Global Cities as Market Civilisation

Building upon interdisciplinary efforts to understand the origins, logic and significance of global cities, this article argues that global cities should be seen as a critical component and outcome of a political project to generate a global market society. Global cities should be seen as the successful implementation of free-market political philosophy, constructed and defended by a particular historical configuration of international society. The historical transformation of urban form signalled by the "global city" concept is tightly bound to the neoliberal restructuring of the world economy in the 1970s, underpinned by US hegemonic power. The first part of this article argues that the distinctive historical origin of global cities has shaped their current trajectories and draws the horizon of their future prospects. Having established the connection between liberal world order and global cities, the second part of the article argues that the contemporary form of the global city is under threat from two sources. The first threat is internal to the global city form itself. Global cities have internalised the contradictory forces of market liberalism. They have registered astonishing economic growth over the last four decades, and generated vast material and intellectual resources. But, at the same time, they have become deeply divided and polarised in ways that threaten the urban fabric. The second source of threat comes from the possible weakening or collapse of liberal world order, with the accelerating decline of US hegemony. Drawing on aspects of Karl Polanyi's analysis of the nineteenth-century "great transformation", the article argues that a number of future trajectories for the global city can be identified in the contemporary moment.     

Violence in the city that belongs to no one: urban distinctiveness and interconnected insecurities in Nairobi (Kenya)

ABSTRACT

Rapid urbanisation in the global South has prompted attention to the causes and dynamics of urban violence. Yet, much research tends to either analyse urban violence without attention to the broader conflict complexes of which it forms a part, neglecting linkages between different forms of urban violence and between urban and rural dynamics, or conversely study violence in cities without acknowledging the particularities of the urban context. In this article, we conceptualise urban violence, theorise how it is shaped by urban dynamics and explore its manifestations in Nairobi, Kenya. We find that while Nairobi is not uniquely violent inside Kenya, violence takes on distinct urban forms given city-level processes, and also that urban violence has led to policies that increase securitisation and militarisation of the city. Our analysis thus improves knowledge of how criminal and political violence is shaped by and shapes the stability of developing cities.     

Explaining Urban Social Disorder and Violence: An Empirical Study of Event Data from Asian and Sub-Saharan African Cities

By 2050, two thirds of the world's population will live in cities, and the greatest growth in urban populations will take place in the least developed countries. This presents many governments with considerable challenges related to urban governance and the provision of services and opportunities to a burgeoning urban population. In the current article, we use a new event dataset on city-level urban social disorder, drawing upon prominent theories in the conflict literature. The dataset spans the 1960–2009 period, covering 55 major cities in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa and includes data on nonviolent actions such as demonstrations and strikes and violent political actions like riots, terrorism, and armed conflict. We find that urban social disorder is associated in particular with low economic growth rates and hybrid democratic regimes, while level of development, economic inequality, large youth bulges, and economic globalization do not seem to affect levels of urban social disorder.     

The G20 after Los Cabos: Illusions of Global Economic Governance

The failure of the Los Cabos summit to satisfactorily address the European sovereign debt crisis and ominous world economic outlook, let alone agree on concrete measures to improve the oversight and functioning of the global economy, appears to confirm the diminishing effectiveness and relevance of the G20 as an organ of international governance since its inception in December 2008. While few accomplishments were achieved in the area of global governance during the Mexican presidency, acute collective action problems, made worse by the present economic crisis, paralysed the G20 in the lead-up to and during the Los Cabos summit. These collective action problems and the ensuing failure of global governance are attributable to the absence of leadership evident at both the global and European levels, which in turn testifies to the excessive dispersion of state economic and political power within the international system.     

Comparing functions of transnational city networks in Europe and Asia

Transnational city networks (TCNs) are organisations that facilitate information exchange, cooperation and lobbying activities of cities from different countries—independent of the national level. This paper compares the aims and goals of European and Asian city networks, asking if there are significant differences between the two regions or if certain global patterns of urban international relations can be identified. The analytical concept draws on the literature on European TCNs and identifies specific functions they provide to their membership. By way of a comparative analysis, this concept is extended to the Asian TCN cases. It is shown that in both regions, cities cooperate independently across national borders, circumventing the nation-state. Furthermore, sustainable development with a strong focus on environmental issues, and in particular climate change policy, is the most important policy goal in both Europe and Asia. The TCNs show major differences, however, in the areas of representation of and lobbying on behalf of their memberships. This leads to the conclusions that cities emancipate themselves from the higher tiers of government and that the Westphalian nation state loses coherence in both Europe and Asia, even though to specific degrees.     

