Coffee in the Square

Mirror, mirrow on the wall which will be the biggest city of them all?

Price Waterhouse Cooper (or PwC as they now catchily call themselves) have just issued a fascinating analysis if the relative GDP of 150 major cities around the world and taken an educated stab at their relative success in 2020. Largest city economics in the world in 2005 and 2020 They have combined statistics for GDP with those for per capita income in order to arrive at a (relatively) equally valued output.  Using these statistics the number one ranking goes to Tokyo and according to the report London will be creeping up from number 6 to become the fourth largest capital in the world.  Tipped for the highest growth in real GDP are the great cities of China, that is Shanghai and Beijing, followed closely by Mumbai and the big Latin American cities.  Other far eastern climbers will include Seoul and Manila.

The study recognises the limitations of such an overview in particular by the slightly arbitrary way that the boundaries of such cities are drawn.  For example Greater London as defined by the GLA area would leave out a vast swath of commuter towns which rely completely on the London effect.  For example we could consider that Reading, Slough, Guildford, Luton and Basildon are all really the outer reaches of London.   

Of course what would also be interesting would be to compare the relative populations and the footprints of these cities.  London has very specific plans for physical and population growth, but its plans for economic growth are only inferred in The London Plan by an increase in employment.

I have a hunch that the Chinese cities with their mega growth plans may be underestimated in the stats and that existing major cities like London may be over estimated.  These figures were of course compiled by Englishmen!

Of Art and Caffs

A busy day yesterday!  I went down to the South London Art Gallery, one of my favourites in London to see the John Armleder show entitled "About Nothing".   He was a member of the Fluxus Group, but don't let that put you off! This showcases his works on paper and is really a feast for the eye.  I was at first worried about the Royal Academy Style hanging, but as you view the show it does grow on you.  It works because so much of the show is about repetition, and the impossibility of repetition.  The wallpaper, made from 1000 images of unique snowflakes forms a backdrop.  The work itself often relies upon the serendipity of chance, the shape formed by an ink "puddle", a few chance marks on paper or the juxtaposition of marks on objects such as record sleeves or collages.
I could and possibly should have spent three hours in the show - but next time I shall take a step ladder.  I've enclosed a set of images.

The other reason that I went down to South London was to re-visit a great caff there called Tadim, which is located at 41 Church St Camberwell SE5 just down the road from the gallery. It is a smoky and colourful cafe near to Camberwell School of Art. So it's frequented by a motley collection of students and locals. The by line 'the healthy way to eat' can not quite be believed - all that Baklava and Boreci - but my veg stew and salad seemed restrained enough. Vegetarians beware! The stocks used are meaty I reckon but the menu does specify which dishes are guaranteed meat free. Murals of Turkey's tourist spots and woven tablecloths complete the ethnic feel. Definitely a 'caff' but in the multi ethnic way that is unique to South London. An original!

South London Art gallery have got together with other local galleries to publish a rather good guide Art South Central which gives information about the galleries but also travel info and other nice things to do in the area.  I got to hear about the Tadim Cafe from their publication first.  Its a great idea and particularly good for arts and cultural organisations to plug themselves into other activities cultural, leisure and gastronomic, within an area.

Finally I rolled up at Elephant and Castle - which is due to be refurbished or redeveloped and certainly needs it.  I was off to a lecture at South Bank University Lepu (Local Economy Policy Unit) by Andrew Carter of Rocket Science about urban economics.  His premise is that regeneration areas are undervalued and in fact offer the market - generally the development market - larger returns because of the greater potential for improvement.  There ensued a lively debate about how that market uplift could be shared amongst people living in the area.  The view seemed to be that so often regeneration became gentrification.
I instigated a discussion about economic indicators on the micro scale in a totally selfish way to further my research on the matter.  Not much positive advice, but those who were involved in Economic Regeneration in the UK did volunteer that their role and their outputs were ill defined by their political or government masters.
These debates occur on the second Tuesday of each month and if this one is anything to go by I can recommend them. 
The university campus is being intensified, smaller buildings are being pulled down to make way for five to eight storey teaching blocks.  The lack of public open space is marked, but not oppressive.  This is an urban site.   Hopefully the external environment will be improved once the Elephant gets redeveloped.  There is that massive roundabout for a start! David Walburn, director of Lepu remarked in his introduction on the scarcity of shops around the place - and there are certainly no nice caffs here (as far as I found), though the South Bank Uni could become the major cultural/intellectual focus for the Elephant and Castle

The Selfishness of People -Road Pricing

So Downing Street's website is jammed with people complaining about road pricing.  Being a citizen of London and subject to central London's congestion charge - I really can't see what all the bother is about.  True, we in London have excellent public transport and so we are used to leaving our cars at home and using the bus/tube/train.  Also the standard of living in London is high so we can afford public transport which is admittedly costlier than driving.  And here is the nub of the issue.  Drivers currently don't pay the price of their road use or their environmental impact.  Other modes of transport are economically incomparable.  If we want a brighter future we should learn that we all have to make sacrifices in order to achieve it.  This rush to complain of road pricing is just selfishness.
People who live in the countryside should not despair.  These country roads are not overcrowded and the environmental impact of their use is not great.  A short trip to a transport hub should be the order of the day. At the same time the costs associated with smaller, greener cars should be less than the gas guzzlers.  (Benefiting the less well off)
Remember you may have a car now and enjoy its use.  But we will all grow old and at some stage you will be forced to give up driving.  How then will you get around?
I have received a positive response from Westminster Councillor Harvey Marshall, who agrees with me about pedestrians raw deal in Westminster. See my post Feb 9th Westminster's Folly  Unfortunately he tells me he is no longer my councillor and that Cavendish Square is neither in my or his ward - so I suppose we are back to square one.  No news from the New West End Company or the Developers!

Citta Slow

I have been re-reading Carl Honore's excellent book "In Praise of Slow".  Now that the slow movement has been around for a while we should be able to assess how successful it has been.  However these are small towns, the Slow City is limited to 50,000 inhabitants, and as such they do not have very sophisticated economic development departments.  However  the economy page of the first Slow City, Bra's website indicates a clear understanding of the relationship between the Slow philosophy and the economy.  It mentions the increasing importance of craftsmanship and tourism.
I am on the case on your behalf to try and find out how the early Slow Cities are faring and have also asked the UK version for a copy of their economic goals.  It will be interesting to see how far they differ from other cities.
Incidentally this is part of a larger piece of research I am doing about economic goals, so if anyone out there has a good set from their home town I would be most interested.
If you would like to follow the slow route a bit further you can go to the UK's Citta Slow web site