Night Time Economy Commissions: a Review of International Case Studies

The last few decades have also witnessed a proliferation of night-time governance institutions. While ‘night mayors’ have captured media attention, there are also more recurring institutional types of ‘consultative systems’ which seek to formalise the conversation as to the state, future, and challenges of the night-time in a city. This report reviews the characteristics, shape and functions of these ‘night time commissions’. We unpack the form and function of institutionalised consultative NTE bodies in eighteen case study cities around the world. We highlight variation and institutional innovation, but also develop a preliminary taxonomy of consultative night-time governance systems. 

This Melbourne Centre for Cities issues paper is based on the following publication: Michele Acuto, Andreina Seijas, Anna Edwards & Shelby Bassett (2023) “Meeting afterhours: on the work that night commissions do”, in Urban Geography, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2023.2180192