Philip Boland | Queen's University Belfast (original) (raw)

Papers by Philip Boland

International Journal of Cultural Property

In July 2021, Liverpool was removed from the prestigious List of World Heritage Sites, sending sh... more In July 2021, Liverpool was removed from the prestigious List of World Heritage Sites, sending shockwaves around the global heritage community. More recently, the spotlight has shifted to another world famous site also located in the United Kingdom. During the same 44th Session of the World Heritage Committee, UNESCO threatened to place Stonehenge on the List in Danger if the required changes to a significant billion-pound road enhancement project were not implemented. Given what happened in Liverpool, there are fears that Stonehenge is in danger of moving towards delisting. An interesting critical line of inquiry to emerge from Liverpool, and other World Heritage Sites, concerns the local, national, and international ‘politics at the site’. This article develops this debate by analysing the role of different scalar actors involved in the Stonehenge World Heritage Site. More specifically, our article examines how the Stonehenge Alliance sought to engage in, what we define as, scalar...

Social & Cultural Geography, Jul 6, 2017

Community asset transfer enables local groups to own or manage a government owned facility and re... more Community asset transfer enables local groups to own or manage a government owned facility and related services. For critics, it is merely an extension of rollback neoliberalism, permitting the state to withdraw from welfare and transfer risk from local government to ill-defined communities. The paper uses quantitative and case study data from Northern Ireland to demonstrate its transformative potential by challenging the notion of private property rights, enabling communities to accumulate and creating local consumption circuits. It suggests that asset-led social enterprises are entangled in a mix of pro-market and alternative economic strategies which are necessarily traded off each other in the reproduction of social value. There is not an ethically pure form of asset transfer but the tactical adaptation of different modes of working, including the enhancement of state services as well as more independent forms of economic and social organisation. However, the analysis points to the political weaknesses of three specific projects and in particular, the lack of corporate working that has limited their reformist potential. The paper concludes by highlighting the implications for more progressive forms of social economics and the skills, finance and practices that facilitate local accumulation strategies.

International Journal of Heritage Studies, Feb 6, 2017

The fascination with death and disaster has encouraged the development of distinctive tourism mar... more The fascination with death and disaster has encouraged the development of distinctive tourism markets, the rediscovery of sites and places of past conflict and all accompanied with uneasy narratives about what they mean and how they should be consumed. The increasingly stratified tourist economy and the interplay between demand and supply has also stimulated a complex set of ontological, socio-political and indifferent responses as places and interests compete to project often selective or stylised claims for recognition. This paper reviews the experiences of tourists visiting Derry/Londonderry, the UK's first City of Culture and how they make sense of the competing interpretations of the past in museums, rituals and artefacts. The 17thC walled city, the city of violence and the post-conflict renaissance city are spatially and socially reproduced but rarely connect with each other to help make sense of the past for the present and critically, for the future. The paper concludes that the discursive content promised by the City of Culture was a missed opportunity to debate these places and events and critically, the problematized and reified narratives they each project.

Journal of Youth Studies, Aug 2, 2017

There is burgeoning literature on cities that host major cultural events. However, there is surpr... more There is burgeoning literature on cities that host major cultural events. However, there is surprisingly very little empirical research focusing specifically on young people and cities of culture, so we have limited knowledge in terms of how young people actually experience and interpret cultural events. Given this, we offer an important and timely contribution to such debates. Our spatial focus is Derry/Londonderry (D/L) in Northern Ireland. During 2013 D/L was the UK's inaugural City of Culture (CoC). The bid document and legacy plans for CoC stated that young people would be 'cultural assets' during 2013 and the 'ultimate beneficiaries' of the CoC legacy (Derry City Council, 2010, 2013a, b). This paper unpacks and analyses the extent to which young people in D/L related to and engaged with CoC and, arguably more importantly, how CoC affected their plans and aspirations for the future. Our research problematizes the claim that young people were the 'ultimate beneficiaries' of CoC; most strikingly, it shows that young people, despite offering very positive views, both expect and desire to live in cities other than D/L. As such, the debilitating long-standing trend of economic migration of young people will continue raising important issues for local stakeholders.

