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Since the term "gentrification" was coined by Ruth Glass in 1964, this concept and the phenomenon it referred to have been subject to change. This paper reviews the literature and employs Ian Hacking's work to investigate how two types of changes—that is, changes of the concept and of the phenomenon—are implicated by each other. By investigating the interaction between a classification and its class, it becomes possible to understand gentrification as, in Hacking's terms, a "moving target." This paper argues that gentrification can be conceptualized as such and explores the consequences of this for gentrification research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Displacement has become one of the most prominent themes in contemporary geographical debates, used to describe processes of dispossession and forced eviction at a diverse range of scales. Given its frequent deployment in studies describing the consequences of gentrification, this paper seeks to better define and conceptualise displacement as a process of un-homing, noting that while gentrification can prompt processes of eviction, expulsion and exclusion operating at different scales and speeds, it always ruptures the connection between people and place. On this basis – and recognising displacement as a form of violence – this paper concludes that the diverse scales and temporalities of displacement need to be better elucidated so that their negative emotional, psychosocial and material impacts can be more fully documented, and resisted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An unnamed shift has occurred in geographies of eviction. While past research focused on the causes and effects of eviction in political economy, state power, and cultural difference, emerging work emphasises the subjective experience and sustaining practices of eviction as it happens. This paper makes the case for this turn away from causes and outcomes of 'eviction', and towards 'evicting' as a set of material technologies and practices that sustain displacement, and explores the implications of such a shift. Research into lived durations of eviction, evicting technologies, and eviction enforcement agencies opens up new conceptual and political fields of intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies on gentrification in Latin America currently face two main obstacles. On the one hand, there appears to be a refusal by the academy in Latin America to use the term, regarding it as an expression of cultural imperialism. On the other hand, there has been an excessively flexible and ambiguous use of the term, obscuring political and scholarly debates on the issue. Both obstacles are partly a consequence of the lack of dialogue between the different authors in the field. This article generates a critical dialogue with the most relevant works and researchers on gentrification in Latin America, as well as with those scholars reluctant to use the term. Specifically, the author advocates for a more restrictive and clarifying definition of the phenomena and defends the utility of the concept as a tool to promote the critical analysis of the specific processes in many Latin American cities, as well as in cities outside the region. The paper concludes that, even though it should not be the main political concern for urban researchers in the region, gentrification is a relevant ongoing process in some Latin American cities and its study would contribute to a better comprehension of recent processes of urban restructuring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers recent pleas for a 'geography of gentrification', arguing that they have been very urban in focus and often enact what, following Soja (1996), might be described as `firstspace epistemology'. The paper identifies traces of other, secondspace and thirdspace geographies of gentrification. It is argued that these geographies may not be fully commensurable with each other but that they each may have some commensurability with rural as well as the urban spatialities. The paper goes on to explore these arguments in relation to studies of gentrification of the British countryside, focusing particularly on gentrification in rural Norfolk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This systematic literature review identifies and critiques methodological trends in green gentrification research (focusing on studies of vegetative greening) and provides suggestions for advancing this field. Findings reveal (1) research has largely focused on U.S. case studies; (2) early work employed qualitative methods but quantitative analyses have become more common; (3) little attention has been paid to the influence of greening characteristics/functions and non-greening factors on gentrification; (4) the mechanisms through which greening leads to gentrification are not well understood, particularly on the demand side; and (5) despite being the main concern of green gentrification, displacement has not been well-documented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper revisits the ‘geography of gentrification’ thinking through the literature on comparative urbanism. I argue that given the ‘mega-gentrification’ affecting many cities in the Global South gentrification researchers need to adopt a postcolonial approach taking on board critiques around developmentalism, categorization and universalism. In addition they need to draw on recent work on the mobilities and assemblages of urban policies/policy-making in order to explore if, and how, gentrification has travelled from the Global North to the Global South. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Many cities have a two-tiered system for governing land: one set of rules for most people, and a different set for elite investors, large developers, and others who can bend, circumvent, or lobby against the rules. This reflects elite capture of urban institutions, as institutions are subverted to benefit special interests. We argue elite capture plays a systemic role in 21st century urban political economy. We review recent scholarship on four kinds of elite capture practices—rent seeking, opportunity hoarding, exploiting loopholes, and co-opting participatory planning—and illustrate them with a discussion of recent gentrification research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban gentrification debates are essentially anthropocentric, ignoring how the presence of animals at the gentrification frontier can promote or oppose capital accumulation. By way of corrective, this article reviews geographical work on the relations of human and non-human animals in gentrifying neighbourhoods, arguing for a trans-species perspective on urban gentrification that considers the different ways animals are caught up in gentrification struggles. Noting that gentrification sometimes involves the violent and unjust displacement of non-human animals, the article concludes by arguing that anti-gentrification discourse might usefully place more emphasis on the animal 'right to the city'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

William Edward Burghardt Du Bois's considerable contributions were actively diminished during his life and remain marginal in geography. This is unfortunate for urban geography, particularly its political economy wing, because his empirical and theoretical work offer an illuminating internal critique of modern debates in the field. This review essay attempts to initiate a wider dialogue about the potential value of Du Bois to the influential urban political economy paradigm in geography. Specifically, I adapt and apply Du Boisian definitions of racism to two literatures: the rise of neoliberalism and the significance of gentrification in Black spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of land use change in urban and regional systems has been dramatically transformed in the last four decades by the emergence and application of cellular automata (CA) models. CA models simulate urban land use changes which evolve from the bottom-up. Despite notable achievements in this field, there remain significant gaps between urban processes simulated in CA models and the actual dynamics of evolving urban systems. This article identifies contemporary issues faced in developing urban CA models and draws on this evidence to map out four interrelated thematic areas that require concerted attention by the wider CA urban modelling community. These are: (1) to build models that comprehensively capture the multi-dimensional processes of urban change, including urban regeneration, densification and gentrification, in-fill development, as well as urban shrinkage and vertical urban growth; (2) to establish models that incorporate individual human decision behaviours into the CA analytic framework; (3) to draw on emergent sources of 'big data' to calibrate and validate urban CA models and to capture the role of human actors and their impact on urban change dynamics; and (4) to strengthen theory-based CA models that comprehensively explain urban change mechanisms and dynamics. We conclude by advocating cellular automata that embed agent-based models and big data input as the most promising analytical framework through which we can enhance our understanding and planning of the contemporary urban change dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]