Urban Studies

Catalog description

This course examines the influences upon and consequences of federal, state, local, and even global decision-making in shaping the spatial and demographic characteristics of urban areas in the twenty-first century. Paying close attention to such topics as education, leisure, industry, race, and political protest, this class hopes to highlight important processes behind the current state of the world’s cities. The status of our urban areas has profound implications for such issues as citizenship, housing, health care, employment, political power, and human rights, and it is these concerns that this course plans to address. Paying close attention to the history behind the processes that have led to this contemporary moment (including technological advancements, economic globalization, cultural movements, and state-based policymaking, among others), this course will provide one the tools with which to better understand the current state of urban centers across the globe.