Author Description

A study of stability and change in urban Europe. Its objective is to explain the transformations in the spatial organization of the European cities that took place in the last two decades of the 20th century. It tries to show in what ways these transformations force us to reconsider the traditional definitions of the city. It reviews the changes, starting from the processes of spatial fragmentation, the complexification of the systems of governance, and the transformation of relations of the inhabitants to public space. The contributors highlight the diversity of the urban forms in relation to the changes which affect the cities. On that basis, this book tackles the question of the quality of life in new urban spaces. It goes on to discuss the capacity of urban policies to evoke real changes in the city and to regenerate the systems of urban governance.