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Global city

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"World city" redirects here. For , see .

A global city and world city, or world-class city, is a city that has a direct and tangible effect on global affairs through socioeconomic, cultural, and/or political means. In recent years, the term has become increasingly familiar, because of the rise of globalization (i.e., global finance, communications, and travel). The term "global city", as opposed to megacity, was first coined by Saskia Sassen in a seminal 1991 work.

Contents

General characteristics

Though defining a global city must be partially subjective, these cities are generally seen as sharing the following characteristics:

In the Western view, London, New York City, Paris, and Tokyo have been traditionally considered the 'big four' world cities – not coincidentally, they also serve as symbols of global capitalism. More recent views often add major Asian cities like Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and Beijing. However, many people have their own personal lists, and any two lists are likely to differ based on cultural background, values, and experience.

In certain developed countries, the rise of suburbia and the ongoing migration of manufacturing jobs to developing countries has led to significant urban decay. Therefore, to boost urban regeneration, tourism, and revenue, the goal of building a "world-class" city has recently become an obsession with the governments of some mid-size cities and their constituents.

The phenomenon of world-city building, albeit with slightly more success, has also been observed in Buenos Aires, Frankfurt, Sydney, Mexico City and Toronto: each of these cities has emerged as large and influential.

GaWC Inventory of World Cities (1999 Edition)

An attempt to define and categorise world cities was made in 1999 by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network (GaWC), based primarily at Loughborough University in Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. The roster was outlined in the GaWC Research Bulletin 5[GaWC Research Bulletin 5], GaWC, Loughborough University, 28 July 1999 and ranked cities based on provision of "advanced producer services" such as accountancy, advertising, finance and law, by international corporations. The GaWC inventory identifies three levels of world cities and several sub-ranks.

Note that this roster generally denotes cities in which there are offices of certain multinational companies providing financial and consulting services rather than other cultural, political, and economic centres. There is a schematic map of GaWC cities at their website.[The World According to GaWC], GaWC, Loughborough University

Alpha world cities (full service world cities)

Beta world cities (major world cities)

Gamma world cities (minor world cities)

Evidence of world city formation

Strong evidence

Some evidence

Minimal evidence

GaWC Leading World Cities (2004 Edition)

An attempt to redefine and recategorise leading world cities was made also by GaWC in 2004.
This ranking list is refer to Official GaWC List.[Leading World Cities], GaWC, Loughborough University

Global Cities

Well rounded global cities

1. Very large contribution: London and New York City.
Smaller contribution and with cultural bias: Los Angeles, Paris and San Francisco.
2. Incipient global cities: Amsterdam, Boston, Chicago, Madrid, Milan, Moscow, Toronto.

Global niche cities - specialised global contributions

1. Economic: Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo.
2. Political and social: Brussels, Geneva, and Washington.

World Cities

Subnet articulator cities

1. Cultural: Berlin, Copenhagen, Melbourne, Munich, Oslo, Rome, Stockholm.
Political: Bangkok, Beijing, Vienna.
2. Social: Manila, Nairobi, Ottawa.

Worldwide leading cities

1. Primarily economic global contributions: Frankfurt, Miami, Munich, Osaka, Singapore, Sydney, Zurich
2. Primarily non-economic global contributions: Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Atlanta, Basle, Barcelona, Cairo, Denver, Harare, Lyon, Manila, Mexico City, Mumbai, New Delhi, Shanghai

Global Cities Conference 2006

This conference[2006 Global Cities Conference] will take place at Liverpool Hope University, starting on 29 June 2006 and chaired by Dr. Lawrence Phillips of the Global Cities Conference at the university. Its aim is to establish what is meant by a 'global city', by examining criteria such as images, narratives, economics, planning and people's experiences. It will also look at whether the perceived 'big four' — London, Paris, New York, and Tokyo — are in fact the only candidates for global city status, or if they should in fact be joined by fast-growing cities in Asia or the developing world.

Other criteria

The GaWC list is based on specific criteria and, thus, may not include other cities of global significance or elsewhere on the spectrum. For example, cities with the following:

PDF PDF: PDF and urbanisation[WORLD URBANIZATION PROSPECTS: THE 2003 REVISION], UN, 2004 PDF PDF GDP[Global Urban Indicators Database 2 (1998 data)] (data sets in .ZIP)'', UN-HABITAT PDF PDF
  • Significant technological capabilities/infrastructure:
  • *Prominent skylines/skyscrapers[The World's Best Skylines]
  • Significant institutions:
  • *Educational institutions; e.g., universities,[link] (registration required)
PDF international student attendanceK. O'Connor, [International Students and Global Cities], GaWC, Loughborough University, 17 February 2005

Table of the cities of the world

For selected criteria
Rank Population of city (proper) Population of metropolitan area Percentage foreign born Cost of living Metro systems by annual passenger ridership Airports by annual passenger traffic Number of billionaires (International Dollars) [INTERNATIONAL PRIVATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT], International Financial Services, December 2004 PDF[Forbes reports billionaire boom], BBC, 10 March 2006[500 richest in Russia], Finance Magazine, published by RBC. February 2006.
1 Shanghai Tokyo Miami Moscow Tokyo Atlanta Moscow
2 Mumbai Mexico City Toronto Seoul Moscow Chicago New York City
3 Karachi New York City Los Angeles Tokyo Seoul London London
4 Buenos Aires Mumbai Vancouver Hong Kong Mexico City Tokyo San Francisco
5 Delhi São Paulo New York City London New York City Los Angeles İstanbul
6 Manila Delhi Singapore Osaka Paris Dallas Los Angeles
7 Moscow Kolkata Sydney Geneva London Paris Hong Kong
8 Seoul Buenos Aires Abidjan Copenhagen Osaka Frankfurt Chicago
9 São Paulo Jakarta London Zurich Hong Kong Las Vegas Paris
10 İstanbul Shanghai Paris (tie)Oslo/New York City Saint Petersburg Amsterdam Dallas

See also

References

External links

 

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