欧盟数字治理:理念、实践与影响

在全球科技竞争日益激烈的背景下,近几年来欧盟加速推动数字化转型,提出了"数字主权"的战略理念,在全球引起强烈反响。欧盟在规范数字市场发展方面持续发力,密集出台了一系列新的监管规则,成为全球数字治理规则的制定者、贡献者和引领者。依托于庞大的数字经济市场和先进的技术基础,欧盟将数字治理理念推向世界,产生的影响值得重视:一是在全球数字治理规则制定中的"欧洲色彩"愈加浓重;二是欧盟数字单一市场对全球数字经济格局的塑造力不断提升;三是"消费者主权"正在成为全球数字治理领域的新特征。     

金砖国家数字经济合作现状与前景北大核心

在全球政治与经济发展复杂多变的今天,金砖国家数字经济发展势头较好,大数据、云计算、物联网、人工智能等新兴技术领域持续保持发展活力,"新零售""新制造"等也在不断改变人们的生活日常,并逐渐影响着人类社会治理领域一系列的价值观念。金砖国家通过不断完善合作机制,促进数字经济创新发展,取得的进步有目共睹,数字金砖已成为带动世界经济增长、推动全球经济治理体系变革的重要力量。鉴于数字经济发展本身特有的规律特点,金砖国家在深度合作方面也面临现实挑战,特别是有必要重新认识技术突破国界带来的国家安全风险问题以及数字巨头权力过度扩张对国际格局带来的影响等。在今后合作路径方面,金砖国家间可通过开展功能性合作,不断磨合彼此的差异和分歧,共同探寻数字利益增长空间,携手开启和合共生、命运与共的数字经济新未来。     

中美摩擦的国际规则之争与全球可持续治理的中国方案

中美之争是全球治理陷入当前困境的外在表现。全球化发展至今,军事等传统安全问题已经不是全球治理最大的困扰,如何在全球权力结构变化之下调整治理思路、模式以应对资源枯竭、环境恶化等具有跨界特征的问题才是当务之急。现有的全球治理具备了奥兰·扬所提出的国际制度变迁的内部矛盾、权力结构变化、外部压力等要素,已处于明显变革之中。与全球治理并行推进的《变革我们的世界:2030年可持续发展议程》(简称"2030议程"),以新型伙伴关系合作、多元化等核心理念获得了全球最大范围的支持,并由于具有显著的外部性而承载着全球治理的责任。"2030议程"在理念普适性和目标务实性方面的优势,为全球治理以可持续治理为新内涵实现理念的转换和相关实践提供了机会。但不可忽视的是,目前主导力量不足以及公共产品匮乏的现状,将严重制约全球可持续治理的落实。中国提出的"一带一路"倡议,以"人类命运共同体"的理念指导,沿着可持续发展的道路推进相关国家、地区的有效发展和治理。~①中国在主动提供治理公共产品的同时,不断以"共商、共建、共享"原则和多方参与分享的创新理念提高相关国家的参与能力,为国际可持续治理培育和储备支持力量,并推动解决治理变革的关键制约因素。随着"一带一路"倡议不断得到全球认可和支持,全球可持续治理将不断从中获得现实和潜在的改革动力。因此中国可以更多的担当,从全球可持续治理的角度,通过理论的完善和实践的充实,将"一带一路"倡议定位于全球可持续治理的中国方案。     

A three bloc world? The new East Asian regionalism

East Asian governments have engaged in unprecedented collaborationon trade and financial matters since the economic crises of1997. For some observers, such activity, building on a new senseof shared identity forged by resentment at Western responsesto the crises, is a significant step towards the formation ofan East Asian economic bloc. In reality, the new collaborationhas produced only modest results. Neither an East Asian preferentialtrade agreement nor an Asian Monetary Fund is likely to materialize.Underlying power realities and fundamental economic interestsare unchanged. The new interest in negotiating preferentialtrade agreements (many of which are with countries outside ofEast Asia) is best explained by government perceptions of theeffectiveness of such arrangements elsewhere in the global economy,and by a desire to increase bargaining power.     

Governance through government networks: The G8 and international organizations

As an informal grouping without headquarters, permanent staff or legal powers, the world’s major industrialized countries must rely on other actors, in particular international organizations, to manage global problems. This article examines how the Group of Eight contributes to global governance by cooperating with international organizations in the cases of debt relief and the fight against terrorist finance. It shows that the G8 draws on international institutions with the aid of government networks and argues that this cooperation is stronger, the greater the Group’s concentration of relevant power and the more important it considers the institutions’ resources.     

