The Economic Performance of European Cities and City Regions: Myths and Realities

The ever-increasing concentration of people and economic growth in the largest cities relative to the rest of the country has slowed down or even reversed in many of the developed European countries over the last decade. This trend contradicts what the global cities, urban economics and new economic geography literature would predict. This trend can be interpreted from two points of view: (1) the trend is due to large obstacles to further large city urbanization and thus is inefficient or (2) this trend highlights alternative pathways to growth than the mega-city approach and may be as, if not more, efficient. This trend may be linked to Europe's uniquely polycentric urban structure with high number of small- and medium-sized cities. In addition, improvements in the access to services, including broadband, outside large cities may have facilitated the higher growth rates of smaller centres and rural regions and increased their appeal for residents and firms. Last but not least, negative externalities in the large cities, such as congestion costs, pollution, labour crowding and high cost of living, may increase the appeal of smaller centres and rural regions.     

The Spatially Splintered State: Myths and Realities in the Regulation of Marine Fisheries in Tamil Nadu,India

The spatial dimension of law is a neglected field of study. This article responds to suggestions that have been made to develop a ‘geography of law’, and investigates expressions of State‐centred law regarding common pool natural resources. It asks how variations in law between lower‐level territorial units are to be explained in situations where patterns of resource exploitation are similar and the overarching State proclaims an even approach. To explore these issues, the article focuses on a case study of Tamil Nadu marine fisheries. Comparing the reality of State regulation in different coastal districts, the author argues that the State occupies a relatively weak position vis‐à‐vis user groups, and strives to maximize its legitimacy by adapting to local political circumstances. The end result is a legal patchwork with strong spatial connotations.     

Spatial Autocorrelation in Ecological Studies: A Legacy of Solutions and Myths

A major aim of including the spatial component in ecological studies is to characterize the nature and intensity of spatial relationships between organisms and their environment. The growing awareness by ecologists of the importance of including spatial structure in ecological studies (for hypothesis development, experimental design, statistical analyses, and spatial modeling) is beneficial because it promotes more effective research. Unfortunately, as more researchers perform spatial analysis, some misconceptions about the virtues of spatial statistics have been carried through the process and years. Some of these statistical concepts and challenges were already presented by Cliff and Ord in 1969. Here, we classify the most common misconceptions about spatial autocorrelation into three categories of challenges: (1) those that have no solutions, (2) those where solutions exist but are not well known, and (3) those where solutions have been proposed but are incorrect. We conclude in stressing where new research is needed to address these challenges.     

From Algerie Francaise to France Musulmane: Jacques Soustelle and the Myths and Realities of 'Integration', 1955-1962

This article explores the rise and fall of the notion of intégrationas a means of resisting pressure for decolonization in Algeria,focusing on the work of Jacques Soustelle, the eminent ethnologistand Gaullist politician who was Governor-General in Algeriafrom 1955 to 1956. Soustelle’s integration plan was avision developed in Algeria, and its diffusion in France andadoption by a number of diverse groups in the metropole canbe seen as an important case of Algerian influence on Frenchpolitical and intellectual life. The network of Algériefrançaise sympathizers and movements which adopted integrationas their watchword is examined, demonstrating how integrationtook on almost mythical qualities and appealed to figures fromacross the political spectrum. The article also suggests thatintegration can be seen as a contribution to our understandingof the role that a vision of a multiracial and multiculturalgreater France played in the policy and rhetoric of some advocatesof Algérie française.     

中日地方交流与合作的现状分析

随着经济全球化步伐的加快,国际交流与合作的发展正在由国家层次向地方层次纵深,而各国中央政府对地方的放权,也使得地方在国际交流与合作中的地位和作用显得越来越重要。日本是与我国开展地方性交流与合作最活跃的国家,其载体主要是友好城市。在全球化和地方化日益发展的背景下,中日地方间交流与合作呈现出许多新特点,同时也存在着一些问题,如何解决这些问题,以促进地方间的交流与合作进一步向前发展对中日双方来说都是十分重要的。     

Knowledge and Proximity

Over the years knowledge has come to be seen as crucial for economic progress, and proximity as conducive to knowledge exchange. As a result, knowledge-related processes are often considered as possible explanation of the spatial agglomeration of economic activities. However, knowledge and proximity are general concepts that have to be detailed before it is possible to specify the concrete mechanisms at work. Building on recent work that focuses on proximity, this paper develops a perspective in which proximity features as an enabling element, but no more than that, in ongoing processes of knowledge creation, transfer, absorption, and change. We argue that knowledge is to be viewed as activity and process, rather than object or commodity. Concentrating on “knowledge agents”—those engaged in knowledge-related processes, individuals and collectives—will be more productive than persisting to rely on the distinction between tacit and codified knowledge to explain spatial aspects of the economy. Finally, we argue that regions are different when it comes to the extent, and the way, they facilitate creation, transfer, and other knowledge processes. Contributions to local or regional economic development, whether through research or policy, have to take existing repertoires—patterns in collective knowledge—into account.     

澳门作为会议观光城市的现状和前景

近年澳门旅游业的发展基本上依赖于博彩业。为了确保澳门经济的可持续发展,需要进一步研究讨论澳门发展会议观光的潜力。本文讨论澳门发展会议观光的优势和劣势,通过对产业利益相关的参与者的调查,试图寻找发展会议观光之因素、针对澳门的现状予以比较,并指出澳门作为具有竞争力的会议观光城市所存在的差距。     

China's New Leaders: Perspectives on Geographic Trends and Realities

A senior American specialist on the geography of China examines several aspects of China's society, economy, regional organization, and geopolitical position in light of the change in the country's leadership at the 18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in November 2012. After a brief comparison of the incoming and retiring leadership groups in terms of backgrounds and past policy pronouncements (as well as discussing the challenge posed by corruption), the author proceeds to discuss a series of key social and regional development policies that may be subject to some degree of change under the new leadership, including hukou and the one-child policy. He then focuses on the 12th Five-Year Plan, which provides a broad outline of the new leadership's goals, and particularly its emphasis on balanced regional development (a commitment to further develop the interior of the country as well as to revitalize the old heavy industrial region, the Northeast). The author then turns to China's growing military (and particularly naval) power in connection with its increasing assertion of territorial claims in the South and East China Seas as well as ability to project naval power across the Taiwan Strait and beyond into the Pacific and Indian Ocean theaters.