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The purpose of this paper is to identify and critically examine a framing of key characteristics for climate change adaptation learning and action in the context of urban Pakistani local government.

The research employed a combination of approaches; predominantly literature review and interview methodologies. Recognising the need to understand climate change adaptation as an iterative learning process, the literature review concentrated on organisational and policy learning, with special consideration given to those characteristics most pertinent to urban governance in the Pakistani context. This analysis was then furthered through primary data collated through a series of interviews, with the City District Government of Lahore as the chosen case study for this piece of research. Initial scoping interviews were followed up by a series of in‐depth, semi‐structured, interviews with local government officials, an assessment process used to examine conceptual evidence and findings in the Pakistani urban context. A total of 21 Pakistani professionals, working in a variety of roles for local government, were subject to the interview process.

From a critical analysis of conceptual and real world evidence, the authors identified six discrete characteristics that could be used to frame the context of climate change adaptation learning and action in the Pakistani urban local government context. These have been categorised as: leadership for adaptation, vision for adaptation, culture for adaptation, good governance for adaptation, innovation and creativity for adaptation and resources for adaptation.

The value of this paper is several‐fold: it applies a learning perspective to the climate change adaptation debate, identifies a framing of key characteristics for climate change adaptation learning and action, and uses an actor‐based approach to examine some of the key conceptual ideas in the Pakistani urban context.

China′s market‐oriented reforms have brought about fundamental changes not just to its economy, but also to urban governance. The reforms have significantly changed urban development from its previous pattern which was largely determined by decision makers within the central government. Reform measures have transformed the role, functions and processes of urban government and have made them a force to be reckoned with in the whole reform endeavour. Examines and analyses issues of administrative reform at the urban government level in ten years of economic reform since 1979. Looks at three aspects of the problem – the trend towards financial decentralization; institutional changes in local administration; and changes in the relationship between urban government and the local economy. Argues that there is an unfinished agenda of administrative reform that needs to be faced by the authorities concerned if the mighty endeavour of economic reform is to succeed.

The purpose of this paper is to draw on the theory of institutional isomorphism to investigate how Mississippi’s centralized cash management policy affects the cash management practices in the state’s rural and urban counties.

The study uses a sequential exploratory mixed methods design involving a qualitative documentary analysis and a quantitative analysis of a survey of Mississippi counties.

The study finds that institutional isomorphism drives cash management practices in the counties by influencing how they follow state and agency mandates. Moreover, while urban counties have superior socio-economic indicators compared to their rural counterparts, no differences exist regarding standardized financial indicators, which suggest that local governments in the state may be imitating the practices of one another.

First, states should consider the different financial and economic conditions of their local governments when prescribing cash management policies because uniform policies could stifle local innovation and reduce efficiency in cash management. Second, when there is pressure from a higher-level government or a state agency, local governments may end up imitating one another rather than exploring opportunities for innovation within state policies. Third, state policies should consider requiring education and training in cash management practices that help identify strategies to add value to public funds within the scope of local fiscal capabilities.

The study uses one state to investigate a unique case of centralized cash management practices. The lessons learned can apply to other states seeking to develop a policy for their small local governments without placing the larger ones at a disadvantage.

This paper aims to explore how the implementation of community-driven approaches to improve the living conditions of the urban poor can also have positive co-benefits for resilience to climate change, by addressing the underlying drivers of physical, social and economic vulnerability.

The paper applies a case study approach, drawing from the documented experiences of organised urban poor groups in Asian countries already actively participating in collective settlement upgrading, building networks and financial resources for further action.

The findings show that while certain actions might not be taken with climate change adaptation specifically in mind, these development activities also contribute to broader resilience to climate change, by reducing exposure to risk and addressing other drivers of vulnerability. The findings also show that partnerships between low income communities and other urban stakeholders, including local government, and innovative financial mechanisms managed by communities, can lead to scaled-up action to address development and adaptation deficits. This can lead the way for transformation in socio-political systems.

The approaches applied by organised urban poor groups in Asia show that community-level actions can make a positive contribution to building their resilience to climate change, and with local government support and partnership, it could lead to scaled-up actions, through a bottom-up approach to multi-level governance.

This paper considers how community-driven actions can build resilience to climate change, and it argues that adaptation and development should be considered together.

This paper aims to investigate the potential role of property taxes as a revenue source for local government in Tanzania. Often this tax is beset with political and administrative problems that affect its operational efficiencies.

The research is the result of extensive fieldwork undertaken in Tanzania during 2002 to investigate and evaluate the valuations done for purposes of the property tax in Dar es Salaam and eight regional towns.

Urban local government revenues, and in particular those classified as own revenues in Tanzania and other East African countries, are generally not sufficient enough to develop and supply adequate urban services to the region's fast growing urban population. The main findings of the paper highlight the difficulties faced by municipalities in developing and maintaining a property tax system.

