Mia Gray | University of Cambridge (original) (raw)

Journal articles and book chapters by Mia Gray

We are now facing Andrew Sayer’s ‘diabolical double crisis’, which encompasses both a deep financ... more We are now facing Andrew Sayer’s ‘diabolical double crisis’, which encompasses both a deep financial crisis and an environmental one. The scale, scope and nature of this double crisis is downplayed in the regional studies literature, much of which still focuses on innovative growth models often divorced from broader social and ecological contexts. To help solve both crises we call for regional studies to explore new models that allow a focus to be made on the most important issues of our time. We illustrate this by focusing on the contradictions in the waste produced by contemporary regional economies: waste of abundance, labour and resources.

In periods of turbulence, the tendency to simplify messages and polarise debates is nothing new. ... more In periods of turbulence, the tendency to simplify messages and polarise debates is nothing new. In our hyper-mediated world of online technologies, where it seems that even national policy can be forged in the 140 characters of Twitter, it is more important than ever to retain spaces for in-depth debate of emergent phenomena that have disruptive and transformative potential. In this article, we follow this logic and argue that to fully understand the diverse range of practices and potential consequences of activities uncomfortably corralled under the ambiguous term 'the sharing economy' requires not a simplification of arguments, but an opening out of horizons to explore the many ways in which these phenomena have emerged and are evolving. It is argued that this will require attention to multiple terrains, from diverse intellectual traditions across many disciplines to the thus far largely reactive responses of government and regulation, and from the world of techno-innovation start-ups to the optics of media (including social media) reporting on what it means to 'share' in the 21st century. Building on this, we make the case for viewing 'the sharing economy' as a matrix of diverse economies with clear links to past practices. We propose that to build a grammar for understanding these diverse sharing economies requires further attention to: (1) The etymology of sharing and sharing economies; (2) The differentiated geographies to which sharing economies contribute; (3) What it means to labour, work and be employed in sharing economies; (4) The role of the state and others in governing, regulating and shaping the organisation and practice of sharing economies; and (5) the impacts of sharing economies. In conclusion, we suggest that while media interest may fade as their presence in everyday lives becomes less novel, understanding sharing economies remains an urgent activity if we are to ensure that the new ways of living and labouring, to which sharing economies are contributing, work to promote sustainable and inclusive development in this world that ultimately we all share.

Although crowdfunding has received much popular press, it remains on the fringes of academic scru... more Although crowdfunding has received much popular press, it remains on the fringes of academic scrutiny. There has been little systematic academic attention paid to the levels and areas of growth, the behaviour of the industry, and the spatial and financial implications of this growth. We conceptualise crowdfunding as technology-enabled online financial
channels, instruments and activities that allow individuals and organizations to participate in capital formation and allocation processes, which have emerged outside of the traditional financial system (e.g. regulated banks and capital markets). This chapter explores a multitude of different crowdfunding financial models utilising primary survey data from over 15,000 respondents, as well as a primary transactional dataset containing over a million microtransactions
totalling £1 billion. To date, very little quantitative work has been conducted on this burgeoning phenomenon and there exist few qualitative studies; thus, this paper will fulfil an important function in providing a critical and systematic analysis of an emerging industry.

The term crowdfunding covers a diverse set of practices, from supporting emerging art projects to lending and borrowing money, to investing in new business ventures and supporting local charities. The term is used to understand the financial support of friends and family to complete strangers making each other short-term loans, and to institutional actors finding new investment opportunities. However, by conflating all these phenomena into one, the term hides as much as it reveals. We argue that, to understand the phenomena, the term must be broken down into its constituent parts, which display different dynamics and geographies.

Revue de philosophie économique, 2009

Healthcare systems can the world over be found to be under serious strain. Much of the formal hea... more Healthcare systems can the world over be found to be under serious strain. Much of the formal healthcare sector is characterised by low-paid, flexible, part-time work. The sector relies on, and takes for granted, the supply of low paid and unpaid female care labour to carry ...

