Reinterpreting the Meaning of the ‘ S ingapore Model’: State Capitalism and Urban Planning

For city planners and policymakers in many parts of the world, Singapore has come to embody a model of efficient and growth‐oriented urban development. Yet there has been very little research that goes beyond descriptive assessments of urban design and urban policy and understands the political economy that has produced the current system of planning in Singapore. This article explores the role of land acquisition and land management in Singapore's urban development. It argues that Singapore is best understood as a model of urban planning under state capitalism. Drawing largely on academic studies, reports of Singapore government agencies and government‐linked corporations, and interviews the article analyzes the mechanisms through which the Singaporean state has used direct involvement in the commercial real‐estate market as a powerful tool to gain access to revenue, achieve urban redevelopment objectives and exert powerful influence over the Singaporean society and economy. Through the commercial exploitation of state landholdings and through stakes in state‐owned and private enterprises, the Singaporean state has harnessed urban development to an agenda of political hegemony, nation building and economic development within a framework of globalization.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/102246/1/ijur12095.pd

A role for SSU72 in balancing RNA polymerase II transcription elongation and termination

Interactions of pre-mRNA 3&prime;end factors and the CTD of RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) are required for transcription termination and 3&prime;end processing. Here, we demonstrate that Ssu72p is stably associated with yeast cleavage and polyadenylation factor CPF and provide evidence that it bridges the CPF subunits Pta1p and Ydh1p/Cft2p, the general transcription factor TFIIB, and RNAP II via Rpb2p. Analyses of ssu72-2 mutant cells in the absence and presence of the nuclear exosome component Rrp6p revealed defects in RNAP II transcription elongation and termination. 6-azauracil, that reduces transcription elongation rates, suppressed the ssu72-2 growth defect at 33&deg;C. The sum of our analyses suggests a negative influence of Ssu72p on RNAP II during transcription that affects the commitment to either elongation or termination.<br /

The mRNA cap-binding complex stimulates the formation of pre-initiation complex at the promoter via its interaction with Mot1p in vivo

The cap-binding complex (CBC) binds to the cap structure of mRNA to protect it from exonucleases as well as to regulate downstream post-transcriptional events, translational initiation and nonsense-mediated mRNA decay. However, its role in regulation of the upstream transcriptional events such as initiation or elongation remains unknown. Here, using a formaldehyde-based in vivo cross-linking and chromatin immunoprecipitation assay in conjunction with transcriptional, mutational and co-immunoprecipitational analyses, we show that CBC is recruited to the body of yeast gene, and then stimulates the formation of pre-initiation complex (PIC) at several yeast promoters through its interaction with Mot1p (modifier of transcription). Mot1p is recruited to these promoters, and enhances the PIC formation. We find that CBC promotes the recruitment of Mot1p which subsequently stimulates PIC formation at these promoters. Furthermore, the formation of PIC is essential for recruitment of CBC. Thus, our study presents an interesting observation that an mRNA binding factor exhibits a reciprocal synergistic effect on formation of PIC (and hence transcriptional initiation) at the promoter, revealing a new pathway of eukaryotic gene regulation in vivo

'Fourth World' Cities in the Global Economy: The Case of Phnom Penh, Cambodia

While globalization is often perceived to present opportunities for developing countries as a result of the relocation of industry and the development of a new international division of labor, the least developed countries (LDCs) have for the most part experienced declining shares of global trade and investment. This has led some to characterize such 'fourth world' countries as 'structurally irrelevant' to global capital accumulation, and to infer that patterns of urbanization in LDCs are largely unaffected by globalization. Yet a number of aspects of the global economy have important implications for cities in LDCs, including increased international economic interaction, rapid technological change, changes in regional economies, and the increased influence of transnational organizations. This paper explores the impact of these phenomena in the context of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, a city in an LDC that has experienced major socio-economic and spatial change as a result of increased interaction with the global economy. Copyright Joint Editors and Blackwell Publishers Ltd 1998.

The city and the bottom line: urban megaprojects and the privatization of planning in Southeast Asia

Prevailing perspectives on the impacts of globalization on urban form in large, globalizing cities in Asia hold that these cities are experiencing an inexorable process of ‘Westernization’ or ‘Americanization’. Yet this focus on convergence distracts us from the task of analyzing urban change and its causes, leading to analytical muddiness and awkward planning and policy implications. The author presents an alternative framework that focuses on actor-centered analysis, and the importance of understanding historical context. This framework is employed in a case study of recent trends in urban development in Metro Manila, based on interviews, government, private sector, and nonprofit sector documents, and newspapers. It is concluded that, in Metro Manila, a defining characteristic of contemporary urban development is the unprecedented privatization of urban and regional planning. Large developers have conceived of urban development plans on a metrowide scale, and begun to implement these with the assistance of government. This phenomenon has its roots in the historical development of social groups in the Philippines and their shifting interests with the globalization of the Philippine economy. The author concludes that the privatization of planning raises distinct issues for urban planning theory and practice.

Strategizing the for-profit city: The state, developers, and urban production in Mega Manila

International audienceThis article explores the evolving role of real estate developers in the wider metropolitan region of Manila, the Philippines. We argue that, given the relational nature of these actors, they are a relevant object of analysis for the formulation of "mid-level" theories that take into account both global, macroeconomic trends and local, history-dependent contingencies. As we consider developers' activities and interactions with a wide range of public and private actors, we retrace their gradual empowerment since the beginning of the postcolonial period. As a handful of powerful land-owning families created real estate development companies, urban production quickly became dominated by a strong oligarchy capable of steering urban development outside the realm of public decision-making. Philippine developers subsequently strengthened their capacity by stepping into infrastructure provision, seemingly expanding their autonomy further. More recently, however, we argue that while the role of private sector actors in shaping urban and regional trajectories has scaled up, their activities have been tethered more strongly to a state-sponsored vision of change. Both by reorienting public-private partnerships (PPP) toward its regional plans, and by initiating new forms of public-private partnerships that give it more control, the state is attempting to harness the activity of developers. We characterize this shift as a move from the "privatization of planning" to the "planning of privatization" of urban space

Improving Global Planning Education by Centering the Experience of International Students in U.S. and Canadian Planning Schools

This report examines ways to better support international students in U.S. and Canadian planning schools based on a survey and focus groups conducted by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning Global Planning Education Committee (GPEC). Findings show that international students often face alienation and structural barriers to navigating universities and living in an unfamiliar culture, along with identity ambiguity, inadequate career services, and narrowly focused urban planning curricula. This suggests the need for greater mentorship; explicit recognition in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts; tailored professional development; and more holistic support systems.This accepted article is published as Fan Y, Hoey L, Das A, Owusu, F., et al. Improving Global Planning Education by Centering the Experience of International Students in U.S. and Canadian Planning Schools. Journal of Planning Education and Research. May 2022. doi:10.1177/0739456X221093645. Posted with permission

Improving Global Planning Education by Centering the Experience of International Students in US and Canadian Planning Schools

This report examines ways to better support international students in U.S. and Canadian planning schools based on a survey and focus groups conducted by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning Global Planning Education Committee (GPEC). Findings show that international students often face alienation and structural barriers to navigating universities and living in an unfamiliar culture, along with identity ambiguity, inadequate career services, and narrowly focused urban planning curricula. This suggests the need for greater mentorship; explicit recognition in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts; tailored professional development; and more holistic support systems