The Real and Virtual Worlds of Spatial Planning brings together contributions from leaders in landscape, transportation, and urban planning. They present case studies - from North America, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa - that ground the exploration of ideas in the realities of sustainable urban and regional planning, landscape planning and present the prospects for using virtual worlds for modeling spatial environments and their application in planning. The first part explores the challenges for planning in the real world that are caused by the dynamics of socio-spatial systems as well as by the contradictions of their evolutionary trends related to their spatial layout. The second part presents diverse concepts to model, analyze, visualize, monitor and control socio-spatial systems by using virtual worlds

What are the likely long-term implications of this shift to Asia for the cities and regions of Europe? To just 'wait and see' cannot be the response, nor the hope that the attractiveness of Asia will diminish over time and that the economic growth will slow down. Will Europe be able to retain its economic power? There is a need to think about possible futures for the cities and regions of Europe when industrial production is reduced, when high-tech and bio-tech industries do not compensate for the loss of industrial jobs, when Europe's supremacy in financial services is eroding, or even when Chinese capital is investing in Europe to exploit the territorial capital of the 'old' continent. China and Europe address the challenges for the cities and regions of Europe that may be the consequences of such development trends. Contributions by policy-makers and academic observers will prepare the ground for debating the dimensions 'economy', 'knowledge and culture', 'environment and mobility', 'quality of life', and 'governance' of this challenge.

What are the likely long-term implications of this shift to Asia for the cities and regions of Europe? To just ?wait and see? cannot be the response, nor the hope that the attractiveness of Asia will diminish over time and that the economic growth will slow down. Will Europe be able to retain its economic power?

There is a need to think about possible futures for the cities and regions of Europe when industrial production is reduced, when high-tech and bio-tech industries do not compensate for the loss of industrial jobs, when Europe's supremacy in financial services is eroding, or even when Chinese capital is investing in Europe to exploit the territorial capital of the ?old? continent.

China and Europe address the challenges for the cities and regions of Europe that may be the consequences of such development trends. Contributions by policy-makers and academic observers will prepare the ground for debating the dimensions ?economy?, ?knowledge and culture?, ?environment and mobility?, ?quality of life?, and ?governance? of this challenge.

Urbanization is one of the most powerful forces influencing global sustainability. It is dominated by three factors: population growth, rural-urban migration and subsequent urban expansion. Perhaps nowhere are these factors more dominant than in developing countries. This volume brings together leading experts including Alan Gilbert, John Friedmann, Saskia Sassen and Janice Perlman to explore the conflicting challenges of rapid urbanization in developing countries. While all have to contend with key issues such as social segregation, poverty, and loss of governability, the ongoing forces of urban growth vary from country to country. By comparing the challenges of urbanization in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, this book puts forward a new way of thinking about mega- and million-cities in developing countries - one that promotes their vital function in society as engines of ideas, technologies, societal change, democratic transformation and loci of political will to build a new regime of global sustainability.

Urbanization is one of the most powerful forces influencing global sustainability. It is dominated by three factors: population growth, rural-urban migration and subsequent urban expansion. Perhaps nowhere are these factors more dominant than in developing countries. This volume brings together leading experts including Alan Gilbert, John Friedmann, Saskia Sassen and Janice Perlman to explore the conflicting challenges of rapid urbanization in developing countries. While all have to contend with key issues such as social segregation, poverty, and loss of governability, the ongoing forces of urban growth vary from country to country. By comparing the challenges of urbanization in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Pacific, this book puts forward a new way of thinking about mega- and million-cities in developing countries - one that promotes their vital function in society as engines of ideas, technologies, societal change, democratic transformation and loci of political will to build a new regime of global sustainability.

The Real and Virtual Worlds of Spatial Planning brings together contributions from leaders in landscape, transportation, and urban planning. They present case studies - from North America, Europe, Australia, Asia and Africa - that ground the exploration of ideas in the realities of sustainable urban and regional planning, landscape planning and present the prospects for using virtual worlds for modeling spatial environments and their application in planning. The first part explores the challenges for planning in the real world that are caused by the dynamics of socio-spatial systems as well as by the contradictions of their evolutionary trends related to their spatial layout. The second part presents diverse concepts to model, analyze, visualize, monitor and control socio-spatial systems by using virtual worlds