City, Culture and Society 1 (2010) 1–2
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
City, Culture and Society
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ccs
Editorial
City, Culture and Society (CCS) – Opening up new horizon of urban studies
Neo-liberalist globalization, which has advanced rapidly
mainly in the arena of finance and economy since the late
1980s, has plunged the world into a money game, involved
global cities in competition with each other, and caused an
expansion in regional and social disparities in the midst of
dog-eat-dog rivalry for survival. However, it seems that
being sunk into the worst worldwide depression in
80 years has presented people with an opportunity for
reflection, and has begun to make people recognize the
need to diverge from market fundamentalism and escape
from financially-centered globalization.
In the midst of this, global society is experiencing a tran-
sition away from the existing socio-economic system, and
there is a need to question and rethink existing theories
in the domains of the humanities and social sciences as
well. In the field of urban studies, the urgent task has be-
come reconsideration of the global cities, creative cities,
sustainable cities, etc. which have appeared up to the
beginning of the 21st century.
What has probably attracted the most attention from the
end of the previous century through the beginning of the
21st century is the theory of the global city. Saskia Sassen’s
The Global City thoroughly lays out the process of restruc-
turing in the economic base, urban space, and social struc-
ture of the megacities that stand at the summit of
globalization, analyzes the realities and social contradic-
tions brought about by globalization within the dynamism
of their development and decline, and hints at the future of
cities. However, the global city of New York, whose engine
of growth has been the financial sector and high level pro-
fessional services, became the target of the 9/11 attack, and
is being tossed about in the high winds of the depression
triggered by the Lehman Brothers meltdown of September
15, 2008. This has attached a big question mark to the issue
of the city’s sustainability. As Sassen’s article in this journal
indicates, in the midst of a chain of worldwide financial
failures, research on global cities seems to be moving away
from analysis of the hegemonic structure formed by the ur-
ban bureaucracy and multinational corporations towards a
focus on the formation of new governance bodies that ex-
plore the deeper layers of social contradictions and try to
rebuild the city from the bottom up, such as grassroots cit-
izens’ groups and NGOs which espouse socially inclusive
cities.
1877-9166/$ - see front matter Ó 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
doi:10.1016/j.ccs.2010.07.002
Meanwhile, the ‘creative city’ has emerged in the spot-
light of 21st century urban theory, taking the place of glo-
bal cities. In the midst of the transition to a knowledge and
information-based economy, against the historical back-
drop of the decline of Fordist cities based on manufactur-
ing, the theory of creative cities has conceptualized
‘urban regeneration through culture and creativity’ based
on a number of successful examples, and is rapidly becom-
ing popular around the world, extending into realms re-
lated to creative industries, creative economies, and the
creative class, with many variations. In the US especially
it has given impetus to a competition between cities in
attracting the ‘creative class.’
However, a creative city does not automatically come
into being just by attracting the creative class. For the
development of creative industries which are the economic
engine of creative cities, as Andy Pratt’s article indicates, it
is indispensable that the intrinsic values of the city’s cul-
tural capital and resources are mobilized, and without for-
mation of networks and clusters based on the creativity
and spontaneity of creators and artists, one cannot hope
for sustainable development of the city’s economy. Also, if
urban policy concerns are solely focused on attracting the
creative class, it can lead to a heightening of social tensions.
In the beginning, the urban concept of the ‘creative city’
was born out of the experience of ‘European City of Culture’
or ‘European Capital of Culture’ promoted by the European
Union, and was an experiment not only in urban economic
revival but social and cultural revival as well, using culture
and creativity in the creation of new industries and jobs
and for help in solving problems of homelessness, the envi-
ronment, etc.
In the midst of threatened livelihoods brought about by
the current worldwide depression, it seems that the theory
of creative cities is expected to creatively address chal-
lenges involving ‘social inclusion’ issues, such as seeing
that homeless people are not socially ostracized, conquer-
ing the disparities that have arisen in the knowledge and
information economy, or solving the problem of refugees
brought about by rapid globalization.