The SAGE Handbook of Human Geography: Two Volume Set, 2014

Cambridge Journal of Regions Economy and Society

Purpose -This paper aims to highlight the need to understand the mechanisms of inclusion and excl... more Purpose -This paper aims to highlight the need to understand the mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion in the workplace which are often embedded in micro-level work practices. It explores how social networks and the resources contained within them function differentially among workers to reinforce existing patterns of preferential access to the most desirable positions in the labour market. Design/methodology/approach -Using in-depth interviews of electrical engineers in a case study firm in the IT industry in Cambridge, England, the paper outlines the strong gendered and ethnic patterns of segmentation within the engineering occupation. Findings -The paper finds significant inequalities in access to, and awareness of, the resources contained within some social networks in the workplace. Originality/value -The study critiques the extension of social capital theory into the workplace due to its conceptual and methodological focus on positive outcomes.

The Economic Geography of Innovation, 2007

The Review of Black Political Economy, 1996

ABSTRACT Federal inner-city programs have always been based on the assumption that the private se... more ABSTRACT Federal inner-city programs have always been based on the assumption that the private sector holds the key to urban revitalization. Michael Porter's critique of existing programs, therefore, incorrectly accuses them of failing to nurture private business. Nevertheless, he does provide useful direction in stressing the importance of strategic location, regional clusters, and human resources. The example of Hunts Point Food Distribution Center in the South Bronx is used both to indicate that Porter does identify the comparative advantage of such areas and also to show the need for a much stronger governmental role than Porter describes.

Regional Studies, 2005

... RON MARTIN*, MIA GRAY*, PETER TYLER, JOHN MCCOMBIE, BERNARD FINGLETON, MICHAEL KITSON, BJ... more ... RON MARTIN*, MIA GRAY*, PETER TYLER, JOHN MCCOMBIE, BERNARD FINGLETON, MICHAEL KITSON, BJØRN ASHEIM§ and AMY GLASMEIER¶ *Department of Geography, Department of Land Economy and Judge Business School ... Its central aim was to build ...

Environment and Planning A, 2007

Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, 2010

Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, 2014

The city is a significant level of geography at which to examine the economic, political and soci... more The city is a significant level of geography at which to examine the economic, political and social implications of austerity. We consider how the financial crisis originated in the urban and became part of a broader state crisis with consequences for cities. We then explore political implications that include the undermining of democratic processes and the rise of new 'austerity' regimes. We also consider implications for key social groups. Arguments are illustrated with evidence from North American and European cities. Finally, we explain how scholars have theorised the situation, which in turn sets the stage for policy and political solutions to the present crisis.

Purpose – This paper aims to highlight the need to understand the mechanisms of inclusion and exc... more Purpose – This paper aims to highlight the need to understand the mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion in the workplace which are often embedded in micro-level work practices. It explores how social networks and the resources contained within them function differentially among workers to reinforce existing patterns of preferential access to the most desirable positions in the labour market. Design/methodology/approach – Using in-depth interviews of electrical engineers in a case study firm in the IT industry in Cambridge, England, the paper outlines the strong gendered and ethnic patterns of segmentation within the engineering occupation. Findings – The paper finds significant inequalities in access to, and awareness of, the resources contained within some social networks in the workplace. Originality/value – The study critiques the extension of social capital theory into the workplace due to its conceptual and methodological focus on positive outcomes. Introduction This study highlights the need to understand the mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion in the workplace which are often embedded in daily micro-level work practices: informal chats, friendly gestures, sporting ''partners'', and powerful figures who want to help the next generation of employees. However, these micro-level work practices help create bonds of reciprocity, obligation, and trust that provide access to information, shared working norms and practices, and narratives which function to frame the experiences of the workplace. These practices create and sustain social networks in the workplace, the benefits of which are unequally distributed and result in the reproduction of labour market inequality. This paper explores how social networks function differentially among workers to reinforce existing patterns of preferential access to the most desirable positions in the labour market. This occurs both through gendered and ethnic differences between occupations and between the jobs within an occupation. Labour market segmentation is the social division of workers into skilled, relatively secure, elite, core occupations and unskilled, insecure, non-elite occupations with little or no labour market mobility. Many scholars argue that this segmentation is strongly gendered and there is overwhelming and persistent evidence that female-dominated

