The Multiple Urban Histories of the Corridor

Dr Jonathan Silver will open the lecture series reflecting on the history of corridors, with particular attention to the dynamic, historical relations between trade, technology and urban growth across extended time/space. Drawing on a collective research process he will demonstrate the critical role of infrastructure in the history of urbanisation across various eras of world trade, including thinking closely through classical era Athens, Mughal era Lahore, mediaeval Mombasa and industrial Manchester. The lecture will then shift to critically examine the ways in which corridors have become a critical tool in planning regimes across different global regions, particularly over the last century. Finally, Silver will mobilise this historical perspective to question how urban studies is grappling with these overlapping, complex initiatives in the contemporary era through multiple different models, concepts and approaches. 

The lecture will be chaired by Professor Beth Perry

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