Urban Laboratory Lecture Series Autumn 2018

The term 'urban laboratory' has been extensively applied in urban innovation discourse and, by extension, has acquired currency in urban studies. In its broadest sense it indicates an alignment of research scholarship and policy development orientated towards innovation, change and improvement in urban conditions and economies, and further implies a mobilisation of partnerships and networks across different sectors and urban actors (academia, civic society, community, industry, government).

However today's emphasis on the city as a technical and policy-driven milieu, framed by discourses of 'smart' experimentation and innovation, sometimes seems to overlook the phenomenological, embodied, and imaginary dimensions of human experience and interaction in cities, and the complex adaptive and inventive strategies which urban populations mobilise to ensure survival in dense, competitive urban scenarios.

This series of lectures is therefore designed to explore the synergies between science and arts-based research, experimentation, and theorisation in order to revisit the urban laboratory agenda and think through its implications in relation to different spatial and temporal contexts and cultures. It will further bring to the fore a focus on the theme of urban identities and heritage for the UCL Urban Laboratory during the 2018-19 academic year, highlighting a range of methodological approaches to research across this field and analysis of its relevance to questions of infrastructure, spatial justice, and livelihoods in the city.

Lecture Series programme

All lectures are free and open to the public without the need to book. They take place fortnightly on Tuesdays during the autumn, from 18.30 in Room G03 at 26 Bedford Way.