Gateway Cities Research Articles

World cities and peripheral development: The interplay of gateways and subordinate places in Argentina and Ghana’s upstream oil and gas sector

AbstractServing as “gateways”, some world cities tie their wider hinterlands to global networks. The article revisits gateway–hinterland relations against the backdrop of assessments that lead to opposed conclusions on the benefits and shortcomings of integration into the world economy. Referring to the oil and gas sector in Argentina and Ghana, it answers the question of how gateways interact with subordinate places and also uncovers obstacles to peripheral development. The author finds that Accra and Buenos Aires concentrate corporate control. Argentina's capital serves as a gateway for knowledge generation and logistics too. Opportunities for peripheral development in both countries are considerable, albeit largely limited to generic services. Besides a certain concentration of business activities in the gateway cities, more important challenges to peripheral development are typical for small and medium enterprises (insufficient finance and management capabilities, unawareness of business opportunities, and the like). They include rent seeking and subcontracting. The latter leaves local companies in a particularly weak position vis‐à‐vis lead firms. The author argues that while integration into the world economy allows for peripheral development, the corresponding outcomes may not meet everyone's expectations. Related expectations must, therefore, be more down‐to‐earth than overly optimistic statements frequently made by politicians.

Towards a typology of local migration diversity policies

This paper contributes to the migration studies literature by a comparative analysis of local migration diversity governance in large, mid-sized and small cities, analysing the broader scope of the local dimension of migration-diversity policies. While a ‘local turn’ has taken place in migration studies over the past two decades, the literature has primarily focused on capital and gateway cities. Yet immigrants arrive and settle in a much wider range of cities. Little is known about what forms migration-diversity governance across cities of different sizes and positions. This paper therefore conducts a comparative analysis of migration diversity governance across the local dimension. Based on a qualitative, comparative analysis of migration diversity policies in 16 Dutch municipalities between 2014 and 2018, I distinguish between different local migration diversity policy approaches: ‘proactive pluralist’, ‘proactive monist’, ‘reactive embedded’ and ‘reactive one-domain’. This illustrates the variety of local approaches to migration diversity and thus argues against ‘a local dimension’ of migration diversity governance, rather arguing for different types of local approaches. The proactive cities explicitly chose their own framing for their migration diversity policies, in contradiction to the supposed ‘paradigmatic’ character of the local level, instead showing that cities position their own framing of migration diversity. The types of migration diversity policies I distinguish provide an analytical framework and starting point for further research on the variety of local migration diversity approaches.

Refugees and the transforming landscapes of small cities in the US

ABSTRACT Over the past thirty years, immigrants in the US have been settling outside of gateway cities, going instead to a number of other new locations across the country. While much of the extant literature has focused on economic and family-based migration, in this paper I look at a different subgroup, officially resettled refugees. I explore the rationales that lie behind such a trend by examining placement data and a number of interviews with key figures in the US resettlement system at multiple levels. In particular, I examine the idea of refugees as an instrument of urban revitalization for smaller cities as well as the opportunities and challenges that their arrival has presented for these sites. I contextualize the arrival of refugees in smaller cities in the US within the current moment of rising racism, xenophobia and anti-immigrant sentiment across the country, as well as a resettlement program undergoing radical changes..

Targeting economic development with science and technology parks and gateway cities: Schumpeterian possibilities of new developmental states in fostering local and global development

ABSTRACT In this paper, we investigate how innovative environments as a local strategic policy with particular features of the new entrepreneurial developmental state associated to what we call a Schumpeterian-style of policy can transform regions of middle-income countries, like Brazil. In particular, we sought to answer the following research question: how the São José dos Campos Science and Technology Park (STP-SJC) has been used as a tool to promote regional development? To answer it, having a logical model of this policy in perspective, we focus on this environment’s main objectives and empirically we performed a case study applying process tracing methodology.

