forced municipal mergers were a popular policy in many European countries and Canadian provinces during the 1960s and 1970s. The city of Laval, just north of Montreal, and the "unicity" of Winnipeg owe their origins to this period - both amalgamations failed to meet their original objectives. Despite the emergence of "public choice" theory - which justifies municipal fragmentation on market principles - some politicians and public servants in the 1990s have continued to advocate municipal amalgamations as a means of reducing public expenditure, particularly in Ontario. In Merger Mania Andrew Sancton demonstrates that this approach has generally not saved money. He examines the history of amalgamation, as well as studying recent forced municipal mergers in Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, and Sudbury. In the concluding chapter he examines the case for municipal amalgamation on the Island of Montreal and argues that those who would abolish locally elected municipal councils are obligated to explain very carefully - especially in light of evidence to the contrary - exactly why they think such drastic measures are necessary. A compelling examination of a timely issue, Merger Mania is a must-read for anyone interested in the politics of city governments.




Pavement and Asset Management


Book Description

Pavement and Asset Management contains contributions from the World Conference on Pavement and Asset Management (WCPAM 2017, Baveno, Italy, 12-16 June 2017). For the first time, the European Pavement and Asset Management Conference (EPAM) and the International Conference on Managing Pavement Assets (ICMPA) were joining forces for a global event that aimed not only at academics and researchers, but also at practitioners, engineers and technicians dealing with everyday tasks and responsibilities related to transport infrastructures pavement and asset management. Pavement and Asset Management covers a wide range of topics, from emerging research to engineering practice, and is grouped under the following themes: - Data quality and monitoring - Economics, political and environmental management, strategies - Deterioration models - Key performance indicators - PMS-case studies - Design and materials - M&R treatments - LCA & LCCA - Risk and safety - Bridge and tunnel management - Smart infrastructure and IT Pavement and Asset Management will be valuable to academics and professionals interested and/or involved in issues related to transport infrastructures pavement and asset management.










Tourism and Sustainability


Book Description

Tourism and Sustainability explores and challenges the notions of development, sustainability, globalisation and power, and their relationship to contemporary tourism in the third world.