College
COAS
Department
Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work
Rank
Full Professor
Type of Work
Journal Article
Publication Information
Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space 2019, Vol. 37(1) 119–136
Description of Work
Abstract This paper identifies and delineates a variant of neoliberal urbanism that grounds city-region economic development on the ability to gain financial and public support for large-scale infrastructure projects advancing particular forms of capital accumulation. More specifically, the focus is on the effort of city-regions to strategically exploit and expand geographic and physical assets to capture economic benefits associated with global value chains through the expansion of maritime ports. This development strategy requires sizable public investments in port infrastructure. In order to justify and convince the public and political officials of the wisdom of such investments, port officials commission economic impact studies. These are designed to demonstrate how the public investments will pay off in terms of economic development. This paper will critically examine this feature of the urban development strategy and its role in advancing a particular neoliberal development agenda. The analysis is placed in the larger context of actual existing neoliberalism, the shifting economic prospects of cities and regions, the rise of logistics and transportation, and inter-port competition for containerized cargo.
Neoliberal urbanism as ‘Strategic Coupling’ to global chains: Port infrastructure and the role of economic impact studies
Abstract This paper identifies and delineates a variant of neoliberal urbanism that grounds city-region economic development on the ability to gain financial and public support for large-scale infrastructure projects advancing particular forms of capital accumulation. More specifically, the focus is on the effort of city-regions to strategically exploit and expand geographic and physical assets to capture economic benefits associated with global value chains through the expansion of maritime ports. This development strategy requires sizable public investments in port infrastructure. In order to justify and convince the public and political officials of the wisdom of such investments, port officials commission economic impact studies. These are designed to demonstrate how the public investments will pay off in terms of economic development. This paper will critically examine this feature of the urban development strategy and its role in advancing a particular neoliberal development agenda. The analysis is placed in the larger context of actual existing neoliberalism, the shifting economic prospects of cities and regions, the rise of logistics and transportation, and inter-port competition for containerized cargo.
Biographical Statement
David Jaffee is Professor of Sociology at University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida. He received his PhD in Sociology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, his MA in Political Science from Washington University-St. Louis, and his BA in Political Science from the University of Florida.
Jaffee’s research, writing, and publication are in the areas of social and economic development, organization theory, political economy, and higher education. He is the author of two books -- Levels of Socio-Economic Development Theory (Praeger) and Organization Theory: Tension and Change (McGraw-Hill) and numerous peer-reviewed journal articles articles.