Urban Contexts and Immigrant Organizations: Differences in New York, El Paso, Paris, and Barcelona

This article compares immigrant and ethnic organizations in four major immigrant-receiving cities and reveals substantial variation across these immigrant gateway cities. Using data from ethnographic fieldwork and an original database of relevant organizations in New York City; El Paso, Texas; Paris; and Barcelona, I find differences in organizational type and density, as well as in their legitimacy and funding. This article contributes to a growing literature on immigrant organizations. Although immigrant organizations have a long history in some cities, they may not always operate in ways that enhance refugee and migrant integration. Comparing immigrant organizations is fruitful because it tells us more about city and national political systems and why distinct localities deal with cultural minorities differently. These comparisons can help the readers to understand the barriers and ladders that immigrants encounter in different cities and inform policy-makers in designing better approaches to incorporate immigrants.

The experiences of immigrant entrepreneurs in a medium‐sized Canadian city: The case of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

There is growing interest in the dynamics of immigrant entrepreneurship in non‐traditional immigrant gateway cities in Canada. Encouraging immigrant businesses is a particularly pressing imperative for Atlantic Canada's small and medium‐sized cities, which struggle with aging labour markets, youth out‐migration, and difficulty attracting and retaining newcomers. Recent research on immigrant entrepreneurship highlights the geography of entrepreneurial benefits and challenges across Canadian cities. Our study contributes to this field by examining the experiences of immigrant entrepreneurs on the “edge”—working in Canada's easternmost city, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Our findings are based on 28 interviews conducted with immigrant entrepreneurs and key informants in St. John's. As a remote, peripheral city within Canada with a small immigrant population and an economy intimately tied to booms and busts in global oil markets, we found that St. John's presents a distinct set of challenges for immigrant entrepreneurs. Yet, a recent rush to encourage a start‐up ecosystem—through a university‐based incubator program and new provincial nominee streams—is also creating new opportunities for self‐employment and shifting the terrain of support towards white‐collar businesses. Ultimately, this study highlights the variegated experiences of a diverse set of immigrant entrepreneurs in St. John's.

Making sense of increased synchronization in global house prices

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide perspective on whether and why global metro house prices have become more synchronized, and perspective on the limited implications of this for investing in international real estate. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews main findings from the literature on house price determination, reviews the emerging literature on global synchronization, and provides graphs to illustrate main points and trends. Findings House prices have become somewhat more synchronized likely reflecting greater correlation in long-term interest rates and macroeconomic cycles related to trends in globalization and international portfolio diversification. Nevertheless, this trend has not been continuous, reflecting that house prices depend on other fundamentals, which are not uniform across areas. Theory and evidence indicate that the more common are fundamentals, the more synchronized are house price cycles and the more substitution effects may matter. Also, real estate markets that are open to immigration and foreign investment have become more sensitive to shifts in the international demand for property by migrants or investors. Research limitations/implications Changes in international house price synchronization stem from variation in two categories of key drivers of house prices. The first are traditional supply and demand fundamentals. The second include international capital flows and immigration. Both sets of factors are sensitive to the economic environment and public policy. Increased synchronization of business cycles, the Euro currency union, and more common monetary policy strategies and tactics have fostered greater correlation of real interest rates across countries, which tend to increase house price synchronization. These effects can be amplified by the tendency for property owners to use extrapolative expectations of future house prices. Practical implications Shifts in prospective returns and the synchronization of international property returns not only on arbitrage of general property price differentials but also on underlying factors driving those differentials. Investors need to be mindful of the risks that metro prices sometimes reflect bubble-builder dynamics that can give rise to over-shooting of house prices. Observing simple correlations and changes in those correlations does not do away with the need for careful analysis of property investment, and if anything, warrant analysis of both how and why one may observe changes in the extent to which international house prices is synchronized. Social implications Despite the rise of globalization and of new technologies, the author has seen substantial divergences in house prices emerge across gateway cities and metros in less vibrant areas within countries. These reflect not only the impact of stronger income and population in more tech, educated and global oriented cities but also changes in the demand for amenities toward more culturally appealing cities, often – but not exclusively in – warmer or coastal areas where the supply elasticity of housing is often limited. Further complicating investment decisions are potential shifts in housing or immigration policy that can notably affect the demand for housing. Originality/value The paper provides practical perspective on why different groups of international cities have seen their house prices become more sychronized. Nevertheless, increased synchronization has occurred within an elite set of major cities, but in an environment house prices have diverged across gateway cities and metros in less vibrant areas within countries. The paper helps investors make sense of some recent patterns and recent prospects for investing in international real estate.

