Location: Bronte Hall Room 216, Headingley Campus, Leeds, LS6 3QW

Biography

Dr Dave O’Brien is a lecturer in events management. He has recently completed a PhD comparing decision-making surrounding European Capital of Culture in Liverpool and NewcastleGateshead and is presently awaiting the viva. His previous degrees are in history and politics (BA Hons) and philosophy (MA) both of which are from the University of Liverpool. Before joining UKCEM he co-ordinated and taught a wide variety of social science, politics and management courses at the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores and Bangor University. He has run and participated in a range of research projects across the social science spectrum and his current research interests fall into four interrelated categories:

1. European Capital of Culture and the UK City of Culture: As well as his PhD research Dave has also worked extensively with Impacts08 (http://www.liv.ac.uk/impacts08/) who are evaluating Liverpool’s year as ECoC in 2008, concentrating on the philosophy and management process strand of Impact’s research model. He beginning research on the planned UKCoC which takes place in 2013 (http://www.culture.gov.uk/what_we_do/communities_and_local_government/6015.aspx/)
2. Governance, local administration and cultural policy. Linked to his work on ECoC Dave has a more general interest in the way urban governance is being influenced by cultural policy agendas and the ways different localities history, politics and culture constrain and enable cultural policies.
3. Social theory and cultural policy. As a result of his research on how locality shapes policy practice Dave’s research seeks to connect sociological theories, especially theories of culture, to concepts of place and locality
4. Finally Dave has a longstanding interest in the culture, politics and history of Liverpool, an interest developed as a result of his involvement in an assortment of research programmes and projects

External research projects

Liverpool John Moores (2009) ‘Exploring the use of dispersal powers’ Researcher.

Impacts 08 (2006-2010) A variety of research projects and reports, involving interviews, literature reviews and online surveys. http://www.liv.ac.uk/impacts08/.

TiC (2006) ‘Solid Futures’ Monitoring and evaluation.

School Councils UK (2005) ‘The Role of the Rialto Neighborhood Council’ Researcher.

University of Liverpool (2005) ‘Capturing Culture’ Researcher.

Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (2005) ‘The State of Local Democracy: A Comparative Study of Local Democracy in two Northern Towns’ Research assistant.

Recent and forthcoming conference papers:

‘Cultural policy as rhetoric and reality: a comparative analysis of policy-making in the peripheral north’ Centre/Periphery: Devolution/Federalism New Trends in Cultural Policy City University, London, 16 August 2009.

‘Developing good practice through monitoring and evaluation’ Solid Futures conference Aintree, Liverpool, 26 February 2007.

‘Capital or Culture’ Challenging Orthodoxy- the public function of Sociology University of Liverpool 9/9/2005

Recent publications:

O’Brien, D and Miles, S (forthcoming) ‘Cultural policy as rhetoric and reality: a comparative analysis of policy-making in the peripheral north’ Cultural Trends (2010) 19(1&2): 3-13.

O’Brien, D (forthcoming) ‘Liverpool on the map again’ Liverpool stakeholders’ reflections on Liverpool European Capital of Culture 2008’ Research findings for Impacts08.

O’Brien, D (forthcoming) ‘Liverpool Councillors and European Capital of Culture’ Research findings for Impacts08.

O’Brien, D (2008) ‘Who pays the piper?’ Research findings for Impacts08 available from http://www.liv.ac.uk/impacts08/

O’Brien, D (2008) ‘The limits of critical approaches’ (book review) City 12(1), 126-127.

O’Brien, D (2007) ‘Judging the built environment in theory and practice’ (book review) City 11(2), 242-244.

O’Brien, D (2006) ‘The politics of Publishing’ (book review) City 10(3), 372-374.