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Tag: mega-events

A quick look at my keynote in Mendrisio: mega-events and marginalities, substance and spectacle

A quick look at my keynote in Mendrisio: mega-events and marginalities, substance and spectacle

Earlier this month I was invited to give a keynote at a symposium in at the Università della Svizzera italiana in Mendrisio, called Marginal urbanities: The hidden face of planetary urbanisation. It was organized by Mosè Cometta and Giulia Scotto, two wonderful scholars who did a great job putting together the program. It was broad enough that we could all learn from each other’s perspectives but small enough to be intimate and personal. A tough balance, that. My keynote focused…

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Investigating mega-event host cities after the spotlight

Investigating mega-event host cities after the spotlight

My Swiss National Science Foundation Ambizione project has officially begun! I’m now at the ETH Zurich, working with the SPUR group – Spatial Development and Urban Policy. This is a great interdisciplinary team and I am thrilled to be here. The interdisciplinary nature of the group means that I’m returning to a beginner mind in some situations. It’s a great feeling – albeit a little destabilizing sometimes – to encounter entirely new debates in bodies of literature I’ve never even…

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Interview: the (un)sustainability of the Olympic Games

Interview: the (un)sustainability of the Olympic Games

I had the opportunity to talk about mega-events and (un)sustainability, particularly in context with the upcoming Paris 2024 Games. The journalist, Théo Nepipvoda, gave me plenty of time and space, which is always a nice feeling. I thought that I would be a small contribution to an article, and didn’t know that it would end up as such a large interview, so that’s a pleasant surprise. Click here for the article. Merci Théo pour l’opportunité !

Russian athletes and sports during a time of war

Russian athletes and sports during a time of war

I really enjoy speaking with Sportschau, which I think is the most influential sports program on German television. To their credit, they feature the work of Robert Kempe, who does great work on sports and politics, and who pursues difficult stories with nuance and integrity. It’s a hard combo but I think he does it admirably. In this segment, he investigates the impossible situation of having Russian and Belarusian athletes participating in global sport while the Russian state pursues its…

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Ambizione project: After the spotlight of hosting mega-events

Ambizione project: After the spotlight of hosting mega-events

As I wrote in my summary of 2022, I was fortunate enough to win a Swiss National Science Foundation Ambizione grant last year. I am overjoyed, and deeply grateful that I’ve been entrusted to bring this project to life. It’s called “After the spotlight: Sustainable urban development and geopolitical legacies in former mega-event cities.” The problem is that mega-events like the Olympics and the Football World Cup have dramatic impacts on cities and societies. Typically, organizing authorities promise infrastructural, political,…

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The Hard Edge of Soft Power: My keynote at the (Il)liberal Nation Projection symposium

The Hard Edge of Soft Power: My keynote at the (Il)liberal Nation Projection symposium

Vitaly Kazakov at the University of Manchester invited me to give one of the keynotes at a symposium he organized. Over two intense and enjoyable days, we explored various national projection strategies from illiberal and democratic states across different contexts, channels, and platforms. It was interdisciplinary, relevant, and exciting. A real honor to attend. I wrote a short twitter thread about it: My keynote explored the uncomfortable connections between the Russian mega-event decade and the war in Ukraine. Here’s a…

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Play the Game – a new and refreshing kind of conference

Play the Game – a new and refreshing kind of conference

I’ve heard of Play the Game, of course, because most of my critical sports friends and colleagues have participated at one time or another. I also contributed a commentary for a series on Protest and the Games organized by Dennis Pauschinger and John Lauermann, where I wrote about the challenges of protesting mega-events in Russia. But until now, I’d never attended the actual conference. This time, I spoke about the uncomfortable intersections between sport and war, in a talk called…

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German sport TV is amazing: Talking about Russian sport, authoritarian politics, and western complicity on Sportschau

German sport TV is amazing: Talking about Russian sport, authoritarian politics, and western complicity on Sportschau

I was invited to speak on Sportschau Sunday Night, which was a wonderful experience. I was surprised by how political and involved they were. I wish I could link the report, but unfortunately it’s geoblocked to German territory, so unless you live in Germany, I’m afraid I can’t share. I caught it live from Switzerland and it was great. I felt honored to participate in a project that was so incisive and timely. I thought it was really well done…

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The absolutely last virtual talk of 2021: Paris / Tokyo / Mega-Events

The absolutely last virtual talk of 2021: Paris / Tokyo / Mega-Events

Usually, when I give a talk, I’m sharing work in progress. The conference is, for me, a way to share my ideas, to learn who else is working on similar directions, and hopefully to fill in some of the gaps in my work as I get it ready for writing. This time, however, it was something new. I spoke at a conference called “Olympic Games and Global Cities”, organized by the Fondation France-Japon at l’École des Hautes Études en Sciences…

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After the spotlight: Sustainable urban development and geopolitical legacies in former mega-event cities

After the spotlight: Sustainable urban development and geopolitical legacies in former mega-event cities

I submitted my Ambizione project to the Swiss National Science Foundation. Definitely a massive effort! My earlier investigation of submission and acceptance data means that I’m under no illusions about my odds, but I admit that I have hope and am excited about the potential here. Overall, the project is designed to take my existing experience in mega-events and investigate some important under-researched areas. At the same time, I’ve designed it to support and expand my knowledge and competencies in…

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