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AbstractThis is an account of ethnographic research examining the specialist scientific processes known as 'Disaster Victim Identification' (DVI) in three settings: Québec, the United States, and the United Kingdom. In cases of multiple deaths, a series of actions accompanied by a plethora of tools are often invoked, housed at a disaster scene, forensic laboratories, a family assistance centre, and a mortuary. In this article, I examine a process dedicated to connecting the biological remains of the deceased with a confirmed validation of personhood. I describe a situation where responders/scientists will attempt multiple testing and re‐testing of human remains, often pushing boundaries of available science. I argue that the search for certainty in identification lies at the heart of the activation of DVI processes, particularly when it is connected to DNA testing. Observing intimate forensic settings and the bricolage of the forensic anthropologist's labour has allowed me to track the production of the science of identity. I then reflect on the wider implications of these observations for affected communities and the responding scientists. Finally, I argue that there is complexity and ambivalence surrounding the increased use of technologies when applied to identification of victims.

Conflict in Northern Ireland in August 1969 is seen as a consequence of the type and patterning of social relationships in that society. Social relations are personal and patterned primarily by the categories of Protestant and Catholic which are ascribed at birth. This patterning results in communities of Catholics and communities of Protestants. These communities form `congregations' in the `churches' of Republicanism and Loyalism respectively. Conflict between communities has two effects. First, it serves to clearly delineate the physical, social, and symbolic boundaries between communities. Second, it creates conditions conducive to the growth of `political sects' based on the `congregations' which may conflict with each other, sometimes violently, even though they belong to the same `church'.

AbstractThe idea of 'creative cities' has gained prominence amongst urban planners and policymakers who often now find links between economic development and the 'soft' attributes of cities. While definitions of the 'creative industries' and the 'creative class' continue to be contested, many key urban policy actors continue to focus on developing strategic programmes and policies to boost 'creativity' and economic growth. In this article we review recent attempts to implement creative city ideas across five Australian state capitals. Following the analysis of interview material derived from contact with 100 key community and policymaker actors, we first develop a typology of approaches to creative city ideas: concerted action, engagement and strategic drift. We then move on to consider how the idea of the creative city provides a simultaneously criticized yet powerful organizing device that informs local strategies in relation to prosperity. Our analysis highlights a series of connected consequences around four key issues: (1) arts projects and gentrification; (2) housing affordability; (3) revanchist strands to public space management; and (4) relative rates of social investment. We find that the rhetoric of universal social potential accompanying creative city ideas continues to overlook those unable to participate in this new economy, as well as those who are more actively excluded.Résumé Le concept des 'villes créatives' se fait plus présent auprès des urbanistes et des décideurs politiques qui, désormais, découvrent souvent des liens entre développement économique et attributs 'non quantifiables' des villes. Si les définitions des "industries créatives" et de la 'classe créative' restent contestées, nombre d'acteurs clés de la politique urbaine continuent à privilégier l'élaboration de programmes stratégiques et de politiques publiques dans le but de stimuler 'créativité' et croissance économique. Cet article passe en revue de récentes tentatives de mise en oeuvre d'idées propres aux 'villes créatives' dans cinq capitales d'États australiens. Suite à l'analyse d'entretiens tirés de contacts auprès d'une centaine de communautés et décideurs politiques prépondérants, les auteurs ont d'abord conçu une typologie des approches des idées liées aux villes créatives : action concertée, engagement et mouvement stratégique. Est ensuite étudié comment le concept de ville créative procure un outil d'organisation à la fois critiqué et solide qui éclaire les stratégies locales par rapport à la prospérité. Une série de conséquences connexes est mise en évidence autour de quatre enjeux essentiels : projets artistiques et gentrification; accessibilité financière au logement; tendances revanchistes à la gestion de l'espace public; et cadences relatives de l'investissement social. Il en ressort que le discours sur le potentiel social universel associé aux idées de ville créative néglige toujours ceux qui ne sont pas en mesure de prendre part à cette nouvelle économie, ainsi que ceux qui sont plus activement exclus.