Bringing Transition Management to Cities: Building Skills for Transformative Urban Governance

Cities are open to trialing new approaches for advancing their planning and urban governance practice. Evidence from urban research and practice shows that transition management has been widely and diversely applied for strategic planning for climate mitigation and adaptation, regeneration, as well as sectoral (energy, water, waste) and social cohesion agendas. Despite the amounting evidence of the applications of transition management, the research has not identified what it is required in terms of skills to apply such a governance framework for participatory governance in cities. In this paper, we respond to this gap by providing evidence from 11 cities across Europe that applied transition management as an approach to participatory urban governance for unpacking what transformative actions are required to strengthen urban resilience in deprived neighborhoods. Our multi-case study research and analysis reveals that a multitude of vocational and academic skills are required for the application of transition management approach including systems thinking, creativity, theory-to-practice application skills, diplomatic skills for forging partnerships and learning alliances and openness to learning-by-doing during experimentation. Transition management application in cities in the Resilient Europe project brought about positive outcomes in terms of developing new skills, embedding new knowledge about urban resilience and transition management in planning.

Educational Inequality and Urban Development: Education as a Field for Urban Planning, Architecture and Urban Design

Educational inequalities and spatial disparities can be intertwined; consequently, education has become a field of action for urban planners, architects, and urban designers. To establish this key argument of our contribution, we start by explaining the background of education as a field of policy and action in urban development and planning in Germany. We establish how strategies for the development of deprived neighborhoods are focused on a growing variety of education-related topics and measures. Subsequently, we discuss so-called sociospatial educational landscapes as projects in which educational policy, urban planning, architecture, and urban design are particularly closely interwoven. We introduce two examples: “Morgenland Neighborhood Education Center” (Bremen) and “Campus Rütli” (Berlin). Drawing on an in-depth analysis of eight socio-spatial educational landscapes we reconstruct seven motives, describing the deeper meanings stakeholders attribute to the projects. We conclude with a critical reflection on the pedagogization of spaces of childhood and youth inherent in the policies discussed throughout the contribution.

Interpreting a standardized and normalized measure of neighborhood socioeconomic status for a better understanding of health differences

Background Standardization and normalization of continuous covariates are used to ease the interpretation of regression coefficients. Although these scaling techniques serve different purposes, they are sometimes used interchangeably or confused for one another. Therefore, the objective of this study is to demonstrate how these scaling techniques lead to different interpretations of the regression coefficient in multilevel logistic regression analyses. Methods Area-based socioeconomic data at the census tract level were obtained from the 2015–2019 American Community Survey for creating two measures of neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES), and a hypothetical data on health condition (favorable versus unfavorable) was constructed to represent 3000 individuals living across 300 census tracts (i.e., neighborhoods). Two measures of neighborhood SES were standardized by subtracting its mean and dividing by its standard deviation (SD) or by dividing by its interquartile range (IQR), and were normalized into a range between 0 and 1. Then, four separate multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess the association between neighborhood SES and health condition. Results Based on standardized measures, the odds of having unfavorable health condition was roughly 1.34 times higher for a one-SD change or a one-IQR change in neighborhood SES; these reflect a health difference of individuals living in relatively high SES (relatively affluent) neighborhoods and those living in relatively low SES (relatively deprived) neighborhoods. On the other hand, when these standardized measures were replaced by its respective normalized measures, the odds of having unfavorable health condition was roughly 3.48 times higher for a full unit change in neighborhood SES; these reflect a health difference of individuals living in highest SES (most affluent) neighborhoods and those living in lowest SES (most deprived) neighborhoods. Conclusion Multilevel logistic regression analyses using standardized and normalized measures of neighborhood SES lead to different interpretations of the effect of neighborhood SES on health. Since both measures are valuable in their own right, interpreting a standardized and normalized measure of neighborhood SES will allow us to gain a more rounded view of the health differences of individuals along the gradient of neighborhood SES in a certain geographic location as well as across different geographic locations.

Inclusion of Gender Views for the Evaluation and Mitigation of Urban Vulnerability: A Case Study in Castellón

The inclusion of gender views in every field and, especially, in urbanism, has become crucial for urban planning. Considering both men’s and women’s interests in an integrated gender equality perspective provides better results that improve the quality of public spaces and engenders a more sustainable society. However, to realize such benefits, efforts are required not only to understand the needs and preferences of urban residents but also to shape policies and develop strategies to mitigate vulnerability with population involvement. In order to help decision makers at the urban level evaluate vulnerability with the inclusion of gender views, this study proposes a model that incorporates the specificities of urban fabric users that face adverse conditions. The model is based on a structured and standardized checklist of key topics that could be applied to any urban development. From this checklist, a list of categories, subcategories, and indicators were proposed and validated using the inter-judge agreement technique. To illustrate this model, this paper presents the case study of Castellón (Spain) in which deprived neighborhoods were analyzed, updating a previous model intended only to detect vulnerability. The results help link policy making to social vulnerability and indicate strategies to reach inclusive neighborhoods via a gender equality approach.

