Skip to main content
European Commission logo
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS
CORDIS Web 30th anniversary CORDIS Web 30th anniversary
Content archived on 2024-05-29

TOURISM, CULTURE AND THE PRODUCTION OF URBAN SPACE: CHANGING IMAGES. SHIFTING MEANINGS?

Objective

Major events are arguably a principal ' image builder' of modern tourism. The CIUTAT project aims to analyse the effects of major cultural events' on the image of and urban space within their European host cities. As such, an analysis of the broad European context of the production and consumption of urban space for tourism and culture objectives on city image will be undertaken, necessitating an intersect oral, multidisciplinary research approach. The empirical objectives include an evaluation of the modification of urban place images over the life course of a specific cultural event (as a destination and as a place to live and work) as well as of the relative durability of longer-term image ¡effects to be gained from hosting major cultural events. A case study of the ambitious, global scale Universal Forum of Cultures (2004) event and its host city (Barcelona) will be central to the project, and an innovative longitudinal approach (pre-, during and post- event) will be used to examine the changing image for visitors and residents, particularly in the period since the 1992 Olympic games were held in Barcelona to much international debate. The EU recently identified the location for the event - the inner city Sent Adrian area - as suffering from severe economic and social crisis and in need of urgent regeneration; therefore, the Forum has the potential to make or break the area. Assessment will be made as to whether the Forum event has had any impact on the severity of the problems. The perspectives of policymakers will also be taken into account by analysing the context and implications of policy decisions to stage major cultural events in European cities and the social and cultural implications of doing so. In an integrative closing stage, Tran nationally relevant lessons will be drawn for other European cities on how to maximise the potential of major cultural events for image enhancement, the promotion of social cohesion and the fostering of distinctive

Fields of science

Call for proposal

FP6-2002-MOBILITY-5
See other projects for this call

Coordinator

UNIVERSITAT AUTÒNOMA DE BARCELONA
EU contribution
No data
Address
Campus Universitari, Cerdanyola
BARCELONA
Spain

See on map

Total cost
No data