Urban structures and urban growth rates are highly persistent. This has far-reaching implications for the optimal size and timing of new construction. We prove that rational developers postpone construction not because prospects are gloomy, but because they are bright. The slow mean reversion in...

The commonly-used satellite images of nighttime lights fail to capture the true brightness of most cities. We show that night lights are a reliable proxy for economic activity at the city level, provided they are first corrected for top-coding. We present a stylized model of urban luminosity and...

This paper studies urban growth in Korean cities. First, I document that population growth patterns change over time and that the current population distribution supports random urban growth. I confirm two empirical laws—Zipf’s law and Gibrat’s law—both of which hold in the period of...

Since 1980, economic growth in the U.S. has been fastest in its largest cities. We show that a group of skill- and information-intensive service industries are responsible for all of this new urban bias in recent growth. We then propose a simple explanation centered around the interaction of...

The morphology of today's cities is the result of historic urban developments and ongoing urban transformation resulting in complex urban spatial structures. While functionally as well as spatially, cities are structured into sub-units such as the city center, business districts, residential...

How does the structure of metropolitan areas a ect urbanization and welfare? Using the development of urban sub-centers in France in the 1970s, I study the short- and long-term e ects of urban structural changes. To retrieve within metropolitan area e ects, I exploit the fact that out of 11...

This paper introduces a new city-level panel dataset constructed using satellite nighttime light imagery and grid population data. The dataset contains over 1,500 cities covering 43 economies of Asia and the Pacific from 1992 to 2016. With the dataset, we perform a variety of analyses for Asia...

Institutional Fragmentation and Urbanisation in the EU Cities This article examines the relationship between institutional fragmentation and the spatial extent of cities in Europe's Functional Urban Areas. European Union planning regulations vary across member states, but in most cases, local...

This paper studies urban growth in Korean cities. First, I document that population growth patterns change over time and that the current population distribution supports random urban growth. I confirm two empirical laws-Zipf's law and Gibrat's law-both of which hold in the period of 1995-2015,...

Since 1980, economic growth in the U.S. has been fastest in its largest cities. We show that a group of skill- and information-intensive service industries are responsible for all of this new urban bias in recent growth. We then propose a simple explanation centered around the interaction of...

This study assesses the effects of urban governance structure on the spatial expansion of metropolitan areas. A more fragmented governance structure, represented by a high number of administrative units with decision power on land use per inhabitant, is expected to increase the competition...

The present paper describes a research that, based on the evolutionary data of the urban settlement over a period of half a century, shows the changes undergone by the various landscape categories of Southern Italy. The regions involved are four (Campania, Basilicata, Puglia and Calabria) and...

Uncontrolled urban growth and haphazard land developments are one of the crucial problems in Addis Ababa and the surrounding Oromia special zone causing environmental degradation and rural-urban land base conflicts. This is mostly because of the rapidly increasing built-up area that conquered...

In Bangladesh, cities are conventionally classified based on population size and revenue collection. This conventional city classification system neglects the spatial characteristics inherit in cities. Providing a more comprehensive city classification system is essential for the country’s...

In India, urban sprawl of metropolitan cities and other large cities is a widespread concern for planners and policy makers. Modeling urban sprawl of small and medium size towns is completely bypassed urban research of India. This study attempted to fill-up the gap by addressing the three urban...

Gender mainstreaming and gender budgeting aim to increase equality and equal opportunities between women and men. In contrast to the majority of evaluations of gender equality, which analyse legal, socio-political and distribution-relevant aspects, the aim of this research project is to estimate...

As a country transitions from a lower order of development to a higher order of development, it undergoes a structural transformation. Accordingly, the spatial economy transforms from a system organized around smaller economic units distributed throughout the countryside, to one comprising...

Seit der Öffnung des Eisernen Vorhangs war das ostdeutsche Städtesystem verschiedenen sich überlappenden Prozessen des institutionellen Wandels, wie dem rapiden Übergang von einer sozialistischen Plan- zur Marktwirtschaft, verschiedenen politischen und administrativen Reformen, sowie der...

An instant city -- The chief architect -- The planned and unplanned -- The global knowledge city -- The Shenzhen-Hong Kong dialectics -- New cities 'made in China' -- The Dengist legacy in a 'new era.'

"Water exploitation has increased notably in the world during the last 250 years since the onset of industrialisation. The relationships between economic processes and water use are complex and include many interwoven drivers such as: technological development, dietary choices and food...

The notion of compact city has become an important planning agenda to achieve a sustainable urban future. Although there is no universally accepted definition of a compact city, in terms of land use, the concept generally focuses on high-density and mixed-use development along with the promotion...

India is at the cusp of a major urban transition. In less than twenty years, India's urban population is expected to nearly double from 377 million today to over 600 million. Indian cities already contribute an estimated two-thirds of India's GDP, and this number is expected to rise to 75% by...

The commonly-used satellite images of nighttime lights fail to capture the true brightness of most cities. We show that night lights are a reliable proxy for economic activity at the city level, provided they are first corrected for top-coding. We present a stylized model of urban luminosity and...