Why do people like to live in cities?                                                    
International Conference on Urbanization & Urban Culture in the Netherlands

Date: 10, 11 and 12 November 2009
Place: The Hague, Netherlands Centre for Modern Urban Studies (Leiden University, Campus Den Haag).
Organization: NWO (Netherlands Organization of Scientific Research); Leiden University, Campus Den Haag; NICIS Institute; VROM.

The international conference is intended to present the first key findings of the NWO- research programme to the international community of outstanding scholars in the field of urban sciences. This is an excellent occasion too for exchanging ideas on the many topics and themes of the specialized fields of urban knowledge like historical geography, urban history, historical archaeology, urban economy and urban design which, in the end, will open new dimensions on the past, present and future conditions and circumstances of life in Dutch cities.
The aims and intentions of the conference will be carried out in two types of sessions: keynote lectures (3)  reflecting on each of the three thematic pillars of the programme: urbs,  civitas and topos. Invited outstanding scholars from abroad are asked to start from their own specializations within urban sciences but, at the same time, to transcend the existing disciplinary boundaries.