Urban Economics

In this book, Jane Jacobs, building on the work of her debut, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, investigates the delicate way cities balance the interplay between the domestic production of goods and the ever-changing tide of imports. Using case studies of developing cities in the ancient, pre-agricultural world, and contemporary cities on the decline, like the financially irresponsible New York City of the mid-sixties, Jacobs identifies the main drivers of urban prosperity and growth, often via counterintuitive and revelatory lessons.

This book presents a broad overview of the key issues in modern environmental economics with a focus on understanding and solving urban pollution challenges in developed and developing nations. This book explores how cities and nations can achieve the "win-win" of economic growth and reduced urban pollution. Special attention is paid to the incentives of households, firms and governments in reducing the production of pollution. The book examines a number of urban pollution challenges including; air, water, noise, garbage pollution and the global challenge of climate change. A special ...

Discover the transformative power of urban green spaces in "Scaling Up," an insightful new eBook that unveils the secrets to creating and expanding vibrant green networks in cities around the world. With urbanization rising, the need for sustainable, healthy environments has never been more crucial. This book guides you through a comprehensive journey, beginning with a single park and growing into a thriving urban oasis. Start by understanding the visionary concept of green networks. Learn what makes a network green and explore the historical roots of urban green spaces. Then, delve into ...

After decades of unchecked sprawl, more people than ever are moving back to the city. Dense urban living has been prescribed as a panacea for the environmental and resource crises of our time. But is it better or worse for our happiness? Are subways, sidewalks, and tower dwelling improvements on the car dependence of sprawl?

In this no-holds-barred treatise, Donald Shoup argues that free parking has contributed to auto dependence, rapid urban sprawl, extravagant energy use, and a host of other problems. Planners mandate free parking to alleviate congestion but end up distorting transportation choices, debasing urban design, damaging the economy, and degrading the environment. Ubiquitous free parking helps explain why our cities sprawl on a scale fit more for cars than for people. But it doesn't have to be this way.

What would you do if the world as you knew it suddenly came crashing down around you? A financial system in shambles, America slowly slips closer and closer toward collapse. As everything is in ruin, a suburban city burns. As small group of unlikely survivors bands together to weather the storm. A few well prepared, well-armed, and well-trained friends band together. Police Officer John Gonzalez, recently wounded in the line of duty, rallies his group of thrown-together friends into a tight group to survive the end of the world as we know it in the City of Kankakee, an hour South of Chicago.

Humans greatest strength is our ability to adapt to our surroundings, but what if those surroundings are unhealthy? What is the conditions we are growing accustomed to are not fit for our own habitation? What if the very places we find ourselves living are making us sick? The places we shape, in turn, shape our lives. We are a product of our environment and our environment has degraded to the point of having severe consequences for our personal health. As we have experienced decline all around us, we can’t help but follow suit internally. Our places dictate the people we become, the ...

Why do well-intentioned plans for improving the human condition go tragically awry? Author James C. Scott analyzes failed cases of large-scale authoritarian plans in a variety of fields. Centrally managed social plans misfire, Scott argues, when they impose schematic visions that do violence to complex interdependencies that are not - and cannot - be fully understood. Further, the success of designs for social organization depends upon the recognition that local, practical knowledge is as important as formal, epistemic knowledge.

Under the Asphalt: The Hidden Economics of Parking Lots reveals an unexpected world beneath our everyday parking lots—a world where economics, culture, technology, and public policy converge to shape urban life. In this groundbreaking book, you'll discover how a simple parking space is transformed into a microcosm of modern society. Through captivating case studies and insightful analysis, the author takes you on a journey through dynamic pricing, behavioral economics, cultural codes, and the hidden networks of finance that influence every aspect of parking. From the unseen marketplace of...

“Reading Kuni makes me want to dive into rural Japan...this book reminds me that leaders emerge when and where you least expect it.” — ALICE WATERS, founder of Chez Panisse restaurant, activist, and author A guide to reviving and revitalizing forgotten places and communities through the...

