Urban mega-projects are commonly deemed a symbol of public-private alliances where redistribution of public money into private hands is common practice. They tend to be great platforms for strategically positioned companies in the private sector to place their services and maximise profits. Such dispossession processes are often actively orchestrated and backed by the state. Theorising through the concept of accumulation by dispossession, this article undertakes a closer examination on how these processes are arranged. Of special interest will be the role of state actors and the way they use legal manoeuvrings in organising dispossession. Using the example of Madrid´s large-scale riverfront regeneration, the analysis reveals how the local government made use of their monopoly of legal power by altering, circumventing and ignoring legal regulations to the benefit of certain economic actors in the private sector while at the same time dispossessing the larger urban population of (futu...

The literature on metropolitan governance is replete with examples of collaborative efforts that have fallen short of expectations and grim prognoses of the potential for voluntary forms of regional governance. This article analyzes something often sought, and rarely found, in American metropolitan politics: successful, effective, and sustained interjurisdictional and interagency cooperation. TRANSCOM, a non-profit transportation organization, stands out as an instance of successful collective cooperation. Operating behind the scenes in one of the world’s most politically fragmented metropolitan areas, its secret has been (a) engaging and building upon a clear and focused mission; (b) demonstrating organizational legitimacy by providing tangible benefits to members; (c) executing its mission without impinging on members’ organizational autonomy; (d) creatively tapping into available resources; (e) sustaining buy-in by developing strong relationships with members; and (f) seeking out...

Tertiary students’ activities within neighbourhoods adjacent to universities engender positive and negative impacts that have consequences for neighbourhood sustainability. This might lead to studentification, a process that triggers physical, economic and socio-cultural transformation of university towns. Where non-student residents perceive negative impacts, it can lead to conflict and resentment towards the student population, mistrust between student and local resident groups and a decrease in social capital.

This paper uses a case study of two neighbourhoods adjacent to a university in Australia to explore ways to integrate students within university neighbourhoods to ensure those communities remain cohesive and sustainable. Focus groups of local residents were held to elicit data and answer the research questions. We refer to social capital and community development theories of social contact and dialogue, to identify how already studentified neighbourhoods or neighbourhoods, w...