Conditioning Experimentation: The struggle for place-based discretion in shaping urban infrastructures
Mike Hodson,James Evans,Gabriele Schliwa +2 more
- Vol. 36, Iss: 8, pp 1480-1498
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In this article, the authors argue that place-based priorities that inform action on sustainable urban futures are conditioned by non-place-based, particularly national, interests, and illustrate how the (narrow) national conditioning of placebased priorities translates in to experimentation in epis...Abstract:
Re-shaping infrastructure systems and social practices within urban contexts has been promoted as a critical way to address a range of contemporary economic, environmental and social challenges. Though there are many attempts to re-imagine more sustainable urban contexts the challenge remains how to achieve such change. In this context, urban experiments have emerged as a way to stage purposive infrastructure interventions and learn what works in practice. The paper integrates literatures on urban governance and urban socio-technical experiments to extend analytical understanding of urban experimentation. Through a case study of ‘sustainable transport’ experimentation in Greater Manchester, we argue that place-based priorities that inform action on sustainable urban futures are conditioned by non-place-based, particularly national, interests. Our paper makes two key contributions. First, we illustrate how the (narrow) national conditioning of place-based priorities translates in to experimentation in epis...read more
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