2023 Boston Summer Fellowship: Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM)
Application Deadline: January 30, 2023, at 5:00 PM ET The Office of New Urban Mechanics is Boston’s civic innovation team, responsible for promoting participatory urbanism, smarter city infrastructure, and innovative service delivery. They are the catalyst and clearing house for civic innovation projects involving the City of Boston and its partners, More
2023 Undergraduate Internship Opportunities
The Initiative on Cities is now accepting applications for Summer 2022 Internships with the city of Boston, MA! The deadline to apply for undergraduate fellowships is Sunday, February 26, at 11:59 PM ET. Undergraduate students interested in racial equity, local government, environmental justice, public service, or housing are encouraged to apply. Boston... More
BU PhD Student Urbanists Networking Social
Date: Thursday, February 2, 2023 Time: 6:00-8:00 PM ET Location: Dahod Family Alumni Center (BU Castle), 225 Bay State Road The Initiative on Cities is hosting a networking event for Boston University PhD Student Urbanists on Thursday, February 2nd at 6:00 PM ET at the BU Castle. This is an opportunity to socialize... More
#BUandBoston: Assisting Refugees Through Initiative, Service, and Education (ARISE)
This post is part of our #BUandBoston series, highlighting the work and research of BU students, faculty, and staff throughout the City of Boston and the Greater Boston region. Interested in having your Boston-related work featured? Tag us on Instagram or Twitter (@BUonCities) using the #BUandBoston or send us an email at ioc@bu.edu. By Dhruv Kapadia For the... More
New Paper by IOC Director that Traces Gentrification Induced Displacement in London
Initiative on Cities' Director Loretta Lees published a new paper in the journal Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space that investigates and quantifies the displacement of residents due to new development and gentrification of council estates in London. This paper was co-authored with Jonathan Reades (Centre for Advanced Spatial... More
Crime, Inequality, and Resistance in New York City: A Multiple Political Orders Perspective
Date: Thursday, December 1, 2022 Time: 12:00-1:00pm ET Location: Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road, Boston Register Join the Initiative on Cities as we host Timothy Weaver to discuss his forthcoming book, "Crime, Inequality, and Resistance in New York City: A Multiple Political Orders Perspective." At first glance, New York City stands as a... More
New White Paper: On the Use of ‘Cool Roofs’ to Reduce Residential Heat Exposure Disparities in Boston, MA
The Initiative on Cities just released a new white paper on the use of ‘cool roofs’ to reduce residential heat exposure disparities in Boston. This white paper was co-authored by Ian Smith (PhD Candidate, Earth & Environment), Katharine Lusk (Co-Director, Initiative on Cities), and Lucy Hutyra (Professor, Earth & Environment), More
Valerie Sanchez Covaleda: My Summer with the City of Providence Office of Sustainability
By Valerie Sanchez Covaleda (CAS/CGS ’24). Valerie was the Initiative on Cities’ 2022 Providence, RI Justice Fellowship with the Office of Sustainability. The Providence Justice Fellowship through the BU Initiative on Cities (IOC) was a really informative experience that I am grateful to have had the opportunity to complete. As a... More
A Reckoning in Boston: Film Screening & Discussion
Date & Time: Tuesday, November 29th, 5-7:30pm ET [Film Screening: 5-6:30pm; Panel Discussion: 6:30-7:30pm] Location: Leventhal Center Auditorium, 233 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215 Register Join us for a screening of “A Reckoning in Boston,” a film that explores the historical impacts of multi-faceted layers of interpersonal and structural racism on Black Bostonians and... More
The 2022 Greater Boston Housing Report Card
IOC Faculty Fellows Co-Author This Year's Special Topic and Highlight Systemic Issues in Subsidized Housing Greater Boston continues to struggle with a lack of affordable housing, as tight inventory and rising costs continue to place significant burdens on homebuyers and renters. At the same time, flaws in the systems around subsidized... More
New Working Paper: School Closures Significantly Reduced Arrests of Black and Latinx Urban Youth
BU Assistant Professor of Sociology, Jessica Simes, released a new working paper on how school closures during the pandemic significantly reduced arrests of Black and Latinx urban youth. This working paper was co-authored with Tori Cowger (FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public... More
Cora Funke: My Summer with the City of Chelsea’s Open Data & Digital Communications Initiatives
By Cora Funke (KHC/CAS '23). Cora was the Initiative on Cities' 2022 City of Chelsea: Open Data & Digital Communications Initiatives Summer Fellow. Over the summer, I had the opportunity to work for the City of Chelsea for eight weeks through the BU Initiative on Cities. I worked closely with Cate Fox-Lent, More
Maggie Kormann: My Summer at the Boston Mayor’s Office of Resilience and Racial Equity
By Maggie Kormann (CAS '23). Maggie was the Initiative on Cities' 2022 Boston Mayor's Office of Resilience and Racial Equity (MORRE) Summer Fellow. In our modern world riddled with climate disaster, pandemics, and war, local governments in progressive cities on the cutting edge of innovation and policy such as Boston need... More
Event Recap: Punk Rock Music and the Protests for Free Public Transportation in Brazil
Held on Monday, November 14th, 2022 Recap by Dhruv Kapadia A full video recording of the event will be posted here shortly. On Monday, November 14, 2022, the Boston University Initiative on Cities (IOC), BU Department of Romance Studies, Department of Political Science, City Planning & Urban Affairs Program, Center for Latin American... More
Meet the 2022–2023 NLC Menino Fellow: An Pham
The Initiative on Cities (IOC) is pleased to announce An Pham (KHC ‘24) as our 2022–2023 National League of Cities (NLC) Menino Fellow. An is a junior majoring in Economics and Mathematics and is interested in inequality, environmental policy, and urban economics. He hopes to pursue a career in policy... More
#BUandBoston: Charles River Cleanup
This post is part of our #BUandBoston series, highlighting the work and research of BU students, faculty, and staff throughout the City of Boston and the Greater Boston region. Interested in having your Boston-related work featured? Tag us on Instagram or Twitter (@BUonCities) using the #BUandBoston or send us an email at ioc@bu.edu. By Dhruv Kapadia On Sunday, More
Event Recap: Community and Governance in Boston: Understanding the Role of Non-Profits in Politics and Policy
Held on Thursday, October 6, 2022 Watch a full recording of the event, or scroll down to read a recap and watch event highlights. Recap by Dhruv Kapadia On Thursday, October 6, 2022, the Boston University Initiative on Cities (IOC), the BU American Politics Seminar Series, and the Leventhal Map & Education Center... More
Join our team! Hiring a Communications Manager & Administrator
The BU Initiative on Cities seeks a full time Communications Manager & Administrator to serve in a critical communications and operations role on our team. The Communications Manager/Administrator manages events with researchers, elected officials and other government practitioners, and leads external and internal communications, including our weekly newsletter, website, social... More
New Partnership with Community Solutions to Research Homelessness Policy
Community Solutions — a leading nonprofit committed to creating a lasting end to homelessness — and researchers from Boston University and Cornell University will study the landscape of homelessness public policy and its consequences Numerous government agencies at all levels make public policies that are influential to the well-being of people... More
Let’s Talk About Cities with new IOC Director Loretta Lees
Monday, September 19, 2022 | 4:00–6:00 PM ET 610 Commonwealth Ave: Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering (1st Floor Colloquium Room & Lobby) Please join the Boston University Initiative on Cities, Department of Sociology, and Center for Innovation in Social Science as we welcome Professor Loretta Lees, Faculty Director... More