The key problems were lack of experienced staff, limited equipment and significant political interference.

This research clearly identified the need for developing countries to recognize the importance of creating sustainable tax sources that are easily managed at low costs. The work found that the property tax system as designed for Tanzania was not sustainable and suggests a range of possible improvements.

The research did indicate that significant results could be achieved through implementing improvements in developing a simplified valuation basis and through greater collection efficiency. The research should be of particular interest to policy and decision makers within other developing countries who are embarked on a process of property tax reform.

The image of Latin American suburbs has changed in the last two decades as they have become more heterogeneous with the development of gated communities that coexist with poor-household settlements. Developers, local government staff and gated community residents are the main actors involved in the process of urban development of the periphery.

The Strathclyde experience makes it clear that local government should be precise about the objectives it wishes to pursue, the likelihood of achieving these, the methods it must adopt, and the best way of monitoring progress and effectiveness. Strathclyde Region has laid the base for a much more efficient delivery of services and resources relating to its particular needs, this information being derived from local data collection and analysis and providing essential underpinning to policy initiatives on issues (e.g. services to the unemployed, one‐parent families). Regional deprivation strategy has increased political awareness of Regional employees, and the 1983 strategy emphasises community development. Through a greater commitment by Regional staff to act positively in reducing the impact of urban deprivation, the effect of Regional policy on the lives of individuals has been significant.

A city is a spatial carrier of innovation activities. Improving the level of urban innovation can play a significant supporting role in building an innovative country. China began to implement the innovative city pilot policy in 2008 and continued to expand the policy into more areas for exploring the path of innovative urban development with Chinese characteristics and improving urban innovation.

Based on mechanism analysis, this paper used the panel data of 269 cities from 2003 to 2016 to empirically test the effect of the pilot policy on the level of urban innovation by using different methods, such as the difference-in-differences model.

The results show that the innovative city pilot policy significantly improves the level of urban innovation. However, according to the findings of the heterogeneity analysis, the effect of the pilot policy on improving the innovation level in direct-controlled municipalities, provincial capitals and sub-provincial cities is weaker than that in ordinary cities, and the effect of the pilot policy on improving the innovation level in cities with a higher quality of science and education resources is weaker than that in cities with lower quality of science and education resources.

Moreover, as the level of urban innovation increases, the effect of the pilot policy on improving the level of urban innovation is an asymmetric inverted V shape, which means the effect is first strengthened and then weakened. The research also finds that the locational heterogeneity of the pilot policy for improving the level of urban innovation is not notable. In addition, the innovative city pilot policy can strengthen the government's strategic guidance, promote the concentration of talent, incentivize corporate investment and optimize the innovation environment, having a positive impact on urban innovation. Moreover, the effect of concentration of talent and the effect of corporate investment incentive are the important reasons for the pilot policy to promote the improvement of the level of urban innovation.

As a crucial institutional form established since the Chinese economic reform, the system of competitive local governments has been shaping the characteristics of China's socialist market economy to a considerable degree.

This study not only adopts the view of existing studies that attribute the economic motive of local governments to rent and consider land public finance as a means through which local governments carry out strategic investment but also attempts to further develop the view within a Marxist analytical framework.

As a result, the local governments have helped to maintain an incredibly high investment rate over a considerable period of time, facilitating the continuous, rapid growth of the Chinese economy.

This study concludes that China's local governments function as the productive allocator and user of rent in the strategic investment based on land public finance and thereby embed themselves in the relative surplus-value production initially arising from competition amongst enterprises, forming the dual structure of relative surplus-value production unique to China's economy.

This paper aims to explore the sources of China's property boom from 2000 to 2009. The basic research hypothesis is that the property boom is largely associated with Chinese local governments’ incentive structure which prioritizes GDP growth for evaluating their performance.

Based on the fixed effects panel data regression model of 35 major Chinese cities, the determinants of property investment, property price and land sale price are identified. In particular, the roles of local governments in boosting the property boom are discussed.

Property investment is driven by accelerating urbanization process, easier availability of bank loans and more housing sales. Meanwhile, higher disposable income, more housing sales and increasing property investment are identified to mainly account for the property price escalation. It is further demonstrated that increasing property price has positive effect on land sale price. Local governments have quickened the urbanization process, released more bank loans and sold more land through public auction to support property development, sustain property price and increase land sale revenue. Such behaviour is closely related to Chinese local governments’ incentive structure.

Previous studies have not empirically tested the relationships between local governments’ pursuits for higher revenue in the urban land market and China's magnified and sustained property boom over the past decade. A prosperous property market is conducive to economic development and hence local officials’ chances of political promotion.