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Interdisciplinary research at UEL has contributed to understanding and debate about urban regeneration among policy-making, professional and public audiences. More specifically, it has stimulated and informed discussion and debate about the potential legacies of the London 2012 Olympic games and similar "mega-events". Between 2008 and 2013 the research informed analysis, planning and evaluation of urban regeneration policy and practice relating to the Olympic legacy at international (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), national (UK Government Department for Communities and Local Government, House of Lords), city-wide and local government (London Assembly) levels. UEL Research and its impact have evolved in tandem over the exciting period since the announcement of the award of the Olympics to East London in July 2005, and will continue as the Olympic legacy unfolds in this part of the city and more widely.
Borden's research into the history and contemporary urban practice of skateboarding, and particularly its role within cities and public spaces, has enhanced understanding of this global urban activity, leading to significant changes in how the public and media understand skateboarding culture in the UK and abroad. His work has also contributed to the campaign to save a historic skateboarding site at the Southbank Centre in London, and to moves to protect similar sites elsewhere. Finally, research by Borden has informed the design and development of some of the most influential skateboarding venues in the country.
Research by Dr Sakis Pappous on the legacy of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games in Greece has challenged conventional wisdom that sporting mega-events automatically lead to health benefits for the host population via a supposed increase in grassroots participation in sports and physical activity. These findings were reviewed by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) and mainstream British media (e.g., BBC and The Guardian) to stimulate and inform public debate on the health legacy of London 2012. Pappous's research has also informed the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the House of Commons and the House of Lords about the difficulty in achieving sustained sports participation after the Olympic Games.
Internationally, Pappous's research has informed debate in the US media (USA Today) and among sport managers and policy makers in Africa, South America and Europe. International policy makers informed and influenced by Pappous's findings include the Nigerian Minister of Sports and the Vice Director of the Colombian Department for Sport, Physical Activity and Leisure (COLDEPORTES). As a direct consequence of Pappous's findings, they now acknowledge that a broader strategy promoting an active lifestyle must be implemented if any sporting excitement caused by a mega-event is to sustain sports participation.
Intercultural exchange in multi-ethnic cities is increasingly understood as a source of cultural, social and economic dynamism. This argument is rehearsed by Bianchini in much of his published research and other interventions. His comparative research on Liverpool and other European port cities also highlighted cosmopolitan intercultural exchange central to the cultural characteristics of such cities. His work on port cities was the key source for a chapter of Liverpool's successful bid for the title of 2008 European Capital of Culture which made a major contribution to the city's economic development and regeneration. Subsequent work has been adopted by other cities in similar bidding frameworks, including most recently Matera, Italy, in its bid to become European City of Culture in 2019 for which it reached the Italian shortlist in November 2013.
Two decades of research in the Global Urban Research Unit at Newcastle University has significantly shaped public awareness and political understanding of the links between technology, infrastructure and security within highly urbanised societies. Research into the role of cities as key sites of security and war and the spread of `the surveillance society' are two interlocking foci that have generated impacts with global reach. Of particular significance are: a) research and scholarship to develop key concepts and a language that captures and communicates how urban landscapes are being infiltrated by military technologies. We specifically highlight the publication of Cities Under Siege as the culmination of this work and its impact on national and international public debate, and; b) specific studies into surveillance technologies in Britain that impact directly on public debate and the formation of specific national policy.
The European Institute for Urban Affairs' (EIUA) evidence, analyses and advocacy have shaped urban policies and decisively influenced policy makers in its city region, the UK and Europe. In recent years its major reports for government, the European Commission, Core Cities and the ESRC which demonstrate the crucial contribution of cities to the UK's national economic performance and welfare have had important policy impacts which are summarised in section 4. The Institute's work has driven the debate about the role and prospects of English cities and had a transformational effect on the way in which they are regarded and treated by government. In doing so the Institute has placed cities at the heart of economic policy making in the UK.
Key insights from LSE Cities' interdisciplinary research on the `compact and well-connected' city have been incorporated by central government in national planning policy and by the Mayor of London in the London Plan. This has led to urban land being developed more intensively, ensuring more sustainable and efficient use of space in English towns and cities. Research on green city policies has been adopted by the United Nations Environment Programme (2011) and is determining policy formulation in Stockholm, Copenhagen and Portland. Urban Age conferences and research have created an international network of urban policy-makers and scholars, and LSE Cities staff have had impact on the design of the Olympic Park in London and development plans for cities outside the UK.
Research findings, from work on `Olympic law' by Osborn and James, have influenced legislative changes relating to the event zones and advertising and trading regulations for the London 2012 Olympics. The changes to the Regulations related specifically to the evidence submitted to the Consultation commissioned by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), see https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-the-regulations-on-advertising-activity-and-trading-around-london-2012.
The evidence provided to the DCMS was drawn from research findings, and these are set out below.
The significance of illumination for the development of innovative place-making strategies designed to enhance convivial life in the city, enable better communal heritage preservation and augment urban economic capacity has been acutely underestimated. The research showcased here is interested in discovering new concepts and methodologies for the understanding, utilisation and evaluation of illumination as both a facilitator and intrinsic expression of communal life in both the city and beyond. The research has initiated a vibrant knowledge exchange between academics, professionals and municipal authorities leading to the establishment of an increasingly international network focused on the politics, aesthetics, communal benefits and economic potential of effective urban place-making through strategic illumination. The research has also impacted on the tourism strategies of coastal towns and resorts, and on heritage cultivation through the provision of expert advice. Among both specialist stakeholders and the wider public the research has raised awareness of illumination as a place-making strategy, as well as a matter of class and taste. The research has also rehabilitated aspects of popular culture by reappraising the role of the vernacular in municipal event planning and general policy-making discourse.
Research undertaken by Hughson has impacted on the decision-making of two museums, principally the National Football Museum (NFM) in England and the National Sports Museum (NSM) in Australia. In the NFM, research has informed the acquisition and display of items for the permanent collection and temporary exhibition, led to an appointment as historical advisor to the selection committee of the National Football Hall of Fame, and has also supported the NFM's successful bid for `Designation' status with the Arts Council. With regard to the NSM the research has informed the public education dimension of a major exhibition on Olympic posters.