Social & Cultural Geography, Sep 6, 2018

In this paper we draw upon the fieldwork from a three year research project 3. The first point to... more In this paper we draw upon the fieldwork from a three year research project 3. The first point to make is that at the time of the designation of UK CoC on 15 th June 2010 D~L was a city busily coping with the fallout from the trauma of 'the Troubles' (violence associated with a society deeply divided between Catholic-Nationalists and Protestant-Unionists; more on this later). In terms of the conduct of research 1 Catholic-Nationalists refer to the city as Derry to reflect their Irishness while elements within Protestantism-Unionism use Londonderry to capture their Britishness. 2 This concept draws on the use of 'metrophilia' to describe an intellectual, policy and political climate characterised by an overwhelming 'pro-urban bias' (Morgan, 2014). 3 Full details to be provided after peer review.

Religion, State and Society, 2021

This article adds to and develops extant work on the comparatively under-explored but important l... more This article adds to and develops extant work on the comparatively under-explored but important link between religion, neoliberalism, and planning. It is noticeable that mega/giga-churches are recalibrating the religious and physical landscapes of cities around the world; in so doing they raise important implications for professional planners. We focus on Green Pastures Church in Northern Ireland. The church has initiated a significant urban development project that represents something much more than just another new church; indeed, it has been described as a 'superchurch'. The main body of this article focuses on the three separate plans submitted to the local authority, and the attendant contentious local planning issues. Existing research exposes the problematic impact of planning decisions on religious sites for certain religious communities. Our contribution to knowledge reveals new insights concerning the more positive and supportive relationship between planning and religion. We end this article by offering insights into broader debates on the public presence of religion and how it is regulated in the contemporary city.

International Planning Studies, 2021

This article focuses on the planning-technology nexus. Recent work explores the potential of digi... more This article focuses on the planning-technology nexus. Recent work explores the potential of digital technology in overcoming the longstanding limitations of a lack of public engagement and citizen empowerment in the planning process. In August 2020, the Government published a White Paper to democratize, digitize, and digitalize the planning system. We interrogate whether these radical reforms constitute a 'planning revolution' or an 'attack on planning'; we focus on two important issues: democratic deficit and digital divide. The article examines how statements about digitization and digitalization may meet the Government's desire to make the planning process more inclusive (i.e. equitable, fair, just) by empowering greater numbers of people to influence planning decisions for their local communities. In this agenda-setting article, we reflect on the English planning landscape; more broadly, we critically reflect on the values and political rhetoric involved in embracing technological innovations, and how these intersect with societal concerns.

Town Planning Review, 2020

The concept of brand personality is increasingly applied to the contemporary city. During the ‘Tr... more The concept of brand personality is increasingly applied to the contemporary city. During the ‘Troubles’, Belfast - as a ‘pariah city’ - was contaminated with a sclerotic image. Recently it has been rebranded as a ‘post-conflict’ and ‘energised’ city. This paper reveals the significant image transformation in Belfast and its recent engagement with city brand personality. Despite significant progress on destination personality and brand identity, problems remain with regard to brand image and Belfast’s contested past. In addressing the important temporal dimension, this paper adds valuable new insights into our knowledge of city brand personality.

Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, 2020

It is common practice for cities to be associated with celebrated sons and (sometimes) daughters.... more It is common practice for cities to be associated with celebrated sons and (sometimes) daughters. This is tied to aligning the branding process to a selected individual's personality, achievements or celebrityhood to 'sex up' the city's image. In this paper we compare and contrast the 'museumification' of George Best in Belfast and John Lennon in Liverpool. Our findings show, as expected, similarities in how both artists have been museumified in their respective cities; more importantly, however, we also demonstrate significant differences in how the celebrity museumification and associated landscaping has been received in Belfast and Liverpool. Firstly, it is claimed that Liverpool's association with Lennon is based upon a 'highly selective' reading of his life and 'cleaning up' of his past; however, this is not the case with Best in Belfast. Secondly, the celebrity museumification of Lennon received widespread local support; this is not the case with Best due to an ongoing debate about his suitability as a Belfast icon. We problematise this situation and ruminate as to why Best is seemingly more divisive compared to Lennon. Beyond the spatial spotlight of Belfast and Liverpool, the findings from this paper offer insights and lessons for place branding professionals and practitioners in other cities around the world.

