Neoliberalism's market revolution has had a tremendous effect on contemporary mega-city regions. The negative consequences of market-oriented politics for territorial growth have been recognized. While a lot of attention has been given to how planners and policy makers are fighting back political fragmentation through innovative governance and planning, little has been done to reveal such practices through an international comparative perspective. Governance and Planning of Mega-City Regions provides a comparative treatment and examination of how new approaches in governance and planning are reshaping mega-city regions around the world. The contributors highlight how European mega-city regions are evolving and how strategic intervention is being redefined to enable the integration of urban qualities in a multi-level governance environment; how traditional federal countries in North America and Australia see the promise of major policies and development initiatives finally moving ahead to herald a more strategic intervention at national and regional scales; and how transitional economies in China witness the rise of state strategies to control the articulation of scales and to reassert the functional importance of state in a growing diffused power context. This book offers case studies written from a variety of theoretical and political perspectives by world leading scholars. It will appeal to upper level undergraduates, postgraduates, researchers, and policymakers interested in urban and regional planning, geography, sociology, public administrations and development studies.

Neoliberalism's market revolution has had a tremendous effect on contemporary mega-city regions. The negative consequences of market-oriented politics for territorial growth have been recognized. While a lot of attention has been given to how planners and policy makers are fighting back political fragmentation through innovative governance and planning, little has been done to reveal such practices through an international comparative perspective.

Governance and Planning of Mega-City Regions provides a comparative treatment and examination of how new approaches in governance and planning are reshaping mega-city regions around the world. The contributors highlight how European mega-city regions are evolving and how strategic intervention is being redefined to enable the integration of urban qualities in a multi-level governance environment; how traditional federal countries in North America and Australia see the promise of major policies and development initiatives finally moving ahead to herald a more strategic intervention at national and regional scales; and how transitional economies in China witness the rise of state strategies to control the articulation of scales and to reassert the functional importance of state in a growing diffused power context.

This book offers case studies written from a variety of theoretical and political perspectives by world leading scholars. It will appeal to upper level undergraduates, postgraduates, researchers, and policymakers interested in urban and regional planning, geography, sociology, public administrations and development studies.

In the past three decades, China has experienced an unprecedented pace of economic and urban development. It's economy is now transforming from one based on manufacturing industries towards the producer services, with the importance of these services in the national and regional economy being recognized by economists and policy makers alike. With growing demand and policy support, producer services are expected to expand rapidly, leading to a new wave of economic and urban development in China. This groundbreaking volume is one of the first to address questions related to the development of these services in China. The contributions explore a wide range of associated topics including the characteristics of the growth of producer services and how this is related to China's economic and urban transition, the distribution of these services amongst Chinese cities, as well as drawing comparison between producer service development in China and Western counterparts. This volume also discusses the dynamics of the development of these services in China and how the political-economic embeddedness of China has shaped the development of producer services. Finally, the consequences of this growth and how the economy and urban space have change in response is explored, as well as the challenges Chinese cities face in moving towards a service economy, and how this can inform future public policies. This volume addresses the pressing need to understand the economic and urban changes in post-industrial China to allow appropriate strategies and policies to formulated to facilitate future development in China. The text is rich with statistical data and diagrams, providing original contributions and a cutting edge overview. This timely publication will be of interest to upper-level undergraduates, postgraduates, and researchers interested in China, Urban Studies and Economic Development.

In the past three decades, China has experienced an unprecedented pace of economic and urban development. It's economy is now transforming from one based on manufacturing industries towards the producer services, with the importance of these services in the national and regional economy being recognized by economists and policy makers alike. With growing demand and policy support, producer services are expected to expand rapidly, leading to a new wave of economic and urban development in China. This groundbreaking volume is one of the first to address questions related to the development of these services in China. The contributions explore a wide range of associated topics including the characteristics of the growth of producer services and how this is related to China's economic and urban transition, the distribution of these services amongst Chinese cities, as well as drawing comparison between producer service development in China and Western counterparts. This volume also discusses the dynamics of the development of these services in China and how the political-economic embeddedness of China has shaped the development of producer services. Finally, the consequences of this growth and how the economy and urban space have change in response is explored, as well as the challenges Chinese cities face in moving towards a service economy, and how this can inform future public policies. This volume addresses the pressing need to understand the economic and urban changes in post-industrial China to allow appropriate strategies and policies to formulated to facilitate future development in China. The text is rich with statistical data and diagrams, providing original contributions and a cutting edge overview. This timely publication will be of interest to upper-level undergraduates, postgraduates, and researchers interested in China, Urban Studies and Economic Development.