The crisis of democracy in the age of cities / edited by Juval Portugali (Professor of Human Geography, Department of Geography and the Human Environment and Head of the City Center-Tel Aviv University Research Center for Cities and Urbanism, Tel Aviv University, Israel).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction -- Part I. Present, past and future perspectives -- 1. The crisis of democracy in the age of cities and complexity / Juval Portugali -- 2. The ancient Greek lottery and modern democracies / Irad Malkin -- 3. The end of empire and the age of cities / Michael Batty -- Part II. Complexity theory, cities and democracy -- 4. Learning from small urban nations -- the importance of randomness and feedback for democratic stability / Karoline Wiesner -- 5. Perfection, does it lean toward balance or perversion? How democracy and the urban grid inform about the human condition / Gert De Roo -- 6. A synergetic cities view on the crisis of democracy in the age of cities / Juval Portugali and Hermann Haken -- 7. Democracy demands wisdom / J.A. Scott Kelso -- Part III. The internet, smart cities and democracy -- 8. Why the internet must become more like a city / Luís M. A. Bettencourt -- 9. Privacy and trust in artificially intelligent cities / Charlie Catlett, Juval Portugali and Venkat Venkatakrishnan PARTIV URBAN GOVERNANCE AND PLANNING -- 10. Cities under pressure -- urban democracy and everyday life / Sabine Knierbein -- 11. Governing cities democratically through partnerships / Ashwin Mahalingam and Juval Portugali -- 12. A crisis of lost values: Rediscovering the relationship between urban beauty, democracy and complexity / Stefano Cozzolino -- 13. Democracy beyond the state in the age of cities: Explaining crisis dynamics in national democracy / Hans Agné -- Index.

"Providing a succinct overview of historical, present, and future perspectives of cities and urbanism, this discerning book examines how the 21st century, regarded as the age of cities, is associated with the current crisis of democracy. The book explores the tension between non-democratic liberalism and non-liberal democracy and the present era of cities as complex systems, in which the characteristics and dynamics of urbanism are transforming our way of life. Against the backdrop of globalization, the Anthropocene, and Industry 4.0, each chapter analyses the challenges and crises facing modern democracies from the unique perspective of cities and complexity theory. Expert contributors analyse the interplay between complexity theory, urban planning, governance, and the internet, ultimately highlighting the need to rediscover the relationship between urban beauty and democracy. Offering key insights into the complexities of urban development and the challenges that arise when democracy intersects with the needs of modern cities, this innovative book will appeal to students and scholars of urban geography, political science, public administration, and architecture. It will be an invaluable resource for those researching cities and complexity"-- $cProvided by publisher.