Preface

Masayuki Nakahata and Masatake Ohashi Institute for Cosmic Ray Research, the University of TokyoHigashi-Mozumi, Kamioka-cho, Hida-shi, Gifu-ken, Japan, 506-1205nakahata@suketto.icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jp, ohashi@icrr.u-tokyo.ac.jpThe 16th International Conference on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics (TAUP 2019) was held in Toyama, Japan, from September 9th through 13th, 2019. The biennial TAUP series covers recent experimental and theoretical developments in astroparticle physics by invited plenary review talks and parallel workshop sessions of invited and contributed presentations, as well as poster sessions. The 2019 edition of the conference was hosted by the Institute for Cosmic Ray Research of the University of Tokyo, and held in Toyama, which is the gateway city to the Kamioka experimental site.List of Committees, Plenary Sessions, Parallel Sessions, Poster Session and conference photographs are available in this pdf.

A regional growth ecology, a great wall of capital and a metropolitan housing market

In a narrative framed by Harvey Molotch’s growth machine thesis, this article examines the globalisation of property in gateway cities, and its contribution to house price inflation in Vancouver, the least affordable market in North America. In response to a floundering British Columbia (BC) economy, a favourable investment and immigration climate welcomed capital and invited capitalists to re-locate their economic skills. Substantial funds flowed to Vancouver from the buoyant Asia Pacific, from distant investors and wealthy immigrants. Capital flows were facilitated by a powerful growth coalition, as the provincial government benefited significantly from these funds, and held a common interest with a vigorous trans-Pacific property industry. Supporting this growth coalition, the deregulation of private institutions and the under-resourcing of public agencies working in the capital/real estate nexus provided an ecology favourable to the ‘animal spirits’ of the market, including real estate opportunism and money laundering. Such a growth ecology, exacerbating severe unaffordability, may exist in other globally networked cities, though relations are rarely so well developed and so powerful in their effects.

In the gateway's shadow: Interactions between Singapore's Hinterlands

AbstractDuring the 1990s, Singapore, the Malaysian state of Johor and the Riau Islands in Indonesia marketed themselves as a single investment destination. Due to its capital, technology, and superior logistics, Singapore was the “gateway”; Johor and the Riau Islands were the hinterland—supplying land, labour, and resources. Since then, production networks between the three territories have deepened. Interactions with Singapore have also catalysed connections between Johor and the Riau Islands. To date, research has focussed on the city‐state as the gateway and/or linkages between it and one of the two hinterlands. This emphasis is inherent in the “Gateway City” framework, which focusses on the primary city at the expense of its hinterlands and also overlooks mediating influences such as borders and border regimes. This article proposes complementing the Gateway City with the Cross‐Border Region framework to gain stronger purchase on the unit of analysis and focusing on inter‐hinterland dynamics to gain a more complete picture of how gateway cities affect their surrounding areas. Through applying this expanded theoretical framework to study the interactions of Johor and the Riau Islands, this article seeks to shed light on an under‐theorised and under‐studied aspect of gateway cities.

