Introduction

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Michael P. McDonald ◽  
Micah Altman
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
City Council ◽  
Minority Representation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Comment ◽  
Community Boundaries ◽  
New City ◽  
The City

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the Public Mapping Project, which reveals a fundamentally different approach to redistricting: one that allows the public to draw its own fully legal districts that are politically fair, protect and even enhance minority representation, and respect local community boundaries. One of the reform efforts in public mapping occurred in the city of Minneapolis, where voters approved a Charter Amendment that transferred redistricting power to the city's Charter Commission. The Charter Commission, in turn, solicited interested members of the public to serve on the nine-member Redistricting Group to advise the commission on the drawing of new city council districts. This lead to the development of the DistrictBuilder software, which empowers the public to provide their suggestions to Minneapolis' Redistricting Group during the public comment period.

scholarly journals Reconfiguring the public and the private: Noc-Noc arts festival, Guimarães, Portugal

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 193-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
João Sarmento ◽  
Marisa Ferreira
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Public Investment ◽  
City Council ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Private Space ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Arts Festival ◽  
The City

In the past decades many cities have experienced growing pressure to produce and stage cultural events of different sorts to promote themselves and improve economic development. Culture-led development often relies on significant public investment and major private-sector sponsoring. In the context of strained public finances and profound economic crisis in European peripheral countries, local community low-budget events that manage to create significant fluxes of visitors and visibility assume a particular relevance. This paper looks at the four editions (2011–2014) of Noc-Noc, an arts festival organized by a local association in the city of Guimarães, Portugal, which is based on creating transient spaces of culture by transforming numerous homes, commercial outlets and other buildings into ephemeral convivial and playful ‘public’ environments. By interviewing a sample of people who have hosted (sometimes doubling as artists) these transitory art performances and exhibitions, artists and the events’ organizers and by experiencing the four editions of the event and engaging in multiple informal conversations with the public, this paper attempts to discuss how urban citizens may disrupt the cleavages between public and private space permitting various transgressions, and unsettling the hegemonic condition of the city council as the patron of the large majority of events.

scholarly journals Who Has the Right to Decide? Pula and the Problem of Demilitarized Urban Zone

2019 ◽  
pp. 135-148
Author(s):  
Maciej Falski
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Public Debate ◽  
City Council ◽  
Fundamental Question ◽  
Nongovernmental Organization ◽  
The Public ◽  
Urban Zone ◽  
Historical Center ◽  
The Right ◽  
The City

In 2007, the Croatian army decided to close its military base on the Muzil peninsula, which is a part of the city of Pula. Muzil hosts about 20 percent of the city; moreover, it is located in a very attractive area with the view on the seaside and the city’s historical center. After the city received the area, negotiations began to decide about the future of the demilitarized land. This paper discusses the attitudes of two main actors of the public debate: the city council supported by the central authorities of Croatia and a nongovernmental organization established by a number of residents of Pula. The former wanted to transform the demilitarized area intoan elite tourist resort, while the latter proposed opening the peninsula to residents to rei ntegrate the postmilitary area with the city. The two attitudes are related to different ideas of usefulness and the city as a community of residents. The right to space reflects the fundamental question of participation in the public debate. Moreover, Pula can be seen as an example of the city, where extensive and uncontrolled development of tourism violates the interests of the local community.

scholarly journals Traces of French Culture in Palanga: The Historical Context of Palanga Botanical Park, Personalities, and Memory

Lituanistica ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julija Paškevičiūtė
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
The Public ◽  
Seaside Resort ◽  
French Culture ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Will ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The City ◽  
The Town

The article focuses on the origins of French culture in Palanga, a Lithuanian seaside resort, that go back to the years of the rule of the Tyszkiewicz family. The emphasis is put on Palanga Botanical Park (created before the end of the nineteenth century) as the most significant trace of French culture present in the resort and the seaside region until now. The specific symbols in the park created according to the will of the Counts Tyszkiewicz reflect the actualities of French culture. The importance of this space in the city is revealed, and Édouard François André’s principles of park creation are discussed in a new context. They are related to the dialogue that has been established between the residents of Palanga, the park, its creator, and his granddaughter Florence André since the first years of the independence of Lithuania. In order to give a meaning to Édouard André’s creation and to the relationship between the two countries, the correspondence between the great-granddaughter of the famous French landscape designer and the former director of the park, Antanas Sebeckas, is disclosed. It reflects the endeavour of these two personalities and its value for the international relations in representing French culture to the public. Florence André’s letters to the author of this article are also an important resource as she explains the reasons why the park plays an essential role in Palanga. It is shown how certain personal life events (Florence André’s wedding ceremony in Palanga, the park created by her great-grandfather) have become an inclusive part of the history of the town and represent intercultural relations and exchanges. The article is also based on some memories and narratives of the members of the local community in which the park features as a symbol and tradition of the city.

