Herramientas para la regeneración urbana desarrolladas por el gobierno central en España desde la perspectiva de la participación de la comunidad local

This article addresses the actions and instruments that constitute the urban regeneration policy developed by the Spanish Central Government over the last decade, focusing on their participative dimension. The methodology and assumptions of these tools reveal an intention to devolve to local communities and stakeholders an active role in urban regeneration processes. The analysis of their participative approach has been undertaken from the perspective of Collaborative Planning.The work highlights an interest of the Central Administration to provide mechanisms and guidelines for regional and local governments so that they can set up processes of participation in the context of regeneration of their urban neighbourhoods. The trend detected reveals relevant progress and limitations, the latter namely related to the political culture and other aspects inherent to the country reality.Este trabajo profundiza en las acciones e instrumentos que constituyen la política de regeneración urbana desarrollada por el Gobierno Central a lo largo de la última década en España, poniendo el foco en su dimensión participativa. Se trata de herramientas que intentan desde su metodología y presupuestos de actuación devolver a la ciudadanía y los actores locales un papel activo en los procesos de regeneración. El análisis del enfoque participativo de los mismos se ha realizado desde el marco teórico de la Planificación Colaborativa.El trabajo ha puesto de manifiesto que en los últimos años se ha dado un interés creciente por parte de la Administración Central por generar mecanismos y proveer directrices dirigidas a los gobiernos regionales y locales, para que estos pongan en marcha procesos de participación en el contexto de la regeneración de los barrios urbanos. La tendencia detectada presenta avances relevantes junto con limitaciones, en gran medida relacionadas con la cultura política y otros aspectos inherentes a la realidad española

Políticas urbanas de la Unión Europea desde la perspectiva de la planificación colaborativa: Las Iniciativas Comunitarias URBAN y URBAN II en España

Este trabajo lleva a cabo un análisis de la aportación que las políticas urbanas de la Unión Europea (UE), y en particular las dos fases de la Iniciativa Comunitaria URBAN2, han hecho a la práctica de la regeneración urbana en España desde la perspectiva de la Planificación Colaborativa. La adopción de la Planificación Colaborativa como marco conceptual ha provisto la base teórica, el punto de vista e hilo conductor desde el que se ha analizado la dimensión urbana de las políticas comunitarias, poniendo el foco específicamente en URBAN, a través de la realización de un estudio que ha profundizado en el contexto histórico y el debate teórico desde los que se pusieron las bases metodológicas de esta forma de incidir en la degradación urbana, propuesta por la Comisión Europea en 1994. Esto ha llevado a profundizar en el escenario británico de la regeneración urbana, en el que la investigación ha encontrado la referencia sobre la que en gran medida se gestó esta Iniciativa Comunitaria. El trabajo descrito ha permitido caracterizar URBAN como un instrumento de regeneración urbana que conlleva la asunción de un enfoque colaborativo, que en última instancia tiene como objetivo la transformación de la gobernanza. Asimismo, ha sentado las bases sobre las que se ha fundamentado el análisis de la materialización de la dimensión colaborativa de los programas URBAN y URBAN II implementados en España. Los resultados alcanzados por los programas, considerados a la luz de la profundización en la práctica de la regeneración urbana del país, han permitido llegar a conclusiones sobre la aportación que la dimensión colaborativa de URBAN ha hecho al contexto español y señalar un conjunto de líneas de investigación que suponen la continuación del camino emprendido por esta Tesis Doctoral. Summary This work analyses the contribution that the urban policy of the European Union (EU), and in particular the two rounds of the URBAN Community Initiative3, as its most especific instrument, have made to the urban regeneration practice in Spain from the perspective of Collaborative Planning. The adoption of Collaborative Planning as a conceptual framework has provided the theoretical base, the focus and the guiding principle from which to analyse the urban dimension of European policies, and particularly URBAN, through the development of a study that has delved into the historical context and the theoretical debate that laid the methodological foundations of this approach to fight urban degradation launched by the European Commission in 1994. This has included the study of the British scenario of urban regeneration, in which the research has found the reference point on which URBAN was largely conceived. The work described has allowed this Community Initiative to be characterised as a tool of urban regeneration which involved the adoption of a collaborative approach, whose ultimate aim was the transformation of governance. It has also laid the foundations on which the analysis of the implementation of the collaborative approach in the URBAN and URBAN II programmes developed in Spain has been based. The results attained by the programmes considered in light of the development of the practice of urban regeneration in the Spanish scenario, have led to conclusions about the contribution that the collaborative dimension of URBAN has made to the Spanish context and have resulted in the identification of a number of lines of research that represent the continuation of the path taken by this Thesis

El desarrollo de las iniciativas comunitarias Urban y Urban II en las periferias degradadas de las ciudades españolas. Una contribución a la práctica de la regeneración urbana en España

