Conference "Paradigmatic Cities? "

[i]Conference [/i] organised by the RGS-IBG Urban Geography Research Group 3rd and 4th November 2006 Scottish Trade Union Congress, Glasgow, Scotland Urban studies has a long history of identifying particular cities as emblematic of urbanism more generally. Through such processes certain cities have emerged as 'obligatory points of passage' within the urban studies literature: whether because apparently emblematic of particular 'urbanisms' (for example, Paris as the birthplace of urban modernism, or Los Angeles as the eponymous 'post-metropolis') or of more specific processe s (for example, revanchism = New York, diversity = Toronto). Such tendencies have come in for sustained critique in recent years.Where some have launched what might be termed a 'thin critique' (challenging the paradigmatic status of one city, only to substitute that city for another), others have mounted a more serious challenge to the identification of 'paradigmatic' cities per se. Yet despite these critiques, tendencies remain in the urban studies literature to focus disproportionately on a small number of cities, as well as to identify newly paradigmatic places (witness the re-emergence of a 'Chicago School' at this years AAG). This two-day event aims to provide a forum for discussion and debate around the epistemologies and politics of paradigmatic thinking in urban studies, policy and practice. To help foster discussion the event will be organised around a combination of Key Note addresses, shorter position papers and group discussion. [b]Deadline for registration: 20 October 2006[/b] Registration: £50 (Postgraduate/unwaged: £10) Information and attachments can be downloaded from: http://www.urban-geography.org.uk