MetroLab Network Civic Research Innovation Prize
New opportunity for BU students! The MetroLab Network—an international collaborative of 28 cities, 6 counties, and 36 universities (including Boston University)—just launched the inaugural MetroLab Network Civic Research Innovation Prize. MetroLab invites undergraduate and graduate students from MetroLab Network member universities to pitch innovative civic research project ideas in partnership with... More
Beyond the City Walls: The Politics of Resentment
Join us from 11am to 1:30pm ET for an event addressing the tensions between cities and the more rural parts of their regions that are often “left behind” communities. More
CANCELLED: Tracey Holloway Lecture: Connecting Science with Stakeholders in Health and Air Quality
Please note that this event has been cancelled due to circumstances beyond our control. There will still be a panel event on Thursday, October 21st from 3:00pm–4:00pm ET. Click here to learn more and register for "Pushing Boundaries – Women Scientists at the Forefront of Community-Engaged Research."
Access and Anti-Racism in Opioid Treatment: What Cities Need Now
Held on October 13, 2021. Watch a recording, view event highlights, or read a summary. More
Megan Smith, IOC Seed Grant Recipient, Published in Housing Policy Debate; Receives BARI Research Funding
Congratulations to Megan Smith, a doctoral candidate in the Boston University School of Social Work (SSW), for her recent publication in Housing Policy Debate and for receiving a 2021–2022 Research Seed Grant from the Boston Area Research Initiative! “Locked Out: The Systematic Exclusion of Poor Renters From Federally Subsidized Housing,” was... More
IOC Doctoral Research Fellow Luisa Godinez Puig Selected as Equity Scholar at Urban Institute
Congratulations to Luisa Godinez Puig (GRS ