Department of Sociology

TALK TITLE:

Emerging Global Cities: Origin and Significance

ABSTRACT:

Certain cities—most famously New York, London, and Tokyo-- have been identified as 'global cities' whose functions in the world economy transcend national borders. Without the same fanfare, formerly peripheral and secondary cities have been growing in importance, emerging as global cities in their own right.​ The similarity of the skylines of Dubai, Miami, and Singapore is no coincidence. Despite their very different historical paths, all three have achieved newfound prominence by fulfilling the same set of economic and social pre-conditions. 

In my recent book, Emerging Global Cities (co-authored by Ariel C. Armony of the University of Pittsburgh), we seek to identify the constellation of historical factors that allowed these cities to allow to their current prominence and the role that they play in their respective world regions—South Asia for Singapore; the Middle East for Dubai; and  Central and South America for Miami. We contrast their experiences with those of other cities that, at one time or another, aspired to a similar role in their respective regions but that, for reasons identified in the study, failed to reach it. These we term  'global hopefuls'.

Time permitting, I will also describe the looming threats confronting these emerging cities-- from political crises to climate change, including rising sea levels. The experience of the three cities indicates that there are 'degrees of freedom' permitting formerly peripheral cities and nations to rise in global prominence, but that this is a difficult feat and constantly under threat from external competition and forces unleashed by the same world system that allowed their rise in the first place.