International Planning Studies, 2019

Third World Thematics: A TWQ Journal, 2019

This paper argues that the spatiality of violence needs to pay attention to the production of spa... more This paper argues that the spatiality of violence needs to pay attention to the production of space as well as the nature of conflict in postwar conditions. Regimes of violence and how they live on in peace, emphasises the need to see how they are assembled in relation to economic, state and social processes implicated in placemaking. Coercion, control and surveillance are all part of the necessary assemblage of ethnic conflict, and in its aftermath, different forms of violence (or simply the threat of violence) reproduce identarian conflict and simultaneously exploit its reproduction. Liberal and increasingly neoliberal forms of peace fail to connect with the people and places most damaged by conflict and the relationship between poverty, sectarianism and place intensify the conditions for enduring forms of paramilitarism and ultimately violence. The paper draws on Belfast, Northern Ireland to argue that tackling the distinct economic conditions of the most marginal places is a critical but undervalued dimension of violence after peace. The analysis concludes by evaluating the potential of the Social and Solidarity Economy in transitional processes in which the relationship between violence, place and poverty are constitutive of embedded forms of materialist peacebuilding.

Territory, Politics, Governance, 2018

Social & Cultural Geography, 2018

Journal of Youth Studies, 2017

Social & Cultural Geography, 2017

International Journal of Heritage Studies, 2017

International Journal of Cultural Policy, 2016

by the European Commission to the sum of €1.5 million. During this annual event host cities devel... more by the European Commission to the sum of €1.5 million. During this annual event host cities develop their cultural infrastructure, showcase their cultural talents and attract cultural tourists. It is designed to enhance the 'development of cities', raise their 'international profile', celebrate the 'richness and diversity' of cultures in Europe and link local culture to a 'common European cultural identity' (European Commission, 2014). 2 CoC aims to increase media interest in the host city, stimulate tourism, bring community members together and facilitate professional artistic collaboration on creative projects (DCMS, 2013, 2015). Where CoC differs from ECoC is that there is no public funding attached to the award, it occurs once every four years and smaller spatial areas are eligible.

Town Planning Review, Nov 1, 2021

All Aboard Belfast's 'Brandwagon': From 'Pariah City' to 'Energised City' "Branding has invaded a... more All Aboard Belfast's 'Brandwagon': From 'Pariah City' to 'Energised City' "Branding has invaded all aspects of public and private life... Territorial entities such as cities, regions and countries are now also being branded like companies and products... It seems the time is rapidly approaching when territorial entities can no longer afford not to jump on the 'brandwagon'-it's branding or bust" (van Ham, 2002: 250, 252). Introduction The above epigraph captures the ineluctable omnipresence and omnipotence of branding. We live in a world where almost nothing escapes the lick of branding-whether it's Liverpool Football Club, Louis Vuitton, Lady Gaga or Lyonnaise Potatoes. Brand status is, it seems, everything. For the readers of this journal, it is increasingly clear that city leaders feel they have no alternative but to board the 'brandwagon' in order to effectively compete in the global marketplace. In terms of our interest, many of the tools that were employed to create and sustain Brand Beckham are identical, or strikingly similar, to those used to Brand Barcelona, Brand Berlin and, for this study, Brand Belfast. Whilst this obsession with branding might seem remarkably innocent, maybe even frivolous, it has hugely important spatial implications. A key contention of this article is that planners are fully aboard the 'brandwagon'. They are intimately involved in interventions that intentionally de-and reconstruct the city's urban fabric, built environment, cultural landscape and economic structure. Given this, and the exponential increase in articles on place branding, experts are currently taking stock of the discipline and discussing new lines of empirical investigation and theoretical development (e.g. special issues of Cities, 2018; and European Planning Studies, 2020). We are interested in one strand of theory and analysis concerning city brand personality, and its links to place branding. In consumer behaviour research brand personality is used to study the appeal and attractiveness, and ultimately sales, of goods and services (Aaker, 1997). The place branding literature has begun to embrace this concept with analysts examining how brand personality can be usefully applied to cities (e.g.

Local Economy, 1999

ABSTRACT The European Union's long-term goal for regional policy is economic and social c... more ABSTRACT The European Union's long-term goal for regional policy is economic and social cohesion. In Merseyside the Union has been engaged in a range of policies, through Objective 1 status, to stimulate regional economic development. In view of the current government's concern to promote capacity building and community economic development, an interesting aspect of Objective 1 is Pathways to Integration, a policy that seeks to tackle the problems of high unemployment and social exclusion across Merseyside through community economic development and capacity building. This paper contrasts the rhetoric of the Pathways literature with the reality of its local delivery in the Knowsley Borough of Merseyside. It argues that the reality of Pathways, particularly in relation to community involvement, does not match the rhetoric and the local delivery has been problematic, and that this experience has important lessons for local economic development strategies that include a large element of capacity building.