Cities and the Creative ClassIn the seven essays of Cities and the Creative Class - four of which have been previously published - Richard Florida outlines how certain cities succeed in attracting members of the creative class. This class, roughly speaking, is composed of the millions of people who work in information-age economic sectors and in industries driven by innovation and talent. Cities that succeed, Florida argues, are those that are able to attract and retain creative class members. They don't do this through the traditional strategies of tax incentives, suburban housing developments, and loose regulation, though - creative class members don't care about that. Rather, they care about amenities and tolerance and are hence drawn to cities with thriving bohemias and large gay populations. It is no coincidence, Florida argues, that places like Austin and San Francisco are at the forefront of the new US economy - they play up their bohemian edge and their tolerance. Cities like Detroit, in contrast, won't stand a chance unless they can become a magnet for the new class. To prove his point, Florida has amassed a wealth of data, including gay and bohemian indices for cities. He has found that there is a strong correlation between success in the new economy and the presence of these subcultures. In contrast to Florida's earlier book, Cities and the Creative Class provides a more academic explanation of why this has occurred, focusing in particular on the economic geography of place. It also lays out what cities need to do to have a chance at success. The book's structure is a logical progression, moving from a general political-economic theory of the creative class to a discussion of the components of success to, finally, places themselves. Florida closes the book with a prescriptive chapter on a specific place and the path it should follow - present day lower Manhattan. - Table of contents: Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. Cities and the Creative Class Part 1: The Talent Economy 3. Competing in the Age of Talent 4. The Economic Geography of Talent Part 2: Creativity and Diversity 5. Bohemia and Economic Geography 6. Technology and Tolerance (with Gary Gates) Part 3: Place and the New City 7. The University Town: Leveraging talent, not technology 8. Rebuilding Lower Manhattan for the Creative Age Endnotes Appendices. |
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analysis associated ative Atlanta attract talent Austin Bohemian Index Boston Carnegie Mellon centers Cleveland clusters concentration Coolness correlation creative capital Creative Class creative economy creative workers Creativity Index cultural amenities Dallas Denver Detroit Diversity Index economic development economic geography economic growth Edward Glaeser effect environment environmental quality factors firms focus groups Fordism Gary Gates Gay Index geography of talent gions high-tech industry high-technology industry Houston human capital innovation Jane Jacobs Lauderdale lifestyle location decisions Lower Manhattan measures Median House Value Melting Pot Index metropolitan areas Miami-Ft Minneapolis-St MSAs P-VALUE percent Phoenix Pittsburgh places population R-square Raleigh-Durham recreational amenities regional development regional growth relationship Richard Florida role San Diego San Francisco San Jose score Seattle significant Silicon Valley social capital software workers statistical strategy Table Talent Index Tampa-St tech Tech-Pole Index Terry Clark theory tion University urban variables Washington