“One thing leads to another”, but where? – Gateway cities and the geography of production linkages

AbstractAlthough it has been argued that current configurations of extractive industries provide opportunities for developing production linkages, in other words, that “one thing leads to another”, these opportunities are not necessarily realised directly in the resource‐holding countries. This article aims to explain why the greater opportunities for creating increased production linkages may remain unrealised. While existing research on production linkages is characterised by a national scale mode of analysis, this article examines production linkages in the resource‐poor gateway city of Singapore that are intended to serve oil and gas operations at the macro‐regional level in Indonesia and Vietnam. The results reveal that a significant depth and breadth of production linkages have unfolded in Singapore, highlighting that in particular sophisticated production linkages tend to have a broader geographic scope. Moreover, the analysis identifies factors that have shifted the territorial scale of labour‐intensive and low‐technology production linkages from a macro‐regional towards a national or subnational level, to the advantage of the resource‐holding countries. These insights add some complexity to the study of production‐linkage development and emphasise the need for a multi‐scalar perspective that does not stop at national borders.

Fruits of Empire: Figs, Raisins, and Transformation of Western Anatolia in the Late Nineteenth Century

Abstract This study discusses from the perspective of environmental history the role of fig and grape cultivation in the development of Izmir into the first gateway city of the Ottoman Empire. From the 1870s on, figs and raisins were together a dynamic force promoting the opening up of hitherto unexploited areas of Western Anatolia to commercial agriculture. Fig trees and vines were commercially grown almost everywhere in the region, from the edge of the waters of the Mediterranean to the hilltops. Rural residents reclaimed large tracts of wasteland for planting figs and vines, while the quantity of figs and raisins annually exported amounted to thousands of tons as the introduction of railroads, formation of commercial networks, and development of processing, packing, and shipment operations facilitated their production and trade. The expansion of fig and grape growing was an integral part of the process of Western Anatolia's integration into the market economy and is demonstrated by the railroads, stations, warehouses and packing units found in Izmir and its hinterland. Figs and grapes attracted foreign capital investment and technology, promoted trade and stimulated the movement of people across the region. The expansion of fig and grape cultivation created seasonal employment for thousands of men and women in the city and countryside. In short, fig and grape growing across Western Anatolia had a profound impact on the region's human and natural landscape.

Power in the metropolis: the impact of economic and demographic growth on the Antwerp City Council (1400–1550)

AbstractCurrent historiography endorses a narrative that the political elite of pre-industrial gateway cities became more ‘open’ in the wake of efflorescence and that their city councils became populated with merchants. Yet, according to the existing literature, Antwerp challenges this narrative, as the influx of merchants was very limited during late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries when Antwerp transformed from a medium-sized Brabantine city into the leading economic centre in western Europe. Moreover, scholars disagree on whether the economic expansion had any impact at all on the composition and profile of Antwerp's political elite. By analysing the social composition of the city council and how this evolved from the beginning of Antwerp's commercial expansion around 1400 until its apogee around 1550, I revisit the question whether Antwerp constitutes an exception to the established pattern of elite formation in gateway cities and, if so, why.

Buenos Aires as a gateway city: how it interlinks the Argentinean oil and gas sector globally

ABSTRACTWorld cites are critical nodes in global production networks (GPNs). Being ‘gateways’, they serve as hubs for transport and logistics, industrial processing, corporate control and service provision as well as knowledge transmission. In this article, the concept of gateway cities is applied to Buenos Aires and the oil and gas sector. The author explains processes of concentration and dispersal, showing that Buenos Aires concentrates corporate control, whereas the other gateway elements can also be found at peripheral locations. The competition of gateway cities and places subordinate to them relates to debates about downsides of integration into the global economy that may result from a gateway’s ‘agglomeration shadow’. From a conceptual perspective, the article brings the GPN approach and the world city literature together so as to better understand the territoriality of GPNs and draw attention to city-to-hinterland relations. Being an open heuristic, the concept allows for incorporating experiences from the Global South and overcoming the bias of the world city literature towards advanced producer services and corporate control. Against the backdrop of the findings on Buenos Aires, the author suggests to better recognize a city’s attractiveness as a place to live and work.

