Brands in Theory and Practice

urban design paradigms. As international investments impose branding and the commodification of design, and professionals firms work in several different countries, he calls for a neo-functional and ecological urban design that fosters respect for the culture of places. Urban design has long been considered to mean the self-conscious design of cities or, much more likely, their precincts or, even more likely, a large block of a city comprised of several buildings and the open spaces among them. A number of thoughtful scholars have sought to broaden this definition to comprise the ongoing processes that shape human settlements1 but even they, when it comes to actually taking action, deal with urban design as individual project design. This paper brings attention to and questions the utility of the urban design paradigms being employed in an increasingly globalized world. These models incur significant opportunity costs when applied universally. It ultimately argues that we need a new set of generic solutions that are climatically and culturally sensitive. The Globalization of Contemporary Urban Design Practice We live in a growing international society as the result of the many political, economic and cultural changes taking place in the world. While today’s supra-national economy seems overwhelming, international trade has had a globalizing impact on the nature of cities since the beginning of recorded history. What is happening today is, however, on a much greater scale. This observation is as true of architecture and urban design as it is for any other commercial activity.2 Notes from the Editor