Suchergebnisse

The attraction of foreign direct investment (FDI) has become a major economic development goal of the postsocialist countries of East and Central Europe (ECE). ECE countries have rapidly adopted 'Western'-style place-marketing policies to attract FDI. However, little is known about place marketing under postsocialism, and particularly in the context of an enlarged European Union; hence the author presents an analysis of the supply-side policies which Hungary has developed in response to its rapidly changing position with regard to FDI. In particular, he examines the strategies developed by two key agencies responsible for attracting inward investment, the Ministry of Economy and Transport and the Hungarian Investment and Trade Development Agency. Hungary's current position in respect to patterns of attracting FDI is evaluated and, through outlining the key changes in the nature of FDI, a set of key issues which must be addressed in any place-marketing strategy in ECE is developed. The author then analyses how these two key agencies have responded to this new FDI context. The author assesses how Hungary has been able to address the new FDI context and also considers how FDI and attempts to attract it is reshaping supply-side policies, and postsocialist states themselves.

Abstract
This paper considers spaces associated with death and the dead body as social spaces with an ambiguous character. The experience of Western societies has tended to follow a path of an increased sequestration of death and the dead body over the last two centuries. Linked to this, the study of spaces associated with death, dying and bodily disposal and the dead body itself have been marginalised in most academic disciplines over this period. Such studies have therefore been simultaneously 'alternative' within an academic paradigm which largely failed to engage with death and involved a focus on types of spaces which have been considered marginal, liminal or 'alternative', such as graveyards, mortuaries, heritage tourism sites commemorating death and disaster, and the dead body itself. However, this paper traces more recent developments in society and academia which would begin to question this labelling of such studies and spaces as alternative, or at least blur the boundaries between mainstream and alternative in this context. Through considering the increased presence of death and the dead body in a range of socio-cultural, economic and political contexts we argue that both studies of, and some spaces of, death, dying and disposal are becoming less 'alternative' but remain highly ambiguous nonetheless. This argument is addressed through a specific focus on three key interlinked spaces: cemeteries, corpses and sites of dark tourism.

AbstractIn recent years the study of urban toponymy (place names) has been revitalized by the emergence of a 'critical toponymies' approach. This focuses on the cultural politics of place naming and the decisions involved in attributing names to the urban landscape. However, in contemporary cities place names have an economic role in addition to their political role. In particular, there have been recent calls for more attention to the commodification of place‐naming rights and practices. This article seeks to respond to these calls by addressing the issue of urban place names as commodities. It begins by examining the naming of sports stadia by corporate sponsors. It then considers a range of ways in which private‐sector interests are increasingly influencing the naming of the urban landscape, from buildings and neighbourhoods to individual streets. Even the material signage that identifies street names can be appropriated within branding and promotional strategies. Moreover, urban place names are increasingly incorporated into a range of commercially produced spatial datasets collated by private companies. The article ends by proposing a number of directions for future research into the economic role of urban place names and the commodification of toponymy more broadly.

This paper explores the relationship between the urban cultural landscape of Bucharest and the making of post-socialist Romanian national identity. As the capital of socialist Romania, central Bucharest was extensively remodelled by Nicolae Ceauşescu into the Centru Civic in order to materialize Romania's socialist identity. After the Romanian "Revolution" of 1989, the national and local state had to deal with a significant "leftover" socialist urban landscape which was highly discordant with the orientation of post-socialist Romania and its search for a new identity. Ceauşescu's vast socialist showpiece left a difficult legacy which challenges the material and representational reshaping of Bucharest and constructions of post-socialist Romanian national identity more broadly. The paper analyzes four attempts to deal with the Centru Civic: developments in the immediate post-1989 period; the international architectural competition Bucureşti 2000; proposals for building a Cathedral of National Salvation; and the Esplanada project. Despite over 20 years of proposals central Bucharest remains largely unchanged. The paper thus deals with a failed attempt to re-shape the built environment in support of national goals.

This paper explores the relationship between the urban cultural landscape of Bucharest and the making of post-socialist Romanian national identity. As the capital of socialist Romania, central Bucharest was extensively remodelled by Nicolae Ceausescu into the Centru Civic in order to materialize Romania's socialist identity. After the Romanian 'Revolution' of 1989, the national and local state had to deal with a significant 'left-over' socialist urban landscape which was highly discordant with the orientation of post-socialist Romania and its search for a new identity. Ceausescu's vast socialist showpiece left a difficult legacy which challenges the material and representational reshaping of Bucharest and constructions of post-socialist Romanian national identity more broadly. The paper analyzes four attempts to deal with the Centru Civic: developments in the immediate post-1989 period; the international architectural competition Bucuresti 2000; proposals for building a Cathedral of National Salvation; and the Esplanada project. Despite over 20 years of proposals central Bucharest remains largely unchanged. The paper thus deals with a failed attempt to re-shape the built environment in support of national goals. (Nationalities Papers)

AbstractThis article explores new avenues for academic research on the 'creative city'. Creativity offers opportunities for urban development and the personal development of urban inhabitants, but its adoption in urban policy is frequently criticized for being welded to economic imperatives and a neoliberal agenda. Urban policymakers worldwide continue to adopt narrow conceptualizations of 'creativity' while largely ignoring extensive academic criticism of the concept, suggesting that academic concerns with creativity in urban policy need to be reoriented more effectively. This article develops four key theoretical points on the 'creative city' and creative urban policy. It argues that the focus of enquiry should shift towards a more in‐depth understanding of how 'creativity' is constructed, contested and performed in specific urban contexts, understanding the 'creative policy gap' between policymakers and those engaged in all kinds of creative practice, and developing forms of artistic intervention to attempt to make creative policymaking more inclusive and 'creative'. These points are developed through a critique of the literature and some illustrative examples of people in creative occupations interacting with urban planners and policymakers in creative interventions.RésuméDe nouveaux axes de recherches s'ouvrent à la 'ville créative'. La créativité offre des possibilités d'aménagement urbain et d'épanouissement personnel des citadins, mais son intégration aux politiques urbaines est souvent critiquée pour être indissociable d'impératifs économiques et d'objectifs néolibéraux. À travers le monde, les décideurs des politiques urbaines adoptent encore des notions étriquées de la 'créativité', négligeant les fréquentes remises en question du concept dans les études académiques, et prétextant que l'intérêt des chercheurs pour la créativité dans ce domaine devrait être réorienté plus efficacement. Quatre points théoriques sur 'la ville créative' et sur une politique urbaine créative sont présentés: les études devraient tenter de mieux comprendre les manières d'élaborer, de contester et de concrétiser la 'créativité' dans des contextes urbains particuliers, appréhender le 'déficit de politique créative' entre les décideurs politiques et les personnes qui exercent toutes sortes de pratiques créatives, et développer des formes d'intervention artistique afin de susciter des approches des politiques urbaines plus inclusives et plus 'créatives'. Ces points sont examinés en analysant les publications existantes, ainsi que plusieurs exemples de personnes exerçant des professions créatives en interaction avec les urbanistes et les décideurs politiques dans le cadre d'interventions créatives.