M-Government Initiatives at the Local Level

2007 ◽  
pp. 233-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis V. Casaló ◽  
Carlos Flavián ◽  
Miguel Guinalíu
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Local Level ◽  
City Council ◽  
Mobile Telephone ◽  
The Public ◽  
Local Government Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The City ◽  
Good Number ◽  
Government Level

This chapter introduces the concept of m-government and its implications for both citizens and public institutions. Although m-government is currently in an initial phase of development, its potential in the relationship between the public sector and the citizen is obvious because of, for example, the large number of mobile phone users among the public. In addition, the development of m-government initiatives generates a good number of bene?ts for the public sector that operates it as well as for the public, who experience improved accessibility to electronic public services. Because of this, this chapter analyses m-government initiatives developed by the Zaragoza City Council (Spain) in order to describe its bene?ts, implications for the relationship between the City Council and the citizen, and the future perspectives of these initiatives. We have speci?cally chosen a country like Spain due to the fact that mobile telephone usage is widespread and, at the same time, local government level has been chosen as the citizen participates more in the relationship with the public sector when it is at the local level.

Ecological Research on Public Facilities of the New City Region

2014 ◽  
Vol 1065-1069 ◽  
pp. 2740-2743
Author(s):  
De Ping Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Ecological Research ◽  
City Region ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Facilities ◽  
City Culture ◽  
New City ◽  
The City ◽  
Public Environment

New city region as the extension of city economic development and progress of science, In the future, new city region will gradually replace the old city became the new center in the city. Rapid development of the new city region and progress of the requirements from the objective need aset of system belong to the city itself, public facilities is one of the contents, Therefore, the public facilities will mark the inherent cultural characteristics of the city,Culture, intelligence and technology will become the ultimate direction of the development of city public environment facilities.

Can States Promote Minority Representation? Assessing the Effects of the California Voting Rights Act

2019 ◽  
pp. 107808741989685
Author(s):  
Loren Collingwood ◽  
Sean Long
Keyword(s):  
Local Level ◽  
Voting Rights ◽  
Average Treatment Effect ◽  
City Council ◽  
Voting Rights Act ◽  
Minority Representation ◽  
City Councils ◽  
Before And After ◽  
And Control ◽  
The City

One goal of the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) is to broaden representation in largely White-controlled city councils state-wide by incentivizing cities to shift council electoral jurisdictions from at-large to single-member districts. However, little research has investigated whether the CVRA helped contribute to increased minority representation at the city level. This article employs matching and difference-in-difference methods to determine whether cities that switched to district elections as a result of the CVRA enhanced city council diversification. By comparing matched treatment and control group’s racial composition of city councils before and after fully switching from at-large to district election jurisdictions, we estimate the average treatment effect (ATE) of city switching on minority city council representation at 10% to 12%. Further analysis reveals treatment effects are larger among cities with larger shares of Latinos (21%). Thus, states seeking to increase local-level minority representation should consider policies similar to those found in the CVRA.

Ceremony in Context: The Edinburgh University Tercentenary, 1884

2008 ◽  
Vol 87 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROBERT ANDERSON
Keyword(s):  
Professional Training ◽  
Research University ◽  
City Council ◽  
Late Nineteenth Century ◽  
The Public ◽  
Student Community ◽  
Public Character ◽  
The University ◽  
The City ◽  
The Ideal

