‘If you build it, they will come?’

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingArticle in proceedingsResearch

Standard

‘If you build it, they will come?’. / Eggeling, Kristin Anabel.

Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities. ed. / Veronika Cummings; Aurel von Richthofen; Zahra Babar. Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich, 2019. p. 106-124.

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingArticle in proceedingsResearch

Harvard

Eggeling, KA 2019, ‘If you build it, they will come?’. in V Cummings, AV Richthofen & Z Babar (eds), Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities. Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich, pp. 106-124. https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000339870

APA

Eggeling, K. A. (2019). ‘If you build it, they will come?’. In V. Cummings, A. V. Richthofen, & Z. Babar (Eds.), Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities (pp. 106-124). Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich. https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000339870

Vancouver

Eggeling KA. ‘If you build it, they will come?’. In Cummings V, Richthofen AV, Babar Z, editors, Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities. Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich. 2019. p. 106-124 https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000339870

Author

Eggeling, Kristin Anabel. / ‘If you build it, they will come?’. Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities. editor / Veronika Cummings ; Aurel von Richthofen ; Zahra Babar. Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich, 2019. pp. 106-124

Bibtex

@inproceedings{5a5874473072452c92f3cec080e057f9,
title = "{\textquoteleft}If you build it, they will come?{\textquoteright}",
abstract = "Since the early 2000s, the capital cities of the Arab Gulf have experienced extraordinary urban growth. In this chapter, I analyse the discursive logics that underlie local justifica- tions for boosterist megaprojects, which are often built despite a lack of obvious local de- mand. Focusing on the case of Qatar, I argue for the salience of a form of {\textquoteleft}future oriented sense-making{\textquoteright} that portrays major construction projects as leading the country into a new era of economic prosperity, international prestige and social harmony. More specifically, I trace the emergence and consolidation of references to{\textquoteleft}the future{\textquoteright}as a central sense-making mechanism, and argue that justifying urban development in relation to the state{\textquoteright}s overall development plans consolidates the position and underlines the necessity of those who devised these plans. A major political implication of justifying urban development according to its future value is that the local political leadership ties its legacy to both the material development of the city, and uses urban growth to claim the necessity, benevolence and ultimately the inevitability of its rule. Empirically, the chapter is informed by data collected through both desk- and fieldwork, and focuses on the Lusail City project, Qatar{\textquoteright}s largest urban development project that has so far received only little attention in the literature.",
keywords = "Faculty of Social Sciences, urban development, Urban politics, Qatar, identity, power, Arabian Gulf",
author = "Eggeling, {Kristin Anabel}",
year = "2019",
doi = "10.3929/ethz-b-000339870",
language = "English",
pages = "106--124",
editor = "Veronika Cummings and Richthofen, {Aurel von} and Zahra Babar",
booktitle = "Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities",
publisher = "Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich",

}

RIS

TY - GEN

T1 - ‘If you build it, they will come?’

AU - Eggeling, Kristin Anabel

PY - 2019

Y1 - 2019

N2 - Since the early 2000s, the capital cities of the Arab Gulf have experienced extraordinary urban growth. In this chapter, I analyse the discursive logics that underlie local justifica- tions for boosterist megaprojects, which are often built despite a lack of obvious local de- mand. Focusing on the case of Qatar, I argue for the salience of a form of ‘future oriented sense-making’ that portrays major construction projects as leading the country into a new era of economic prosperity, international prestige and social harmony. More specifically, I trace the emergence and consolidation of references to‘the future’as a central sense-making mechanism, and argue that justifying urban development in relation to the state’s overall development plans consolidates the position and underlines the necessity of those who devised these plans. A major political implication of justifying urban development according to its future value is that the local political leadership ties its legacy to both the material development of the city, and uses urban growth to claim the necessity, benevolence and ultimately the inevitability of its rule. Empirically, the chapter is informed by data collected through both desk- and fieldwork, and focuses on the Lusail City project, Qatar’s largest urban development project that has so far received only little attention in the literature.

AB - Since the early 2000s, the capital cities of the Arab Gulf have experienced extraordinary urban growth. In this chapter, I analyse the discursive logics that underlie local justifica- tions for boosterist megaprojects, which are often built despite a lack of obvious local de- mand. Focusing on the case of Qatar, I argue for the salience of a form of ‘future oriented sense-making’ that portrays major construction projects as leading the country into a new era of economic prosperity, international prestige and social harmony. More specifically, I trace the emergence and consolidation of references to‘the future’as a central sense-making mechanism, and argue that justifying urban development in relation to the state’s overall development plans consolidates the position and underlines the necessity of those who devised these plans. A major political implication of justifying urban development according to its future value is that the local political leadership ties its legacy to both the material development of the city, and uses urban growth to claim the necessity, benevolence and ultimately the inevitability of its rule. Empirically, the chapter is informed by data collected through both desk- and fieldwork, and focuses on the Lusail City project, Qatar’s largest urban development project that has so far received only little attention in the literature.

KW - Faculty of Social Sciences

KW - urban development

KW - Urban politics

KW - Qatar

KW - identity

KW - power

KW - Arabian Gulf

U2 - 10.3929/ethz-b-000339870

DO - 10.3929/ethz-b-000339870

M3 - Article in proceedings

SP - 106

EP - 124

BT - Arab Gulf Cities in Transition: Towards New Spatialities

A2 - Cummings, Veronika

A2 - Richthofen, Aurel von

A2 - Babar, Zahra

PB - Future Cities Laboratory Singapore; ETH Zurich

ER -

ID: 217248927