Contours and conflicts in scale: Science, knowledge and urban development

Abstract

Increasing attention is being focused upon the roles of cities in knowledge-based development in the context of debates around the relationships between science, technology and innovation and economic growth. The article argues that underlying assumptions and expectations of knowledge, space and place are important in understanding the content and form of responses within different places. The example of the English Science Cities is drawn upon to highlight issues over dominant knowledge-based discourses and the potential for alternative responses to be formulated. Pressures for knowledge-based success are mediated through national contexts, informed by existing paradigms and assumptions, and their effects are varied according to governance structures. Without proper political consideration of the dynamics between knowledge, science and place, more inclusive and sustainable initiatives for knowledge-based growth will not be forthcoming.