Theorising the messiness of global urbanism

Abstract

The aim of this Viewpoint, along with the response from Gavin Shatkin, is to foster debate and dialogue regarding how we theoretically understand the trajectories of global urbanism at present. Conventional approaches to understanding of urban transformation on a global scale have failed to keep pace with the complex forces that have reshaped the rhythms and patterns of urban transformation on a global scale in the early decades of the twenty-first century. Originating out of a fixation with the high-modernist city of industrial capitalism, mainstream theories remain harnessed to a set of antiquated paradigms and outdated analytic concepts that are no longer capable of capturing not only the unprecedented pace and scale of global urbanisation but also the rich diversity of urban experiences around the world. Calls to rethink conventional urban theory have produced an outpouring of fresh perspectives that have energised urban scholarship. Despite the upsurge of interest in understanding global urbanism and urbanisation processes, disagreement about what approach to adopt has overshadowed agreement.