Shaping Urban Infrastructures

by Guy, Simon; Marvin, Simon; Medd, Will; Moss, Tiimothy

• ISBN13: 9781849710688
• ISBN10: 1849710686
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-02-28
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Cities can only exist because of the highly developed systems which underlie them, ensuring that energy, clean water, etc. are moved efficiently from producer to user, and that waste is removed. The urgent need to make the way that these services are provided more environmentally, socially and economically sustainable means that these systems are in a state of transition; from centralized to decentralized energy; from passive to smart infrastructure; from toll-free to road pricing. Such transitions are widely studied in the context of the influence of service providers, users, and regulators. Until now, however, relatively little attention has been given to the growing role of intermediaries in these systems. These consists of institutions and organizations acting in-between production and consumption, for example; NGOs who develop green energy labelling schemes in collaboration with producers and regulators to guide the user; consultants who advise businesses on how to save resources; and travel agents who match users with providers. Such intermediaries are in a position to shape the direction that technological transitions take, and ultimately the sustainability of urban networks.This book presents that first authoritative collection of research and analysis of the subject, showing how intermediaries emerge, the role that they play in key sectors - including energy, water, waste and building - and what impact they have on the governance of urban socio-technical networks.

Author Biography

Simon Guy is Professor and Director of The Manchester Architecture Research Centre (MARC) at The University of Manchester, UK. Simon Marvin is Professor and Co-Director at the Centre for Sustainable Urban and Regional Futures, University of Salford, UK. Will Medd is a Lecturer in Human Geography, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, UK. Timothy Moss is Deputy Director at the Leibniz Institute for Regional Development and Structural Planning, Erkner, Germany.

Table of Contents

List of Figures, Tables and Boxes	p. vii
List of Acronyms and Abbreviations	p. ix
About the Contributors	p. xi
Preface	p. xiii
Intermediaries and the Reconfiguration of Urban Infrastructures: An Introduction	p. 1
Conceptual Framework: Governance, Transitions and Cities
Introduction	p. 15
Intermediaries and the Governance of Urban Infrastructures in Transition	p. 17
Systemic Intermediaries and Transition Processes	p. 36
Cities Mediating Technological Transitions	p. 53
Intermediaries in Network Transitions
Introduction	p. 71
Constructing Markets for Green Electricity: The 'Soft Power' of Intermediaries in Transforming Energy Systems	p. 75
Innovation to Intermediaries: Translating the EU Urban Wastewater Directive	p. 92
The Intermediation of Water Expertise in a Post-privatization Context	p. 108
Mobility, Markets and 'Hidden' Intermediation: Aviation and Frequent Flying	p. 124
Intermediaries and Scalar Transitions
Introduction	p. 139
Strategic Intermediation: Between Regional Strategy and Local Practice	p. 143
Reinterpreting Regulations: Architects as Intermediaries for Zero Carbon Buildings	p. 160
Smart Meters as Obligatory Intermediaries: Reconstructing Environmental Action	p. 175
Bridging the Recovery Gap	p. 192
Conclusions: The Transformative Power of Intermediaries	p. 209
Index	p. 219
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