Edinburgh introduced Britain to the university centenary, an established form of celebration in continental Europe. The ceremonies in 1884 can be seen in the framework of the late nineteenth-century ‘invention of tradition’. Such events usually asserted the links of the university with national and local communities and with the state. The Edinburgh celebrations marked the opening of a new medical school, after a public appeal which itself strengthened relations with graduates and wealthy donors. The city council, local professional bodies, and the student community all played a prominent part in the events of 1884, which were a significant episode in the development of student representation. Analysis of the speeches given on the occasion suggests that the university sought to promote the image of a great medical and scientific university, with the emphasis on teaching and professional training rather than research, for the ideal of the ‘Humboldtian’ research university was still a novelty in Britain. Tercentenary rhetoric also expressed such themes as international academic cooperation , embodied in the presence of leading scientists and scholars, the harmony of religion and science, and a liberal protestant view of the rise of freedom of thought. The tercentenary coincided with impending legislation on Scottish universities, which encouraged assertions of the public character of these institutions, and of the nation's distinct cultural identity. One striking aspect, however, was the absence of women from the formal proceedings, and failure to acknowledge the then current issue of women's admission to higher education.

scholarly journals Language Provision in the Scottish Public Sector: Recommendations to Promote Inclusive Practice

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Róisín McKelvey
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
City Council ◽  
The Public ◽  
Language Support ◽  
Inclusive Practice ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
The City

Public service providers in Scotland have developed language support, largely in the form of interpreting and translation, to meet the linguistic needs of those who cannot access their services in English. Five core public sector services were selected for inclusion in a research project that focused on the aforementioned language provision and related equality issues: the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service, NHS Lothian, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, the City of Edinburgh Council and Glasgow City Council. The frameworks within which these public service providers operate—namely, the obligations derived from supranational and domestic legal and policy instruments—were analysed, as was the considerable body of standards and strategy documents that has been produced, by both national organisations and local service providers, in order to guide service delivery. Although UK equalities legislation has largely overlooked allochthonous languages and their speakers, this research found that the public service providers in question appear to regard the provision of language support as an obligation related to the Equality Act (UK Government, 2010). Many common practices related to language support were also observed across these services, in addition to shared challenges, both attitudinal and practical. A series of recommendations regarding improvements to language provision in the public sector emerged from the research findings and are highlighted in this article.

scholarly journals Public Sector Sustainability in the Balanced Scorecard – A Portuguese City Council Case

2020 ◽  
Vol 208 ◽  
pp. 06017
Author(s):  
Inês Pereira ◽  
Helena Costa Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Balanced Scorecard ◽  
City Council ◽  
Public Organization ◽  
The Balanced Scorecard ◽  
The Public ◽  
Traditional Structure ◽  
Sustainability Balanced Scorecard ◽  
Regional Authorities ◽  
The City

Increasingly, sustainability has been integrated in public organizations, particularly by regional authorities. The Balanced Scorecard (BSC), as a tool for assessing and measuring the performance of organizations enables the integration of sustainability (in its environmental, social and economic issues) in a Sustainability Balanced Scorecard (SBSC). The purpose of this study is to design a SBSC for a Portuguese city council that assists a population of 24 thousand inhabitants. In this sense, it aims to structure the BSC’s perspectives in the city council; interrelate sustainability issues in a SBSC, and; articulate the several perspectives on a strategic map. The present case resorts on a questionnaire sent to the city council president and document analysis. We conclude that the sustainability and the traditional structure of the BSC adapt to public organization. The study contributes to the development of sustainability in the public sector, presenting sustainability in an integrated and systemic manner, aligned with the several organizational responsibilities.

M-Government Initiatives at the Local Level

2011 ◽  
pp. 3033-3047
Author(s):  
Luis V. Casaló ◽  
Carlos Flavián ◽  
Miguel Guinalíu
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Local Level ◽  
City Council ◽  
Mobile Telephone ◽  
The Public ◽  
Local Government Level ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The City ◽  
Good Number ◽  
Government Level

This chapter introduces the concept of m-government and its implications for both citizens and public institutions. Although m-government is currently in an initial phase of development, its potential in the relationship between the public sector and the citizen is obvious because of, for example, the large number of mobile phone users among the public. In addition, the development of m-government initiatives generates a good number of bene?ts for the public sector that operates it as well as for the public, who experience improved accessibility to electronic public services. Because of this, this chapter analyses m-government initiatives developed by the Zaragoza City Council (Spain) in order to describe its bene?ts, implications for the relationship between the City Council and the citizen, and the future perspectives of these initiatives. We have speci?cally chosen a country like Spain due to the fact that mobile telephone usage is widespread and, at the same time, local government level has been chosen as the citizen participates more in the relationship with the public sector when it is at the local level.

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