Settler Colonial City Makes Innovation Urbanism: Toward a Global Critique of “Proximity” in Startup Jerusalem

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between innovation urbanism and settler colonial city-making through the case of Jerusalem/al-Quds. It argues that the theory and practice of “proximity,” often assumed to be a key prerequisite of innovative economy, is deeply entangled with settler colonial genealogies, terrains, and social relations. By analyzing “proximity” through the lens of settler colonial city-making, the article makes two contributions to critical studies of innovation and techno-capitalism. First, it advances a global critical methodology that situates the key economic concepts of innovation urbanism within the longue durée of colonial progressivism and the ongoing struggles and frictions of settler urbanity. Second, it extends critiques of the capitalism-colonialism nexus by revealing not only the brutal violence but also the fragility and heterogeneity of innovation urbanism by tracing how its expansive proximities are slowed down, sabotaged, and reimagined. The article concludes by positioning the settler colonial city as a key site for a global theory of innovation urbanism.