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Examines how cultural policy contributes to processes of urban regeneration, highlighting the revitalization of derelict areas in cities plagued by economic recession, unemployment, depopulation, physical decay, & social unrest. Case studies are offered of the development of museums in three failing port cities -- Liverpool (England); Marseilles (France); & Bilbao (Spain) -- describing how museums can have a synergistic effect on their surrounding communities & inspire the growth of local arts scenes, which lead to business development & repopulation. Analysis demonstrates the shortcomings of a simple "trickle-down" model of urban redevelopment, as well as the need to evaluate the success of urban regeneration in more than just physical or economic terms. 31 References. K. Hyatt Stewart

The author poses the question of whether or not cities can establish a sustainable relationship with the planet. Asserting that the historical evolution of large cities & the questions of waste generation, soil exhaustion & redistribution of resources indicates the need for a new look at urban system functions & ecological footprint, the author offers the solution that cities need to mimic natural ecosystems. A case study of the metabolism of London indicates the need to conceptualize the city as super-organism that is a circular metabolism that results in mutual benefit. A new definition of a sustainable city is presented that would be inclusive of alternative fuels. References. J. Harwell

An exploration of fear in Latin America notes that 140,000 people die violently each year, & most crimes take place in large cities where one out of every three citizens has been directly or indirectly victimized by violence. The essays in this volume offer academic studies as well as personal accounts of urban violence that include first-hand descriptions unavailable elsewhere. The importance of consumption as a symbol of "the good life" is discussed, noting that the discourse of class struggle has been replaced by the possession of status symbols, & a person can die over a pair of sneakers. It is maintained that Latin American cities are tainted by a "citizenship of fear" that has changed how people relate to each other & the state. Fears of physical violence are intensified by fears of income insecurity, health problems, hunger, the drug trade, & ethnic conflicts, which have destroyed the sense of belonging realized by former residents. Various ways in which "practices of fear" affect daily life in urban Latin America are examined. J. Lindroth

It is suggested that gender relations constitute an important aspect of variations in urban form. Urban places in the US are generally characterized by a system of private patriarchy that originated in the central city & has since migrated outward. However, significant variations in this system are identified. Such variables as numbers of unmarried people, zoning regulations, public transportation, levels of divorce, single-parent households, & levels of cultural & social homogeneity influence the particular patriarchal system in a given urban area, & result in interurban variation. Each of these variables is discussed in the context of the literature that identifies it as a significant aspect of urban life. 55 References. D. M. Smith