Most visitors to Las Vegas stay on " the Strip "-a four mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South... more Most visitors to Las Vegas stay on " the Strip "-a four mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South, on which they find many of the world's largest hotels. Tourists come here not only to gamble, but to partake in the spectacle that is Las Vegas – scaled replicas of the Egyptian pyramids, Venetian canals, and the Statue of Liberty-all only a few minutes walk from each other. The Mirage, the hotel which started the contemporary wave of themed resorts in Las Vegas, hosts an artificial volcano in front of the hotel which "erupts" periodically during the evening while emitting the scent of Piña Colada. Most visitors anticipate the spectacle they will see in Las Vegas as tourist books and websites guide their gaze to the pre-approved sights of Las Vegas. Although Las Vegas is often portrayed as such, the city is not just a space of consumption, but a space of production as well. It is a peculiar space where these aspects of society are constantly negotiated – a space where capital becomes fixed in the urban landscape, a space of tourist consumption of spectacle and thrill, and a space of near constant interactive labour. Like other tourist cities, a large portion of the economy involves the almost simultaneous consumption and production of hospitality services. Waitresses have to be co-present to serve a meal, dealers have to be at the table to deal the cards, and receptionists must be at the desk to check in new customers (McDowell 2009). However, despite the proximity, most visitors will be unaware that the staff of the hotels, restaurants and casinos they frequent – the housekeepers, waiters, bell hops, bartenders, desk clerks, and cooks-are likely to be relatively well-paid, unionised workers. The one exception is when the normal 2 functioning of the hospitality industry erupts into heated labour protest on the streets and pavements of the City – creating another type of spectacle on the Las Vegas Strip. Like the carefully timed explosions of Mirage volcano, this eruption of labour power is not some innate force of nature, but is planned, strategic, and performative. This spectacle makes visible the institutional and cultural embeddedness of labour and is also intended to disrupt the pre-ordained tourist gaze. Where they differ is that the eruption of labour power has the potential to permanently and radically alter the economic landscape of the city. <INSERT IMAGE 12.1 HERE>

Las Vegas is often portrayed as the apogee of postmodern urbanism, but we argue that you cannot u... more Las Vegas is often portrayed as the apogee of postmodern urbanism, but we argue that you cannot understand Las Vegas without understanding the role of unions in the City's political economy. By focusing on the social relations surrounding workplace, class, and gender we highlight alternative versions of Las Vegas' history. The Culinary Union, a UNITE HERE local, has introduced new institutional forms and played an active role in the local growth coalition. They have set standards around work intensity, training, and job ladders. Highlighting the ability of the union to affect these issues contributes to a counter-narrative about the City which stresses the agency of labour to actively produce Las Vegas' cultural and economic landscapes. The postmodern narrative about Las Vegas hides these important lessons. Learning from Las Vegas can transform issues of signs and symbolism to issues of union organising and institutional structures in the post-industrial economy.

I argue that the characterisation of the lower end of the service sector as innately poorly paid,... more I argue that the characterisation of the lower end of the service sector as innately poorly paid, casualised and unorganised confuses cause and effect. It describes the effects of an institutional vacuum that allows this sector to suffer severe wage competition, which results in low wages and poor working conditions. There is nothing innate in the lower end of the service sector that makes these jobs poorly paid except the lack of institutions, such as unions and the state, structuring this segment of the labour market. Pay and working conditions vary within the sector and between specific locations, and depend on institutions, or the lack of institutions, to structure the local labour market. I use the case of hotel employees and restaurant employees in Las Vegas to show that not only can high union densities affect wages and other measurable benefits but a strategically unionised labour market also can transform the structure of the labour market itself.

Silicon Valley has been admired and much emulated as an American version of a new industrial dist... more Silicon Valley has been admired and much emulated as an American version of a new industrial district based on its heavily networked, small-firm, innovative electronics sector. This industrial structure has been argued to give the region a uniquely cooperative, flexible, and dynamic structure. Based on field research and data analysis, we argue that Silicon Valley's success and culture owes much to the presence and success of large organizations-its defense industrial complex, its headquarters and high-tech branch operations of large domestic firms, and the recent entry of foreign firm operations. Relationships among these large organizations are more often characterized by competitive, arm's length relationships, market power imbalance, cooperation with organizations external to the district, and relatively low levels of interorganizational mobility of personnel. These relationships undermine the cooperation, innovation, and governance conditions celebrated by the new industrial districts scholars. Furthermore, their modus operandi tends to raise the regional cost of doing business and exacerbates centrifugal tendencies in corporate location and dualism in income distribution. Silicon Valley may not be as easy to replicate as many have assumed, nor does it deserve unalloyed high marks as a regional prototype.