Assessment of local perception on eco-industrial estate performances after 17 years of implementation in Thailand

While development of the eco-industrial estates (EIEs) could contribute to the improvement of community livelihoods, little study was conducted to assess the performances after their implementation in Thailand. Here, we assessed the local perception on EIE performances in terms of physical, environmental, social, economic, and managerial aspects. A household survey was carried out with 220 households at four EIEs, namely Bang Phli, Gateway City, Map Ta Phut and Samut Sakhon according to various indicators of EIE development and performances using a Likert scale of 1–5. In-depth interviews with 25 key informants were also conducted to obtain qualitative information and insight. It was found that the implementation of the EIEs achieved the average score of 3.39 or 67.7%, suggesting that the implementation of the EIEs had improved the livelihoods of and gained trust from the local communities. Specifically, the economic aspect achieved the highest score (4.00), followed by the physical aspect (3.38), while the environmental aspect received only 3.11. Community members were concerned about air pollution, water pollution, dust, odors and noise. However, communities were generally satisfied with the performance of the EIEs, particularly in the economic aspect as the EIEs supported local employment and developed facilities for the communities and eventually increased community incomes and built prosperity. Our findings provide important insights for policy makers to understand and introduce effective policy interventions to further improve trust and relationship between EIEs and local communities as such trust and relationship can motivate communities to actively participate in the development of EIEs.

A Karu Based Experience about the Effect of Informal Land Delivery Channels’ on Housing Supply

For a long period of time, urban land delivery system in Nigeria has seen a stable association between formal and informal channels, which is going till date. Instead of the provision of the Land Use Act of 1978, which granted states (the second tier of government in Nigeria) the authority to hold and administer all lands within their territorial jurisdiction, interests for urban land are still largely being expressed through the informal mechanisms. These transactions continue defying all odds associated to it. This research established the extent to which informal land delivery channels has influenced housing supply in Karu, the gateway city to Nigeria’s capital Abuja. Data were obtained through primary sources, analyzed, and presented in matrixes. The outcome of this research suggests about the accessibility and economical value of lands. This has led development and financing options are the important factors that influence the choices of urban residents particularly the majority who are the low-medium income earners preferences of informal land delivery for their housing development. Despite their deficiencies as it regards; tenure security has been strengthened by its social legitimacy and possible upgrade to statutory status.Thus, the main conclusion of the study is that the predominant influence of these factors on the urban land market will continue to sustain the informality of land access and directly determine the rate of residential housing supply in most Nigerian cities. The study recommends that the operations of the informal land channel should be standardized as it promises to bea sustainable alternative to the formal system.

The Spatial Relationship between Land Surface Temperature and Land Use/Cover Types in Sapporo City, Japan

Abstract. Land surface temperature (LST) has received a significant attention for urban health and sustainable development. In recent years, with the rapid urbanization and industrialization, urban heat island phenomenon has prevailed in many cities in developed countries and caused excessive energy consumption, and climatic and environmental deterioration. It is expected that to optimize the composition of land use/cover distribution can reduce the urban heat island phenomenon. Therefore, monitoring the spatial changes and analysing its effects on land surface temperature are crucial for maintaining the healthy urban development in the near future.Based on the above background, this study tried to geographically examine the relationship between the LST and land use/cover changes in Sapporo which is the fifth largest city and a gateway city on the northern island in Japan. We investigated the LST in each land use/cover category from 1985 to 2015 by using Landsat data. The results show that: (1)the land use/cover types and spatial distribution have a great influence on the formation of the LST; (2) the expansion of built-up area is the most significant factor affecting urban heat island during the past 30 years; and (3) the green space and water area help cool the urbanized area. By revealing a spatial relationship between the land use/cover distribution and the LST, this analysis could open an avenue to scientific research on future LST simulation and scenario based on land use/cover changes.Our research goal does not only contribute to the urban health and sustainable development but also provide an important insight into the consequence of the strong city competence.