The paradigm shift ‘from global cities to creative cities’
has become a fact, and with the building of a creative city
network proposed by UNESCO, which has been emphasiz-
ing preservation of cultural diversity since 2004, a new
2 Editorial / City, Culture and Society 1 (2010) 1–2
development ‘away from competition between cities and
towards a network of cities’ is becoming visible.
In discussing the cultural creative power of cities, one
cannot leave out analyses related to the social status and
living conditions of the cultural producers who are engaged
in cultural production. Edmond Préteceille’s analysis shows
that in recent years in Paris, cultural producers have rela-
tively lower incomes and unstable working conditions
compared to other professionals, especially private firm
professionals, and that as land prices skyrocket due to gen-
trification, there is a strong tendency for them to be driven
out of the urban core. A ‘socially-inclusive creative city’ pol-
icy that supports the creative activities of cultural produc-
ers is sorely needed, and not just one that is solely focused
on the creative class.
The rapid deterioration of the earth’s environment and
the frequent occurrence of large scale floods, earthquakes,
and other disasters since this century began has become a
huge impediment to the sustainable development of cities.
The active role played by performing arts culture for the
citizens and communities in recovering from such disasters
has drawn attention in recent years. The essay by Shin Nak-
agawa et al. deals with two cases, the modern Japanese city
of Kobe and the old Indonesian cultural capital of Yogya-
karta, and analyzes how ‘aid for culture,’ aimed at saving
cultural resources and people’s livelihoods in the disaster
zones, has gradually shifted into ‘aid through culture.’ In
the former, not only did culture provide the victims with
the courage to go on living, but it brought about linkages
with volunteers aiding in the recovery, environmental pro-
tection groups, etc. and helped create a new shared public
realm in the city. In the latter, a new vision of social inclu-
sion was opened up through traditional gamelan music.
Out of the current worldwide depression, if we intend to
effect a fundamental change in the social system, I believe
the following are issues that must be considered: first, a
shift away from globalization based on market principles
centered around finance and toward globalization that
acknowledges cultural diversity; second, a shift away from
the mass production and mass consumption of Fordism and
towards a ‘creative economy’ based on cultural production
that is not mass produced; third, the revival of creative
work that produces intrinsic value that is backed up by cul-
tural and social values, and the emergence of ‘culturally
creative individuals’ who can create their own lifestyle cul-
ture, transcending false consumption booms; and fourth, a
systemic blueprint for an inclusive and full-engagement
society that allows the creativity of each and every citizen
to flourish, while guaranteeing a basic income, unlike the
forms of welfare provision extant until now.
To theoretically forge the new urban models that are
appearing in this systemic transition period (one of which
is the ‘creative city’), to objectively analyze policy imple-
mentation, and in order to mentally construct the new
post-depression social system, we are publishing the inau-
gural issue of City, Culture and Society (CCS) as a venue for
all kinds valuable experience and information.
The journal CCS that has now been born is an academic
journal dealing principally with themes in the forefront of
urban governance and management, under the banner of
cultural creativity and social inclusion. The main goal of
this journal is to promote groundbreaking research on cit-
ies, present a vision of new city development that responds
to problems, and to be a resource for urban governance.
As well, CCS promotes a new interdisciplinary paradigm
that includes multiple perspectives, and has as its goal the
adaptation of this paradigm to issues being faced by society
in the 21st century, which has been called the ‘century of
cities.’
Especially important topics to be covered include the
creative economy of cities, cultural creativity, social inclu-
sion, social sustainability, cultural technology, urban
management, sustainable cities, and creative cities. As a
groundbreaking academic journal, CCS welcomes manu-
script submissions from a wide range of specialized disci-
plines, including economics, business, accounting,
planning, political science, architecture, geography, sociol-
ogy, historiography, cultural studies, population studies
and public administration.
We hope that everyone will join with CCS in opening up
new horizons in urban research and embarking on a jour-
ney of intellectual exploration.
Masayuki Sasaki
Urban Research Plaza,
Graduate School for Creative Cities,
Osaka City University,
Japan
E-mail addresses: ccs@ur-plaza.osaka-cu.ac.jp,
sasaki@gscc.osaka-cu.ac.jp