Changing spaces; making places

What are the two contrasting places?

Lympstone and Toxteth (on cards)

What is a space?

A geographical location

What is a place?

A geographical space which is shaped by individuals or communities over time, by emotional attachments.

What are the factors which influence an individual's perception of place?

- Age

- Gender

- Sexuality

- Religion

- Role

Age as a factor

- perceptions change as people move through their "life cycle" and get older

- perceptions may also change when people revisit a place that may have changed a lot

Gender as a factor

- perceptions may change on what gender a person is, eg a woman may feel unsafe in an area where a man wouldn't experience the same feeling

Sexuality as a factor

- can lead to clusters of communities, using space for festivals eg pride

Religion as a factor

- religious and spiritual meanings are assigned to specific locations, eg buildings such as mosques

Roles as a factor

- individuals perform a variety of different roles, influencing place perception over time

Factors that influence emotional attachment to a place

- family links

- personal experiences

- social experiences- memories and feelings as part of a group

- Attachment to nations - homelands

Globalisation

- increasing interconnectedness and interdependence of the world economically, socially, politically and culturally

Global village

- the world is becoming smaller due to greater interconnectedness

Time - space compression

A set of processes leading to a 'shrinking world', caused by reductions in relative distance between places eg. travel time

"Placelessness"

As globalisation has caused global capitalism, local culture and localised identities have been eroded, eg city centres across the world have the same transnational corporations such as costa

Glocalisation

A response to globalisation- it promotes local goods and services in order to regain local cultures and identities

Informal ways of presenting place

TV, film, music, art , photography, literature, graffiti, blogs

Formal ways of presenting place

census data, statistics, geospatial data, maps

Social inequality

The unequal distribution of factors such as income, education or health across a population

Quality of life

A highly subjective measure that concerns the general wellbeing of individuals and societies, this considers happiness, human rights and gender equality as well as factors such as wealth.

Standard of living

A measure of wealth, income and material comfort available to a person of community

Deprivation

A general lack of resources

Index of multiple deprivation

An overall measure of deprivation which incorporates income, employment, education, health, crime, barriers to housing and services, and living environment

Income as a measure of social inequality

- Purchasing power parity PPP

- World Bank's definition of absolute poverty is PPP of US $1.90/DAY.

- This allows global comparisons to be made

Housing as a measure of social inequality

- Often based on different types of house tenure- owner-occupied, rented, housing from social services, squatter settlements

Education as a measure of social inequality

- adult literacy levels are the most commonly used way of comparing education levels

Healthcare as a measure of social inequality

- access to healthcare and levels of ill-health are closely associated with social inequality

- doctor-patient ratios are often used

Employment as a measure of social inequality

- employment has a direct impact on levels of income, standard of living and quality of life

- however data can be difficult to acquire due to informal employment

Wealth as a factor affecting spatial patterns of social inequality

- the ability to buy goods and services are essential to standard of living

- wealth is linked to education levels, as a lower level of education often results in lower average income

Housing as a factor affecting spatial patterns of social inequality

- inequality may occur when demand exceeds supply- casing squatter settlements

- In ACs, where housing prices inflate at a higher rate than wages, those on lower wages may struggle and be excluded from the housing market

Health as a factor affecting spatial patterns of social inequality

There is a clear link between deprivation and ill-health, contributing factors include poor diet, sub-standard of living, housing and stress

Services can be a problem to certain groups pr areas ,eg the elderly and in rural areas

Education as a factor affecting spatial patterns of social inequality

Different education levels and access is a significant element in creatin and maintaining inequality

Access to services as a factor affecting spatial patterns of social inequality

Access to services massively affects both quality of life and standard of living, eg doctors per 1000 people

Global shift

- The relocation of manufacturing production on a global scale

- 50 years ago, manufacturing was concentrated in western Europe and North America, with raw materials coming from countries like Zambia and Brazil

- From the 1980s, European, North American and Japanese TNCs created labour intensive factories in LIDCs and NEES mainly in East Asia and Latin America

Post -industrial societies

ACs have been transformed into post- industrial societies in which there are high levels of employment in the tertiary and quaternary sectors

Deindustrialisation

The decline of a country's traditional manufacturing industry due to exhaustion of raw materials, loss of markets and competition from NEEs.

Positive effect of economic change - multiplier effect

The process by which a new or expanding economic activity in an area creates additional employment. As employees have money to spend, growth occurs in other sectors and the wealth of the area stimulates more economic activity and investment, creating more jobs and so on.

