The Student City. Strategic Planning for Student Communities in EU Cities

Students are the citizens and the high-skilled working class of tomorrow. They keep cities lively and diverse. They are the main consumers of cultural and recreational facilities. They have a distinct expenditure pattern that in some cases is crucial to support the economy of whole cities or specific neighborhoods. Increased international students' mobility is a major vector of socio-economic integration between regions of Europe. However, the conditions for a full integration of student communities in local communities are not always met. Students are still an "invisible population", with little space in local policy, no decision power, and an ambiguous role in social development. The importance of human capital as a determinant of the competitiveness of cities demands pro-active, integral city policies targeting this community. Whereas education programs are generally carried out at the national or regional level, they often neglect the "urban" dimension of the issue, forgetting that human capital is highly mobile, and that it needs to be attracted, welcomed and managed locally. A new EURICUR study intends to contribute to the elaboration of a framework for comprehensive strategic action aiming at the integration of student communities in urban development. To this aim, the essential characteristics of the relationship of students with host communities in European cities have been analysed, as well as the role of higher education institutions and other actors in building the "student-friendly" city. This framework has been tested in nine European cities: Rotterdam, Utrecht and Eindhoven (NL), München (D), Lyon and Lille (F), Venice (I), Birmingham (GB) and Helsinki (SF). A wide typology of situations and problems has been found, with some common points that are clear indications for policymakers. To name a few, the importance that firms today attach to flexible, locally-oriented education curricula, which puts increased pressure on HEIs to work together with local governments in the definition of their supply; and the importance of diverse, versatile student communities in building the creative city, which underscores the role of campus planning but also solicits a socially responsible attitude of firms in enhancing the quality of education facilities.

Over de werking van erythrophiciene op het hart

Van erythrophlreine werd een literatuuroverzicht gegeven bevattende: de geschiedenis en de botanie, de toxicologie en de therapeutische werking, de chemie en het gebruik als standaard testpraeparaat ter vergelijking van de sterkte der verschillende digitalisstoffen. Eigen experimenten werden aan het hart van Rana escllienta, na een injectie van erythrophloeinum sulfuricum Merck in den dijlymphzak verricht, waarbij de vergiftigingsverschijnselen volgens de methode der dubbele suspensie en electrocardiographisch werden bestudeerd. ... Zie: Samenvattin

National urban policy responses in the European Union: Towards a European urban policy?

"Europe's towns and cities remain its primary source of wealth creation and the centre of its social and cultural development. However there are rising problems relating to rapid economic adjustments. It is clear that new efforts are necessary to strenghten or restore the role of Europe's cities as places of social and cultural integration, as sources of economic prosperity and sustainable development, and as bases of democracy" ["Towards an urban agenda in the European Union", European Commission, 1997]. The environment of cities has become increasingly competitive and complex. Cities need to anticipate and respond quickly to opportunities and threats that influence their position structurally. Although city governments develop policies and strategies to meet the challenges, at the same time higher layers of government pursue policies that influence the position of cities. National governments draw up financial and policy frameworks and create conditions in which cities have to manoeuvre and design their own policies. At the European level the interest for the strategic position of cities within regional development policy is growing. This harmonises with a major objective of the association of large European cities ('Eurocities') to bring the position of the large cities as engines of economic growth and at the same time as concentrations of social problems to the attention of the Europan Commission. Although the Commission recognises the important role of cities for European regional development, until now European urban policy initiatives have been blocked by a majority of national governments, as a consequence of the principle of subsidiarity. The objective of our contribution is to compare current developments as far as explicit national urban policies in the member states are concerned. However the scope will not be limited to explicit policies alone. National policies with a substantial impact on urban development will be dealt with too. The framework for the investigation is made up of four parts. The first two parts compare national urban patterns and structures (the urbanisation pattern and the administrative structure), while the remaining parts deal with the questions: (1) what do national authorities consider to be main issues for, and challenges to their (larger) cities?; and (2) how do national governments respond to these issues and challenges by policies targeted to the role and function of cities? The results of our investigation into current national urban policies are for an important part based on fifteen national case studies produced by colleagues from each of the member states according to the framework mentioned before. This contribution summarises the results of the comparison. The results might give ingredients for a future urban policy at the European level.

Social revitalisation of urban regions

This paper aims to analyse how social revitalisation can contribute to an (economically) attractive urban region and how such policies can be made more effective and efficient. To stimulate re-urbanisation and attract new economic activities and residents, much attention is paid to the concept of ''the attractive city''. Cities are observed to switch their focus from hardware (tangible services) to software (image, quality of life) and orgware (organising capacity). To enhance the effectiveness of social policy is in that context often considered a spearhead for cities. In practice, social policy does not always seem to be carried out effectively. Much money may be spent on solving a problem without effective progress being accomplished. Moreover, the results of social policy are often hard to measure, so that a lack of purpose may not be easy to detect. The paper is based on a comparative research of eight European urban regions.

Waste not, want not: satellite soil mapping in West Africa

Recycling organic waste could benefit local authorities and urban farmers, reports Leo van den Ber

Ni déchets, ni lacunes : cartographie du sol par satellite

Le recyclage des déchets organiques pourrait être rentable pour les collectivités locales et les paysans urbains, nous dit Leo van den Ber

Opportunities and Challenges of Urban Agriculture for Sustainable City Development

Urban Agriculture (UA) has gained popularity in cities all over the world. In this paper, we explore the concept of UA and discuss it along various locational and strategic dimensions. The article aims to provide insights into the chances and challenges of UA for sustainable city development. By making use of case examples from cities worldwide we show that UA can contribute to the social, environmental, and economics pillars of sustainable city development. However, there are limitations which should be taken into account for cities that want to invest in urban agriculture