In urban areas, following the emergence of pockets of high unemployment and poverty, urban decay and riots, the local approach was focussed on the analysis of distressed neighbourhoods and on policy responses based on regeneration and revitalisation. These areas have been the subject of surveys, databases of deprivation statistics (e.g. the UK’s Index of multiple deprivation) and analysis in order to understand the causes of deprivation and cumulative problems and to design new area-based and community economic and social development responses. Urban policy programmes, based on LDEIs, enterprise development, local strategic revitalisation plans development, subject to evaluation, area-based social programmes were not very successful. They highlight the difficulties faced by the large mainstream organisations in reaching into disadvantaged neighbourhoods and to particular target groups – especially women, youth, elderly, the disabled and ethnic minority groups.
The European Commission supported the Local Integration/partnership Action (LIA) and the ‘Quartiers en crise’ network as well as working groups of Eurocities. It advocated an area-based approach to the regeneration of deprived urban areas under the Structural Funds, integrating economic, social, cultural, environmental, transport and security aspects. In parallel, since the beginning of the 90s, both active urban practices and dynamic theoretical works paved the way for a new urban policy thinking, combining social and environmental concerns. The ‘sustainable city’ was subsequently promoted.
DG V Network of ‘quartiers en crise’. now renamed as
EC 2000 URBAN success stories : Building a better tomorrow in deprived neighbourhoods,
G Chanan Community involvement in Urban Regeneration, DGXI, 1997)
OECD 1998 Integrating urbain distressed areas, Paris.
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. 1998) Urban Development Corporations: Performance and Good Practice. Regeneration ResearchSummary 17.
http://www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm_urbanpolicy/documents/pdf/od…
Peter Ramsden 2005 Evaluation: the Phoenix development fund DTI LondonU.K. included case studies on area based approaches to enterprise such as Bristol East Side Traders as well as targeted support to women, migrants, disabled and youth
Froessler D., Geoghegan P., Soto P. and Van Bemmelen M. 2007 Reinforce the local economy and employment in the distressed urban areas, good practices in Europe. Federal Ministry for transport, building and urban affairs
Moulaert F 2000 Globalisation and integrated area development in European cities, Oxford University Press
During the last decade, researches and grey reports were devoted to the role of cities in a global economy, on the dynamics of agglomeration, on their role as springboard of regional competitiveness and on the sustainability of their environments. Other reports refer to networks of learning cities (and regions), creative cities and transition cities which are transiting towards a low carbon future.
OECD 2006 Competitive cities in the Global economy,
European Commission May 2007Guide on the Urban dimension in Community policies 2007-2013)
And since 2005 the work produced within URBACT I and II.
Economic & Social Research Council CITIES Competitiveness and Cohesion
UK Department of the Environment 1997 The ‘CITIES: Competitiveness and Cohesion’CITIES Web site.
B.Brangwyn & R. Hopkins 2008 Transition Initiatives Primer;
R.Hopkins & P.Lipman 2008The Transition NetworkLtd,
Veltz, P. 1996 Mondialisation, villes et territoires, Presses universitaires de France Paris
add in Putnam, Scott, PIore and Charles sable
International Labour Organisation
ILO is active in promoting Local Economic Development in various capacities and the Web site has a range of LED resources including LED Technical Cooperation and a range of downloadable LED Publications.http://www.ilo.org/
Canzanelli, Giancarlo and Giordano Dichter. (2001). Local Economic Development, Human
Development and Decent Work. ILO/Universitas Working Paper intends to provide an
overview of LED ‘best practices’ from some international organizations and countries.
UNIDO has produced studies on SME Cluster/NetworkDevelopment and Business Partnership program, and Business Incubators.
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