Asian Cities: Colonial to Global
In this lunch lecture Dr Gregory Bracken will present some of the themes and concerns of his forthcoming publication Asian Cities: Colonial to Global (Amsterdam University Press)
Lunch lecture by Dr Gregory Bracken.
Why have certain cities in Asia taken such a lead in the twenty-first century? How have they been able to make the successful segue from nodes in colonial-era networks into key global players in their own right? Could it be that they have been making canny use of infrastructure inherited from the era of Western colonial expansion? Or is there something else that underpins and explains these cities’ remarkable global dominance?
This lecture will present some of the themes and concerns of the forthcoming publication Asian Cities: Colonial to Global (Amsterdam University Press). The papers in the book (based on those presented at the IIAS-TU Delft seminar held in Leiden in 2013) examine how certain cities in Asia have managed to successfully make the transition from colonial-era nodes into global cities in their own right. They do this from a variety of multi-disciplinary viewpoints, including history, geography, and cultural studies, as well as architecture and urbanism (the main lens through which these cities and their networks are examined). The book also tries to formulate a new understanding of what makes Asian cities such global leaders, as well as point out some object lessons for those less successful in this endeavour.
This is a useful snapshot of global Asia’s urban environments, as well as a timely reminder of how some of the trends we are seeing in the region may well be followed internationally as the rest of the century unfolds.
About the speaker
Dr. Ir. Gregory Bracken is a Research Fellow at the International Institute for Asian Studies, Leiden and an Assistant Professor of Architecture at TU Delft. His research is concerned with the urban environment of East and Southeast Asia and his most recent publications include The Shanghai Alleyway House: A Vanishing Urban Vernacular (Routledge, 2013), which has just come out in paperback, and Aspects of Urbanization in China: Shanghai, Hong Kong, Guangzhou (editor) (Amsterdam University Press, 2012). Dr. Bracken is also the author and illustrator of the popular Walking Tour series of city guides, which includes Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Shanghai, and has recently been extended to include London and Paris. www.gregorybracken.com
Registration is required
Lunch is provided by IIAS. Please register for this lunch lecture using the form below.
About IIAS Lunch Lectures
Every month, one of the IIAS researchers will present his or her work-in-progress in an informal setting to colleagues and other interested attendees. IIAS organises these lunch lectures to give the research community the opportunity to freely discuss ongoing research and exchange thoughts and ideas.