哈萨克斯坦参与全球治理的举措、动力及前景

自1991年独立以来,哈萨克斯坦不但成功巩固了国家主权,在政治、经济、社会发展等领域取得了举世瞩目的成就,而且在外交领域赢得了国际社会的高度赞誉,使哈萨克斯坦成为全球治理舞台中最为活跃的中亚国家。在参与全球治理进程中,哈萨克斯坦将自己定位为“有实力的重要地区大国”,奉行以巩固主权独立和维护国家利益为中心的“全方位务实平衡”外交战略,通过建立睦邻友好信任带的“近邻外交”和以伙伴关系为基础的“远邻外交”,拉近与世界各大国及周边国家的外交关系,在国际和地区热点问题上扮演着“沟通者”和“调停者”角色,积极推动中亚地区内部的一体化进程,广泛参与全球与地区性国际组织,在核不扩散和文明对话等领域提出了各种有影响力的倡议,力图将本国的利益和世界的利益融为一体,为哈萨克斯坦的发展赢得了很大的机遇和空间,使哈萨克斯坦在国际社会中的能见度不断提升。作为中亚国家经济发展最为成功、外交最为活跃、国际影响力最为显著的国家,哈萨克斯坦参与全球治理的实践经验值得发展中国家学习借鉴。     

Comparing urban renewal in Barcelona and Seoul—urban management in conditions of competition among global cities

Cities have become increasingly autonomous economic and political actors which actively respond to the pressures and opportunities of globalisation. Consequently, the urban management of any particular city is often based on the assumption that the city can improve its position against rival cities by efficiently managing its strategic resources and promoting its presumed advantages. Though such an approach to urban management may help cities to improve their global competitiveness and the quality of their residents’ everyday life, it can sometimes result in negative consequences at the local level, thus actually narrowing the development prospects of the cities in the end. This article discusses urban management against the backdrop of the competitive urban policy in Barcelona and Seoul, and compares the local consequences of urban renewal in both cities. Based on a comparison of the two cases of urban renewal, 22@ Activity District in Barcelona and the Cheonggyecheon restoration in Seoul, this article argues that, in conditions of competition among global cities, even very different approaches to urban management and urban renewal may result in similar consequences at the local level.     

The African national congress and its critics: ‘predatory liberalism’, black empowerment and intra-alliance tensions in post-apartheid South Africa

Post-apartheid South Africa is characterized by centralized, neo-liberal policymaking that perpetuates, and in some cases exaggerates, socio-economic inequalities inherited from the apartheid era. The African National Congress (ANC) leadership's alignment with powerful international and domestic market actors produces tensions within the Tripartite Alliance and between government and civil society. Consequently, several characteristics of ‘predatory liberalism’ are evident in contemporary South Africa: neo-liberal restructuring of the economy is combined with an increasing willingness by government to assert its authority, to marginalize and delegitimize those critical of its abandonment of inclusive governance. A new form of oligarch power, combining entrenched economic interests with those of a new ‘black bourgeoisie’ promoted by narrowly implemented Black Economic Empowerment policies, diminishes prospects for broad-based socio-economic transformation. Because the new policy environment is failing to resolve tensions between global market demands for increasing market liberalization and domestic popular demands for poverty-alleviation and socio-economic transformation, the ANC leadership is forced increasingly to confront ‘ultra-leftists’ who are challenging its credentials as defender of the National Democratic Revolution which was the cornerstone in the anti-apartheid struggle.     

疫情冲击下的世界经济与中国对策

新冠肺炎疫情的急剧扩散正在对世界经济产生严重冲击,使得任何国家都无法独善其身。本文探讨了疫情对世界经济增长、深层次结构以及全球经济治理等领域可能造成的冲击,认为世界经济秩序和国际经济关系都将受到重大影响,全球化进程可能呈现出现碎片化发展趋势,全球治理赤字更加凸显且内容更加广域化,跨国公司的产业链重构进程将有所加快并更加注重安全因素。在这种严峻形势下,中国应采取更加系统的应对措施,短期内宏观经济政策重心应该从“保增长”调整为“保就业”,并努力确保外向型产业链稳定;中长期应该更加注重扩大内需,进一步扩大金融业开放和积极推进国际经济协调。     

Out of the shadows or into the dark? Economic openness,IMF programs,and the growth of shadow economies

