Barcelona is today seen as an important European tourist and business destination. However, before the 1992 Olympics it was seen as a declining industrial city. The changes in the city have had huge consequences, and the long-term sustainability of its tourist based economy is often questioned. As a result, Barcelona’s experience is often seen as something for other cities to learn from, not least because of the much vaunted ‘Barcelona-model’ of cultural led urban development. This module is a fieldwork-based comparative study of Liverpool and Barcelona, based around a 5 day period of field work in Barcelona, alongside research activity in Liverpool throughout the semester. Students will be introduced to the ideas of urban comparative research and will undertake a group fieldwork project on a project that is feasible in both cities. They will explore what Liverpool can learn from Barcelona, and what Barcelona could potentially learn from Liverpool. Group-project work is supplemented by individual components including an extended essay and a piece of ethnographic writing.