Since 1990, when the EEC published the «Green Paper on the Urban Environment», the European Union has carried out an active role fighting against the decline that affects the European cities, through contributions that have consisted of recommendations, guidelines and a direct action on the deprived urban areas financed through the Cohesion Fund, the ERDF and the ESF. This task has led to the definition of a specific instrument to fight against urban decline in 1994: the URBAN Community Initiative. In Spain, the urban dimension of the EU policy and particularly URBAN and URBAN II have supposed a relevant contribution to the revitalization of the neighbourhoods in crisis. This article addresses the question of how and to what extent the influence of URBAN has transformed the urban regeneration practice in the peripheral areas of the country.Desde que en 1990 la CEE publicara el «Libro Verde sobre el Medio Ambiente Urbano», la Unión Europea ha desarrollado un papel activo en la lucha contra los procesos de declive que afectan a las ciudades de los Estados miembros, un papel basado en contribuciones en forma de recomendaciones y comunicaciones, y de una labor de acción directa sobre las zonas urbanas financiada a través del Fondo de Cohesión, el FEDER y el FSE. Esta labor desembocó en 1994 en la creación de un instrumento específico para combatir la degradación urbana: la Iniciativa Comunitaria URBAN. En España, tanto la dimensión urbana de la política de la UE como, en particular, URBAN y URBAN II, han supuesto una aportación relevante en el ámbito de la regeneración de los barrios degradados. El presente artículo profundiza en la contribución que las dos fases de esta Iniciativa Comunitaria han hecho a la práctica de la regeneración de las áreas periféricas en el país, focalizando en las aportaciones generales que se han detectado a través del análisis de los proyectos URBAN desarrollados en las áreas periféricas de las ciudades españolas

Las EDUSI en el contexto de las políticas de regeneración urbana en España (1994-2018)

In the early 1990s, the intervention on the existing city began to move away from mere physical transformation towards a more integrated approach, which put in relation this transformation with the social, economic and environmental dimensions of urban development. The launching of the URBAN Community Initiative (1994-1999) evidences this evolution at EU level, since it promoted an integrated urban regeneration method based on a multidimensional, strategic and participatory approach. The influence of URBAN-on the urban regeneration frameworks of the Member States has been recognized by the literature. In the Spanish case, it introduced a different way of addressing the problems of urban degradation that would continue in the URBAN II programmes (2000-2006), the URBANA Initiative (2007-2013) and, in during the period 2014-2020, in the so-called Integrated Sustainable Urban Development Strategies (EDUSI). This paper makes a review of the period 1994-2018 in order to identify the influences and relationships between the political framework and the aforementioned instruments, to understand the evolution that has given rise to the EDUSI. The analysis will deliver knowledge aimed to progress in the field of urban regeneration and to reflect about the Spanish Urban Agenda that the Ministry of Public Works is currently developing.En los inicios de los 90, la actuación en la ciudad existente empezó a alejarse de la mera transformación física y a acercarse a un enfoque integrado que ponía en relación dicha transformación con la dimensión social, económica y medioambiental del desarrollo urbano. Esta evolución se manifestó en el ámbito comunitario con el lanzamiento de la Iniciativa Comunitaria URBAN (1994-1999), que promovió un método de regeneración urbana integrado basado en un enfoque multidimensional, estratégico y participativo. El mismo ejerció una influencia en el marco de la regeneración urbana de los Estados miembros que ha sido reconocida por la literatura. En el caso español, introdujo un modo diferente de abordar los problemas de degradación urbana que iba a tener continuidad en los programas URBAN II (2000-2006), la Iniciativa URBANA (2007-2013) y, en el periodo 2014-2020, en las Estrategias de Desarrollo Urbano Sostenible Integrado (EDUSI). Todos ellos mantienen el “enfoque URBAN”, evidenciando su influencia sobre la acción política del Gobierno de España en materia de desarrollo urbano sostenible. Este trabajo hace una revisión del periodo 1994-2018 con el fin de identificar las influencias y relaciones entre el marco político y los instrumentos mencionados, para entender la evolución que ha dado lugar a las EDUSI y generar un conocimiento que pueda contribuir tanto al avance en el ámbito de la regeneración urbana como a la reflexión sobre la Agenda Urbana para España que el Ministerio de Fomento está desarrollando en la actualidad

Variegated Europeanization and urban policy: Dynamics of policy transfer in France, Italy, Spain and the UK

This paper explores the dynamics of urban policy transfer in the European Union (EU), critically examining the process of Europeanization in relation to urban issues. The paper takes a comparative approach, analysing the evolution of urban policy and Europeanization in four member states: France, Italy, Spain and the UK from the 1990s up to the current Cohesion Policy period (2014–2020). Using an analytical framework based on three dimensions of Europeanization (direction, object and impact), we examine the extent to which urban policies are moving towards an integrated approach to sustainable urban development, as supported by the EU. The paper highlights the contradictions between processes of convergence through Europeanization, and path-dependent systems and trajectories that forge alternative paths. In doing so, it advances wider debates on the impact of Europeanization in a neo-liberal context by arguing that member states more likely to be affected by Europeanization are those most impacted by national austerity measures. A process of ‘variegated Europeanization’ is proposed to capture the differential practices taking place within the EU with regard to the circulation of the EU’s approach to urban policy

