Introduction

In order to address the many questions raised in the debate regarding the use of culture in urban policymaking, it seems necessary to examine culture-led urban regeneration from a critical standpoint. Taking into account qualified voices in recent international debate, this introductive chapter undertakes the difficult task to observe this complex of problems from three different angles. First, cultural and creative production and consumption are discussed in their relation to urban strategies, governance mechanisms and actors. A second section goes on to explore the question of how to preserve heritage while at the same time fostering a sustainable economic, social and cultural evolution in the urban environment. Finally, a zoom into urban and architectural design provides insights into cultural meanings and planning practices of urban space and places. Of course, given the complex layering of the research questions, many issues are recurrent in different chapters and intersect each other.