Monthly Archives: April 2011

by | 28/04/2011 · 14:11

Their big-fat-royal wedding (A joke or should I watch it live?)

By Mihalis Kavaratzis

Earlier today I went to buy a new lighter. The lady in the shop said: “We have on offer these royal-wedding lighters; same price as a normal one – only today and tomorrow.” It was  a lighter featuring the faces of Prince William and Princess-to-be Kate. The date of the incident: 28th April 2011, the day before the royal wedding in England. The place of the incident is more interesting: the centre of Budapest, Hungary. Then I remembered that the week before, two (as far as I know) popular lifestyle magazines in Hungary published a 20-page supplement on the royal wedding. Then I remembered the cups, mugs, plates, silver spoons, scarves and all the rest of royal wedding paraphernalia I had seen in England. Then I went to check my emails and the internet as I do every day. The Greek news-site that I normally check had two separate articles on the royal wedding on its home page! Continue reading →

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by | 27/04/2011 · 19:15

International Place Branding Conference: Special Session, 19th -21st January 2012


in:polis | urbanism in cooperation with the Department of Human Geography & Planning, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University are happy to announce the special session of the International Place Branding Conference from 19th – 21st January in Utrecht, The Netherlands. Continue reading →

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by | · 08:00

The troubled relationship between practitioners and academics. (A belated answer to Efe Sevin)

Tunja, Colombia

by Ares Kalandides

During the closing panel of the 2nd International Place Branding Conference in Bogotá, we had a rather long discussion on the relationship between practitioners and academics. The controversy was triggered by a statement of mine that we should think about a conference without “communication practitioners”. A few days after the conference, Efe Sevin, more or less declared the academics quite a nuisance and asked for more cases and less criticism.  I didn’t answer then, but I should now.

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by | 22/04/2011 · 10:00

Impacts of City Tourism: An international comparison of management strategies – Part II

>>> read Part I

© Dirk Baumbach

by Nils Grube

In Venice, over the decades, Tourism has led to an “expulsion” of many locals, tells Francesca Perotto, who is responsible for the Venetian Government Tourist Board. “The pressure on the housing market increased dramatically – mainly due to the increase of tourist-occupied housing. Rising prices have forced many residents to move away.” Unfortunately, no city administration so far has found a solution to the problem, notes Perotto. “The biggest challenge is to develop a sustainable tourism strategy, which also satisfies the quality of life and mobility of the Venetians.” Continue reading →

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by | 21/04/2011 · 10:00

Impacts of City Tourism: An international comparison of management strategies – Part I

(c) Paul Zinken

by Nils Grube

The last few months a huge discussion was spreading across Berlin about negative effects of international tourism on the city. “Foreign visitors are being blamed for increasing rents, noisy streets and neighbourhood upheaval“, the Australian-Estonian and Berlin based freelance journalist Joel Alas summarises the reproaches on the so-called “party tourists” in his critical column for the german newspaper “Der Tagesspiegel” (1). Continue reading →

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by | 20/04/2011 · 18:19

Extreme Recycling: Architect Hopes to Revitalize Norwegian City with Oil Platform – SPIEGEL ONLINE – News – International

Norwegian architect Sverre Max Stenersen has an ambitious vision: He wants to tow a giant retired oil platform from the North Sea to Trondheim. Remodelled with apartments and other facilities, Stenersen would like to remind Norwegians where their wealth comes from and revitalize a blighted neighborhood.

Read the whole article at Spiegel online:

Extreme Recycling: Architect Hopes to Revitalize Norwegian City with Oil Platform – SPIEGEL ONLINE – News – International.

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by | 19/04/2011 · 18:55

Public Transportation Systems: The Transmilenio in Bogotá

by Ares Kalandides

I consider this to be one of the most innovative transportation systems I know. It follows the principles of rail systems without the expensive hardware. Bogotá can be proud of this!

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by | 18/04/2011 · 10:37

Call for Papers: Place Branding in the Middle East

by Mareike Forßbohm

Tradition meets innovation. “The Middle East has always had a relevant role in world affairs. It is home to the first civilizations and where the establishment of the first city has been documented. [...] The relevance of the Middle East in world affairs through the centuries was based on it being a centre of development and innovation. Continue reading →

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by | 17/04/2011 · 21:35

Rebranding Libya – A Daily Show Approach

Guest Article by Efe Sevin

In this video, John Oliver of the Daily Show, helps Ali Suleiman Aujali to rebrand Libya. First of all, it was nice to hear the concepts of brand, nation, and country together in a popular show! And secondly, Aujali’s reactions are quite important in understanding the obstacles place branding scholars and practitioners face.

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by | 14/04/2011 · 15:55

Portlandia–Portland as a flannel-clad slacker’s Paradise

(c) Scott Green / IFC

by Nils Grube

At Portlandia – a new comedy series made its debut this January on IFC -  the two protagonists Fred Armisen (comedian of Saturday Night Live and the creator of the series) and Carrie Brownstein (guitarist and singer of the Portland based and 2006 broke up rock band Sleater Kinney) present in six episodes with six different couples of characters their comic version of the counterculture of Portland, Oregon.  Portlandia shows Portland as “a flannel-clad slacker’s paradise where young people go to retire”, a place where the dream of the 90’s is still alive – whatever this means – just have a look at the series introductional video clip: Continue reading →

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