Swedish conditions? Characteristics of locations the Swedish police label as vulnerable

Deprived neighborhoods where criminal networks have a negative impact on local residents are in Sweden labeled as vulnerable neighborhoods by the police. The method used by the police to classify such neighborhoods is largely based on police perceptions, which raises issues around subjectivity and potential biases. The present study explores the characteristics of such neighborhoods based on registry data over sociodemographics and crime. The data used is a grid (N=116 660) of 250x250 meter vector grids with data on population, foreign background, employment, age characteristics, household types and eight types of crime. Generalized mixed effect models of vector grids nested in municipalities were fitted to analyze the characteristics of vector grids classified as vulnerable (N=1678). Several variables are significantly associated with a vector grid being classified as vulnerable, with the share of population that is foreign born and share with parents foreign born being the strongest predictors. In addition, we consider whether there are systematic differences between municipalities, and develop a model based on regression coefficients to predict whether a vector grid is vulnerable or not. The model re-classifies 39.8% of the vector grids, identifying locations that statistically resemble vulnerable neighborhoods but are not classified as such and vice versa.

The Helicopter Pilot—Swedish Hot-Area Policing From Above

Hot spot policing is an established concept that is proven to reduce crime. It is mostly done through foot patrol or car patrols. In the present study it is tested whether helicopters can produce a deterrent policing effect to reduce the amount of vehicle arsons in Sweden on larger hot areas. Sweden tends to have elevated levels of vehicle arsons in August, with about 20% of police districts responsible for 50% of the cases. The risk narrative revolves around youth congregating in public places in deprived neighborhoods to generate disturbances, and the disruption of the risk narrative tested here is based on providing deterrence through helicopter police presence. During 6 weeks in August and September of 2019 police helicopters patrolled four police districts in Sweden to attempt to prevent vehicle arsons. Our data comprise police reports of vehicle arson, and time stamped satellite data over the location for police helicopters. The evaluation considers whether there is an intention to treat effect from this project, in addition to whether there is an effect of actual helicopter presence. The study finds no significant effect of intention to treat, nor of actual dosage.

Una casa della scuola per Roma Capitale

Our research focuses on school buildings constructed in the first decade of Roma Capitale, between the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of twentieth century. The buildings belonged to two categories: 1) edifices readapted as schools (former convents and private dwellings); 2) newly built constructions. School buildings are studied considering their architectural layout, their location within the urban plan, their décor and their symbolic meaning in relation to topography and toponymy. The study method uses interpretation of spaces and places as educational objects that exert an extraordinary influence on the collective imagination. The sources used are: 1) archive documents (Archivio Capitolino) relating to projects and technical relations of architects and engineers; 2) legal documents: laws, measurements, bulletins, ministerial reports on school buildings; 3) publications that document the shaping of public opinion on the importance of endowing the capital with a number of representative and efficient educational sites. The work highlights three main historical trends: 1) the emergenc of laws supporting compulsory education (Casati law, Coppino law) and the social architectural initiatives undertaken in Rome’s poorest and most deprived neighborhoods (Trastevere, Suburra) or in newly built ones for the ascending middle class (Castro Pretorio); 2) the contradiction between rhetoric regarding public educational sites and the scarcity of financial backing for the management of municipal public education and the subsequent, perennial lack of new schooling sites; 3) competition with contemporary religious school architecture, which in comparison with that of public and secular schools was always at the vanguard.

Neighborhood-level Racial/Ethnic and Economic Inequities in COVID-19 Burden Within Urban Areas in the US and Canada

ABSTRACTThe COVID-19 pandemic exhibits stark social inequities in infection and mortality outcomes. We investigated neighborhood-level inequities across cities in the US and Canada for COVID-19 cumulative case rates (46 cities), death rates (12 cities), testing rates and test positivity (12 cities), using measures that characterize social gradients by race/ethnicity, socioeconomic composition, or both jointly. We found consistent evidence of social gradients for case, death and positivity rates, with the most privileged neighborhoods having the lowest rates, but no meaningful variation in the magnitude of inequities between cities. Gradients were not apparent in testing rates, suggesting inadequate testing in the most deprived neighborhoods. Health agencies should monitor and compare inequities as part of their COVID-19 reporting practices and to guide pandemic response efforts.HIGHLIGHTSWithin urban regions with available data in the US and Canada, there were strong social gradients for case, death and positivity ratesThe most racially and/or economically privileged neighborhoods had the lowest ratesSocial gradients were similar for neighborhood-level measures of racial/ethnic composition, income, racialized economic segregation, and racialized occupational segregationTesting rates did not show consistent social gradients, which suggests that the most deprived neighborhoods have inadequate access to testing relative to their higher disease burden