Negative effect of economic change - circle of decay

declining job opportunities - rising unemployment and fewer taxes paid - decline in services - physical environment deteriorates - economically active people move away - declining tax base - increasing decay - loss of investment confidence

Positive structural economic change in ACs

- Cheaper imports of all relatively labour intensive products

- Surviving industries are more efficient

- More demand for exports from ACs

- Greater industrial efficiency should lead to development of new technologies, promotion of entrepreneurship and attract foreign investment

- loss of mining and manufacturing industries can lead to improved environmental quality

Negative structural economic change in ACs

- Rising job exports leads to job losses, competition -driven changes in technology add to this

- job losses often affect unskilled workers

- big gaps develop between skilled and unskilled workers who may experience extreme redeployment differences

- Job losses are invariably concentrated in certain areas and industries, this can lead to deindustrialisation and structural unemployment in certain regions

- branch plants are particularly vulnerable as in times of economic recession they are the first to close - often with large numbers of job losses

Positive structural economic change in LIDCs/ EDCs

- higher export-generated income promotes export-led growth - promoting investment in productive capacity. Potentially leads to a multiplier effect at a national scale

- can trickle to local areas with many new highly paid jobs

- can reduce negative trade balances

- can lead to exposure to new technology, improvement of skills and labour productivity

- Employment growth in relatively labour-intensive manufacturing spreads wealth, and does redress global injustice - development gap

Negative structural economic change in LIDCs/ EDCs

- unlikely to decrease inequality - as jobs tend to be concentrated in the core regions of urban areas and may promote immigration

- disruptive social impacts eg. TNCs being exploitive and leading to sweatshops

- can lead to overdependence on a narrow economic base

- can destabilise food supplies, as people give up agriculture

- environmental issues are associated with over-rapid industrialisation

- health and safety issues because of lax legislation

Cycles in the capitalist economic system

- interconnected cycle of about 50 years of growth and decline, since 1750

- each cycle is linked to technological innovation with new industries - once the new tech gets old, growth slows and recession ensues

Economic boom

- core regions develop a multiplier effect

- associated with education, where education levels are high more technology is found eg. Silicon Fen, Cambridge UK

Economic recession

- slow downs in economic activity, spending power is reduced and services and retail activities are impacted negatively.

- again related to education - those with higher education levels are lesser impacted as they can find new employment, and have the ability to earn more

How is the government tackling social inequality?

- Health care

- Taxation

- Subsides

- Planning

- Pensions

- Law

- Education

Taxation

Income tax is often used by governments to redistribute wealth from more prosperous groups, and so create a fairer society..

Most governments have progressive tax systems where the richer pay more tax than the poor

Essential items - such as food are not tax

Subsides

- Giving more to the less well off, children in poor families may get free school meals, allowances for clothing and help with university fees. There are others such as for low wage earners, long-term disabilities and those who are unemployed

Planning

Governments, charities and housing agencies often give priority to upgrading housing and services in the poorest areas

Law

Legislation exists which outlaws discrimination on racial, ethnic, gender and age criteria and aims to give equal opportunities to all groups

The poorest groups of workers are protected by minimum wage legislation

Education

Governments often provide funding for training and upgrading skills in order to raise skill levels and qualifications, improve employment prospects and boost economic growth.

Placemaking

An approach to the planning, designing and management of public spaces. The result of which should be sustainable, well-designed places which meet communities' needs and improve their quality of life.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

Investment made by a foreign company in the economy of another country, investment by a TNCs has a significant impact on the placemaking process

How architects and planners create authentic and meaningful places

- architects make a large impact on placemaking through the design of individual buildings.

- Local authorities in the UK develop Local Plan which has a strategy for new buildings and developments under the guidance of the Royal Town Planning institution

Architects - positive/negative feelings on a place

e.g negative attitudes towards residential tower blocks in the 1960s, and positive attitudes towards low-density housing areas with green spaces

How do local community groups shape the place they live in?

eg. resident's associations which are active in placemaking that focusses on improving the area

Resident association example - Filwood

- over 190 citizens have come together (with the help of Bristol council)

- they have made a "good garden" competition - to help tackle environmental issues

- community clubs have been created

- baking group set up specifically for men - due to the much lower life expectancy

Why do places rebrand?

- if a negative image of the place has developed, it may rebrand to become more successful

What are the elements of rebranding

Brand artefact - the physical environment: create a new environment, reuse the existing environment, remove the cold environment

Brand essence - people's experience: living, working, visiting and talking in and about the city

Brandscape -comparison with competitor cities: local, regional, national, international

Reimagining

- disassociates a place from bad, pre-exisitng images in relation to poor housing, social deprivation, high crime levels, pollution and industrial dereliction. It can then attract new investment, retailing, tourists and residents

Rebranding

- the way in which a place is redeveloped and marketed so that it gains a new identity. It may involve both reimagining and regeneration.

Regeneration

- a long-term process involving redevelopment and the use of social, economic and environmental action to reverse urban decline and create sustainable communities

Strategies used for rebranding

- market-led strategies involving private investors

- top-down approaches led by large-scale organisations eg. local authorities

- flagship developments - large scale property projects which aim to act as a catalyst for further investment

- legacy following international or high profile sporting events, eg. the olympics

key players in rebranding

- governments at various scales e.g. local councils

- corporate bodies e.g. banks

- non-profit making organisation e.g. national trust

Why do some people contest rebranding?

- Gentrification

- Resentment as one group is favoured - eg. Liverpool One, a large retail centre in inner-city liverpool, where the retail is more suited to visitors than those living there

- Focus of spending - in times of economic recession it may seem unnecessary for there to be an expensive retail investment

Gentrification

- gentrification leads to wealthier people moving into an area

- this results in socio-economic nature of the area changing and also the services changes, eg corner shops to restaurants

- local house prices increase, forcing some local residents out of the property market