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The urban environment has been facing multiple challenges, considering the social, political and economical forces which act within this realm. Indeed, various stakeholders have been debating over problems spread within the cites. The international community is aware about the needs to rethink the urbanisation model. Indeed, there is an high number of examples which show the necessity to bring new approaches, methods and processes in the cites' strategies and policies. In this paper we will briefly show experimentations, methods and solutions deployed according to the different realities. The digital revolution has a role in facing these challenges, since it is possible to exploit its new means in order to enhance the possible interaction between the urban actors. The service design method becomes fundamental for a different understanding of the urban reality where the technological aspect is intertwined with the social innovation aspect. This possibility gives the chance to investigate an innovative frontier allowing a new engagement and dialogue between public administrations and civil society. This leads to a different collaborative system among the various urban stakeholders, witch gives to citizens the opportunity to become active participants in the city's transformations and planning. UN-HABITAT is dealing with these digital challenges and is going to address them in the international conference Habitat III, which will be held in Quito in 2016. Various Urban Thinkers Campus (UTC) have been set up across the world as occasion to debate over the multiple experiences which will be enriching contribution during Habitat III. In this framework, the mission of the UTC in Palermo was to better understand the capacity of the combination of ICT and Service Design to reimagine cites, especially in less globalised contexts, debating the role of the key actors involved: urban communities, researchers, private businesses and local authorities.

Urban policy is unlikely to be a major concern of the Bush administration in the near future. Some of the reasons for this outlook are offered in this article, including the nature of Bush's electoral support and the benefits those constituencies receive from the allegedly natural workings of the "invisible hand" and the "invisible foot." Some countervailing tendencies are noted. A broader view of urban concerns is called for, a view that would lead toward a domestic policy with an urban consciousness.

The primary choice of politics in United States cities concerns social control. The application of Marxist theory to this matter is relatively new, & social control theory unifies perspectives on urban politics & social control. Market models of urban political & economic dynamics are 'public choice theories,' & may be contrasted with social control theory. The transformations of the urban political economy have significant consequences for the explanatory power of these theories. The Marxist-based social control theory is contrasted with the functionalist view of urban life, & classical Marxism is reconciled with the urban reality of our time. The prospects for a theoretical synthesis are linked with the nature of older United States cities, as opposed to newer urban areas. Neither an advanced social control theory nor a public choice model of urban politics is sufficient, & there is danger in embracing a total Marxist approach. If theory is to be more than an academic gadfly, it must be self-critical & aware of its limitations. In Logical Heresies and Theoretical Possibilities, Ira Katznelson (University of Chicago, Ill) replies that Boulay has accused him of the fallacy of affirming the consequent, & summarized his work inaccurately. The urban economy is autonomous from urban public policy, & corporate elites do not necessarily call the tune of urban politics. Classical Marxism may provide a guide for the theoretical issues of the urban political economy & his attempt at a theoretical synthesis under the mentioned restrictions is applauded. In Social Control and Capitalist Cities, David M. Gordon (New School for Social Research, New York, NY), insists that Boulay has summarized social control theory inadequately, but not deliberately. Eight basic analytic propositions which deal with social control in capitalist cities are proposed. Reliance on the dialectical approach assumes that social dynamics are based on conflicts, & Boulay is quite correct when he asserts that his work is incomplete. In Reply to Gordon and Katznelson, Harvey Boulay sees the comments of his critics as an example of the promise of this new field of inquiry. One generates some of the missing elements of Boulay's work, but the other (Gordon) is unclear in his references to the dialectical approach. In the area of urban political studies, social control theory indicates the cogency of Marxist theory. L. Kamel.

First published in 1998, this collection of essays compares the implementation of urban policies in 15 different countries across the European Union, with most articles' contributors hailing from their subject nation. The contributors include experts in geography and spatial, town, transport and urban planning, and their contributions reflect fundamental changes in the economy, technology, demography and politics of European towns and cities. They ask four main questions: what the urban development pattern is, what administrative and financial relations between national authorities and cities exist, which issues the national authorities consider to be prominent and how this impacts on the national urban planning policies. Through the provision of national perspectives, they ask what can be learned through the comparison of how each region has tailored its perspective and strategy.

Critical analysis of existing urban policy programmes and discourses in Zurich, Switzerland. Includes overview of political systems and governance structures, key shifts in national discourses, and approaches to policy over migration, citizenship, and diversity.

ESPON project 2.3.2Governance of Territorial and Urban Policies from EU to Local Level holds an important position in the definition and elaboration of a common ground for investigating the institutional, instrumental ans procedural aspects of territorial and urban policies in Europe. The project focuses on the question how effective different systems are, e.g. considering a policy mix of spatial planning (in different forms implemented by Member States), local government powers and taxation policy in defining common spatial development strategies and objectives such as a polycentric urban system, balancing urban-rural needs, reviving derelict urban areas, urban regeneration, sustainable management of the natural and cultural assets. In that perspective, an analysis based on a comparative review of the instruments used, and stakeholders involved in various policy areas and processes, is being undertaken to draw some valuable conclusions of practical relevance on governance. The report sums up the main overall findings of the ESPON 2.3.2 project and presents in more detail the contributions delivered by IRPUD. The structure of this report is as follows. Part 1 summarizes the project in terms of research aims, hypotheses and key findings. The following parts present research work done by IRPUD. It starts with a German National Overview on the application of governance practices (part 2) and two case studies for urban and territorial governance (part 3). The second half of the report presents on a quantitative analysis of several indicators. Part 4 on data and indicators discusses data quality and develops the quantitative approach for measuring governance. In part 5 the report draws a synthesis of governance trends identified in the national case studies.

Critical analysis of existing urban policy programmes and discourses in Toronto, Canada. Includes overview of political systems and governance structures, key shifts in national discourses, and approaches to policy over migration, citizenship, and diversity.