Urban tree survival and stewardship in a state-managed planting initiative: A case study in Holyoke, Massachusetts

Stewardship is essential for the survival of trees planted in challenging urban conditions and for reaching canopy cover goals and anticipated benefits. The governance structure of the stewardship network can dictate stewardship efficacy and ultimately, tree survival. While many planting initiatives are managed locally, the stewardship network and survival rates of a state-managed initiative are not commonly addressed in scholarly literature. The Greening the Gateway Cities Program (GGCP) in Massachusetts is planting thousands of trees in post-industrial cities around the state. We carried out a mixed-methods case study of 2014 to 2016 tree planting in Holyoke, a GGCP pilot city, to assess the factors that influence survival. Specifically, we interviewed program stakeholders and coupled that data with field monitoring of trees planted along streets and on commercial and institutional landscapes. A logistic regression model shows that trees stewarded by state foresters were approximately 5.18 times more likely to survive, and trees which were not impacted by a summer 2016 drought were approximately 2.80 times more likely to survive. However, the drought impact was muted for trees stewarded by the state, and species characteristics were not significantly related to survival. Importantly, stewardship and planting site type strongly overlapped, providing insight into links between tree survival and stewardship network. At program launch, local recipients and partners agreed to water newly planted trees. But interviews revealed that tree recipients had neither the time nor staffing to adequately care for their trees. The GGCP intended for the local municipal public works department to assume stewardship responsibility, but the latter was unable and/or unwilling to do so due to a lack of funding and misalignment of goals, leaving stewardship as the state’s responsibility. Dedicated funding and staffing for maintenance is essential for strengthening stewardship networks and improving survival of large-scale urban tree plantings. Additionally, urban tree survival can be more strongly mediated by stewardship actors than some biophysical factors.

Rethinking Tasmania’s Regionality from an Antarctic Perspective: Flipping the Map

Tasmania hangs from the map of Australia like a drop in freefall from the substance of the mainland. Often the whole state is mislaid from Australian maps and logos (Reddit). Tasmania has, at least since federation, been considered peripheral—a region seen as isolated, a ‘problem’ economically, politically, and culturally. However, Tasmania not only cleaves to the ‘north island’ of Australia but is also subject to the gravitational pull of an even greater land mass—Antarctica. In this article, we upturn the political conventions of map-making that place both Antarctica and Tasmania in obscure positions at the base of the globe. We show how a changing global climate re-frames Antarctica and the Southern Ocean as key drivers of worldwide environmental shifts. The liquid and solid water between Tasmania and Antarctica is revealed not as a homogenous barrier, but as a dynamic and relational medium linking the Tasmanian archipelago with Antarctica. When Antarctica becomes the focus, the script is flipped: Tasmania is no longer on the edge, but core to a network of gateways into the southern land. The state’s capital of Hobart can from this perspective be understood as an "Antarctic city", central to the geopolitics, economy, and culture of the frozen continent (Salazar et al.). Viewed from the south, we argue, Tasmania is not a problem, but an opportunity for a form of ecological, cultural, economic, and political sustainability that opens up the southern continent to science, discovery, and imagination.

Revisiting gateway cities: connecting hubs in global networks to their hinterlands

ABSTRACTGateway cities have received much attention from urban geographers. In spite of outstanding contributions being made, we think that the concept needs to be revisited with regard to regional development implications. Bringing together research on global production networks (GPNs) and world cities, this article shows that gateway cities are critical for development in networks, generating impulses for peripheral locations by engaging them in processes of “strategic coupling.” Yet, gateway cities also concentrate segments of GPNs to the detriment of their hinterlands. We conceptualize gateway cities with the aid of five features: logistics and transport, industrial processing, corporate control, service provision and knowledge generation. Our concept allows for an understanding of cities in global and regional economic processes beyond corporate headquarters, corporate services and governance – that is, beyond the boundaries of existing research. It unsettles traditional understandings of strategic coupling and world cities, filling a lacuna on city–hinterland connections.