Once America's "arsenal of democracy," Detroit is now the symbol of the American urban crisis. In this reappraisal of America's racial and economic inequalities, Thomas Sugrue asks why Detroit and other industrial cities have become the sites of persistent racialized poverty. He challenges the conventional wisdom that urban decline is the product of the social programs and racial fissures of the 1960s.

Viennese ideas saturate the modern world. From California architecture to Hollywood Westerns, modern advertising to shopping malls, orgasms to gender confirmation surgery, nuclear fission to fitted kitchens—every aspect of our history, science, and culture is in some way shaped by Vienna. Richard Cockett gives us the entirety of an extraordinary story of how one city made the modern world—and how we all remain inescapably Viennese.

In Homelessness Is a Housing Problem, Gregg Colburn and Clayton Page Aldern seek to explain the substantial regional variation in rates of homelessness in cities across the United States. In a departure from many analytical approaches, Colburn and Aldern shift their focus from the individual experiencing homelessness to the metropolitan area. Using accessible statistical analysis, they test a range of conventional beliefs about what drives the prevalence of homelessness in a given city and find that none explain the regional variation observed across the country.

“Offers a useful reminder of the role of modern science in fundamentally transforming all of our lives.” —President Barack Obama (on Twitter) “An important book.” —Steven Pinker, The New York Times Book Review The surprising and important story of how humans gained what amounts to an...

From the sprawling barricadas of Lima to the garbage hills of Manila, urbanization has been disconnected from industrialization, even economic growth. Davis portrays a vast humanity warehoused in shantytowns and exiled from the formal world economy. He argues that the rise of this informal urban proletariat is a wholly original development unforeseen by either classical Marxism or neoliberal theory. Are the great slums, as a terrified Victorian middle class once imagined, volcanoes waiting to erupt?

Are you an entrepreneur or investor seeking a fresh landscape for opportunity, far from the constraints of traditional economic models? Look no further. “Pioneering Prosperity: The Morazán Model for Free Cities” is a gateway to understanding how autonomy and innovation can spawn not just a city but a thriving economic ecosystem. This is a blueprint for those who dare to envision and build their havens of freedom and prosperity. In this accessible and action-driven guide, you’ll explore: The Morazán Model in action: a tangible prototype for free cities that are already taking shape ...

Race for Profit uncovers how exploitative real estate practices continued well after housing discrimination was banned. The same racist structures and individuals remained intact after redlining's end, and close relationships between regulators and the industry created incentives to ignore improprieties. Meanwhile, new policies meant to encourage low-income homeownership created new methods to exploit Black homeowners.

Discover the fascinating and ever-evolving world of metropolitan areas with "The Evolution of Metropolitan Areas" eBook. This comprehensive guide explores the intricacies of urban and regional economics, providing readers with an in-depth look at the impact of global influences, business trends, transportation, education, immigration, innovation districts, environmental sustainability, income inequality, technology, real estate development, smart city development, public-private partnerships, and more on metropolitan areas. Featuring a captivating case study of the economic and social ...

Discover a groundbreaking, authoritative guide that illuminates the path to transforming America’s inner cities. BREAKING THE CYCLE: AN INTEGRATED BLUEPRINT FOR TRANSFORMING AMERICA’S INNER CITIES provides a deep, data-driven exploration of the systemic challenges facing urban communities—from educational deficits and health care disparities to chronic unemployment and economic stagnation. This comprehensive work interweaves rigorous economic analysis with inspirational policy insights, offering innovative, real-world solutions designed to empower marginalized communities and break ...

Segregation by Design draws on more than 100 years of quantitative and qualitative data from thousands of American cities to explore how local governments generate race and class segregation. Starting in the early 20th century, cities have used their power of land use control to determine the location and availability of housing, amenities (such as parks), and negative land uses (such as garbage dumps). The result has been segregation - first within cities and more recently between them.