In the lead-up to the 2002 South Australian election, the Labor Party announced its intention to implement a suite of policy initiatives for Adelaide’s northern region. At the time, “Labor’s Plan for the Northern Region” was framed to address key challenges (and opportunities) facing the North, including the dual dynamic of:

1) the region’s real – and perceived – status as an area of concentrated disadvantage and dysfunction; and

2) the region’s identified role as a site for future urban growth and continuing industrial and economic development.

The aim of the research project is to develop a contextualised case study of the Office of the North — and of associated initiatives in Adelaide’s north — in the light of key themes from contemporary discourse. Important among these interlinking themes are those of: - governance; - urban competitiveness and entrepreneurialism; - questions of scale; - planning; - collaboration and partnerships.

These themes link to broader debates around globalisation, post-industrial society, and postmodernity.