The existence of shadow economies is an important, yet understudied, issue for international political economy and development. This study examines how two distinct types of international economic engagement—economic openness and participation in International Monetary Fund (IMF) programs—affect the growth of shadow (informal) sectors. We theorize that increased economic openness will reduce the size of countries’ shadow sectors. More specifically, we posit that eliminating market-distorting trade barriers will decrease the incentives for shadow sector activities such as smuggling. Additionally, we posit that increased participation in global production and supply chains is likely to lead to a positive, “climb to the top” effect on states’ regulatory and labor policies that enhance the prospective benefits associated with formal sectors. Conversely, we argue that participation in IMF structural adjustment programs can lead to great shadow sector activity as IMF-imposed structural conditions might cause significant near-term economic hardship and degrade states’ regulatory capacity. The results from a panel of 145 countries from 1971 to 2012 indicate that economic openness reduces the size of the shadow economy, while participation in IMF programs is significantly related to a larger shadow economy. These findings have important implications for understanding how the divergent forms of international economic engagement might affect shadow economies.     

封建时期的西伯利亚城市

政治和军事的需要是封建农奴制时期,西伯利亚城市设立的基本原因.17世纪初,西伯利亚城市工商民的出现表明了城市经济的产生.随着经济的发展,城市逐渐演变为社会-经济中心.     

A Nested Game Approach to Political and Economic Liberalization in Democratizing States: The Case of South Korea

South Korea enjoyed high rates of economic growth until the mid–1990s. However in mid–1997 the country went into a severe economic crisis which ultimately resulted in a request for an IMF bailout. Leading up to the crisis, the government had embarked upon democratic liberalization but not much economic liberalization. This research explores why the government would lay the foundation for political reform without creating institutions capable of imposing economic reform on the politically powerful business sector. The absence of such institutions put the government in a position where it could not respond to the emerging economic crisis. The government's inability to act eroded its own position of power and governance. From this perspective, the government's inattention to economic reform appears irrational as it led to a weakening of its own position. We build a model of political and economic liberalization showing that the government was engaged in nested games (i.e., games in multiple arenas) with the political opposition, the labor unions, and the powerful business sector. We develop an argument that strong, antiliberal economic actors create incentive for the government in a democratizing state to refrain from economic liberalization, even while moving forward with democratic liberalization.     

论我国沿边开放城市的区域职能缺失

我国的沿边开放城市(镇),面临着加入WTO、区域经济一体化、西部大开发和东北老工业基地振兴的新形势,表现出以增长极职能和跨国影响职能为主要内容的区域职能缺失。沿边开放城市增长极职能缺失的主要原因是:规模过小、城市体系发育不良、产业链短、交通基础设施不完善;国际影响职能缺失的原因在于:城市在跨境城市体系中能级较低、经济结构单一、支持腹地缺乏、区域经济一体化程度低。为此,策略性调整势在必行,要完成从沿边开放城市到边境地区中心城市的转变,需要实现边境城市的规模扩张、功能发展和城市体系布局合理化。     

探索中美关系新范式及全球安全治理

特朗普执政以来,美国对华战略定位出现全方位负面趋向,由“接触”向“规锁”的转型不断加深。作为当今国际体系中的新兴大国与霸权国家,两国关系正在形成战略竞争日益突出的新态势。中美经贸摩擦的出现和深化表明,经贸合作作为两国关系的传统“压舱石”,在单独应对战略竞争“新态势”方面所能发挥的作用有限。为有效阻止“新态势”向全面对抗与冲突方向演变,中美亟须重新定位、处理和管控彼此关系的“新范式”。包括全球安全治理在内的全球治理架构为中美战略博弈与权势平衡提供了相对稳定的制度体系。通过明确战略竞争边界、构建对话协调平台,有效借助第三方力量等,中美的理性博弈、积极合作能够得到有效推动,并直接带来全球安全治理在观念、制度、模式等方面的变革。这不仅符合两国根本利益和国际社会的普遍愿望,也是全球治理健全发展的需要。但确立“新范式”有待解决的一大问题是,经贸合作作为两国关系“压舱石”的作用已经不稳,需要探索新的“压舱石”,全球安全治理合作在此方面的作用是不够的。未来中美关系的首要特点是战略竞争,新的“压舱石”可以通过权力博弈建立某种相对稳定的机制架构,最终以大国权势平衡的方式来打造。     

The modern face of traditional agrarian rule: local government in Pakistan

The 1980s saw an increasing enthusiasm for decentralisation and good governance in developing countries. Citing an ethnographic study of the office of Tehsil Mayor in Kharalpur, Pakistan, it is argued that decentralisation, instead of creating opportunities for people to engage in democratic participation and empowerment through modern local government institutions, has itself been subverted by the traditional norms and rules of patronage-based personalised governance. Modernity has not influenced tradition: rather, it is the other way around. This has further strengthened the power and prestige of the rural elite.