Work Of Cities (Globalization and Community)

Susan E. Clarke

ISBN 10: 0816628939 / ISBN 13: 9780816628933

Published by Univ Of Minnesota Press, 1998

About this Item

[ No Hassle 30 Day Returns ][ Ships Daily ] [ Underlining/Highlighting: NONE ] [ Writing: NONE ] [ Edition: first ] Publisher: Univ Of Minnesota Press Pub Date: 6/15/1998 Binding: Paperback Pages: 304 first edition.

Seller Inventory # 6649517

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Work Of Cities (Globalization and Community)
• Publisher: Univ Of Minnesota Press
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0816628939
• ISBN 13: 9780816628933
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

Examines the new role of cities in a global economy.

Are cities obsolete relics of an earlier era? In this pathbreaking book, Susan E. Clarke and Gary L. Gaile contend that contrary to this conventional wisdom, cities are growing in importance. Far from irrelevant, local governments are vital political arenas for the new work of cities-empowering their citizens to adapt and serve as catalysts for the global economy.

Using Robert Reich’s The Work of Nations as a point of departure, the authors argue that globalism, coupled with increasing disparities of wealth and power, changes not only the work of nations but also the role of communities. Clarke and Gaile begin by detailing the transformation of the United States to a postindustrial economy situated in a “global web.” They then examine the emergence of local entrepreneurial policy choices in the context of economic and political restructuring and in the absence of federal resources.

Using empirical data to test assumptions about what leads cities to choose new policies, Clarke and Gaile explore local context through four case studies: Cleveland, Tacoma, Syracuse, and Jacksonville. They discuss human capital as the linchpin of globalization, arguing that analytical ability, information skills, and the capacity to innovate are all key to wealth creation. In conclusion, they contend that inattention to the decline in human and social capital will ultimately undermine any local development efforts-unless local policymakers craft responses to globalization that integrate rather than isolate citizens.

The Work of Cities is both bold and nuanced, pragmatic yet compassionate in its recommendations. It is essential reading for anyone who cares about the fate of our metropolitan communities and the people who live there.

0-8166-2892-0 Cloth $47.95xx

0-8166-2893-9 Paper $18.95

240 pages 9 tables, 2 figures 5 7/8 x 9 July

Globalization and Community Series, volume 1

Translation inquiries: University of Minnesota Press

About the Author

Susan E. Clarke is professor of political science at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Gary L. Gaile is professor of geography at the University of Colorado, Boulder.