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The city, born to be a place of meeting and exchange, has for several decades taken as a default model the strong citizen, man, adult and worker, thereby transforming it into a hostile space for the weakest: the elderly, the disabled, the poor and the children. The automobile, the toy of choice for the privileged citizen, is also taken to be the principal'citizen'of the city, thus endangering the health, aesthetics and mobility of the rest of us. This book proposes a new philosophy of city governance that takes children as the default citizens, with the confidence that a city sensitive to the needs of childhood will be healthier for everybody. This work recovers elements of the 1989 Convention of the Rights of the Child that recognize the full citizenship of children to suggest two principle axioms for optimal city design: the participation of children in city governance and the restitution of their autonomy, which allows them to stay with their friends and play freely. Boys and girls, in this way, represent all those excluded from decisions and power. This book is primarily written for politicians and city managers so that they can take on board the ideas within. Yet it is also important for teachers and parents so that they can respect the rights provided in the convention. City of Children should be made available to students on teacher-training courses, and also to the children who are the book's true protagonists. At present, more than two hundred cities in Spain, Italy, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Brazil and Costa Rica have joined this project. This book is a translation of “La città dei bambini” and was translated as part of the Bridging Language and Scholarship initiative. The English edition by Vernon Press follows previous editions of this important work in Italian and the four languages of the Spanish nation (Galego, Basque, Catalan and Castilian), French and Portuguese to make available for the first time this important work to a broader international audience.

What do we know about the implications of the major changing forces in urban life for children? What should be our priorities for new policies and practices for children in cities? The traditional view of children as ‘dependants'obscures the complexity of the urban experience children face. Their social environment is not limited strictly to institutions such as the family and the church. But neither do children have access to the full range of societal offerings. This volume evaluates the basis of current issues of public concern and debate and constructs an agenda for future research, policy, and practice concerning children and families. The perspectives of many disciplines are brought together and integrated in the consideration of such factors as family structure and child care arrangements, urban dilemmas for adolescents, legal structures and practices, urban social organization and service delivery systems, housing and neighbourhood contexts, and ethnic diversity.The book as a whole identifies the fundamentals of a broad issue of concern and offers guidelines for shaping a humane future.

Rapid changes in urban life are continually reshaping the physical and social environment of the city. This book represents the thinking of a number of leading experts on a variety of topics related to the impact of contemporary urban life on children.Between the introduction which provides a framework for a contextual analysis and a conclusion which draws together the major ideas, each chapter presents a major statement on a particular area of concern, followed by commentaries and discussion. The topics range from the historical context of policies regarding urban children and an international perspective on children's services to detailed studies of health, daycare and its effects on young children, legal issues, and the problem of delinquency and social control. Another chapter deals with the broad pattern of social change and its consequences for children.Several chapters focus on physical aspects of the urban environment; the overall ecological perspective, local neighbourhoods, and housing. The book as a whole identifies the fundamentals of a broad issue of concern and examines their implications for policy, practice, and understanding.