How are Italian and Spanish cities tackling climate change? A local comparative study

27 p.Cities are widely recognised as being pivotal to fight climate change. They magnify the drivers of climate change, experience the impacts and also concentrate the highest room for action. Although urban areas are broadly claimed to be climate leaders, there is no archetype of right actions given the highly contextual differences among them. Yet, the how and why cities respond to global environmental challenges in the context of increasingly competitive economies needs further research. In this paper we aim at advancing in this regard by assessing the state of the art on urban climate actions in two European Mediterranean Countries: Spain and Italy that face similar climate change challenges. Based on an extensive review of documents, we analyse mitigation and adaptation plans of 26 Spanish and 32 Italian Urban Audit cities, as representative samples. Our results show relevant differences between Spanish and Italian cities in terms of the starting time of their climate actions as well their implementation. We concur with existing literature in that mitigation is more advanced than adaptation actions and take evidence in both countries and we also demonstrate that international and national networking initiatives are being instrumental in engaging cities in climate action

Implications of governance structures on urban climate action: evidence from Italy and Spain

47 p.Cities are widely recognised as being pivotal to fight climate change. Cities magnify the drivers of climate change, experience the impacts and also concentrate the highest room for action. Given the 70% of the global emissions that cities are responsible for, national governments are unable to meet their international commitments for addressing mitigation and adaptation without the action and cooperation of cities. In turn, the capacity of local governments to address climate change is largely determined by the institutional architecture within which they are integrated. As a result, the relationship between the different arenas of authority and the integration of cities in national and international networks is considered critical in shaping the global capacity to govern climate change. This work aims to understand how multi-level climate governance and alliances of cities (national and international) are influencing the climate change capacity and performance of municipalities. This has been done by focusing on two national contexts of the European Union, Italy and Spain, in which climate policy, multi-level governance frameworks, the effects of the national and international networks of cities, and the climate response of cities are analysed through an extensive review of scientific and grey literature, and institutional documents. The results concur with existing literature on the importance of constructing collaborative multi-level climate frameworks at the national scale, that fully integrate the local level, in order to support cities to develop consistent climate action and raise awareness of the responsibility they have in this policy field

Types of Corruption in Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) in Ibadan, Nigeria

Corruption is a phenomenon that manifests in various types and forms especially among operators of Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs). Many actions of the operators which constitute corrupt practices often tend to be overlooked in spite of their grave consequences for the success SMEs in Nigeria. The fight against corruption in Nigeria is more concentrated in the formal sector. This study was, therefore, designed to investigate various forms in which corrupt practices are carried out among Small and Micro Enterprises in Ibadan, Nigeria. Business owners, their employees, apprentices and consumers constituted the study population. Primary data were collected using questionnaire administered on 200 business owners, 150 employees and 150 apprentices randomly chosen in five business districts in Ibadan; and the conduct of 10 in-depth interviews with purposively selected participants. Quantitative data were analysed at uni-variate level using simple percentages and frequencies while qualitative data were content analysed. Findings from the study revealed that corrupt practices were rampant among actors in SMEs and the common types of corrupt practices included stealing (60%), deception of customers (78.4%), tax evasion (62%), sale of fake products (76%), sale of expired products (65.2%), tampering with measurement scales (69.6%), bribery (82.4%), and poor service delivery (73%). The study concludes that the level of corruption in SMEs calls for concern and government should extend the fight against corruption to the informal sector in Nigeria

Will climate mitigation ambitions lead to carbon neutrality? An analysis of the local-level plans of 327 cities in the EU

Cities across the globe recognise their role in climate mitigation and are acting to reduce carbon emissions. Knowing whether cities set ambitious climate and energy targets is critical for determining their contribution towards the global 1.5 °C target, partly because it helps to identify areas where further action is necessary. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the mitigation targets of 327 European cities, as declared in their local climate plans. The sample encompasses over 25% of the EU population and includes cities of all sizes across all Member States, plus the UK. The study analyses whether the type of plan, city size, membership of climate networks, and its regional location are associated with different levels of mitigation ambition. Results reveal that 78% of the cities have a GHG emissions reduction target. However, with an average target of 47%, European cities are not on track to reach the Paris Agreement: they need to roughly double their ambitions and efforts. Some cities are ambitious, e.g. 25% of our sample (81) aim to reach carbon neutrality, with the earliest target date being 2020.90% of these cities are members of the Climate Alliance and 75% of the Covenant of Mayors. City size is the strongest predictor for carbon neutrality, whilst climate network(s) membership, combining adaptation and mitigation into a single strategy, and local motivation also play a role. The methods, data, results and analysis of this study can serve as a reference and baseline for tracking climate mitigation ambitions across European and global cities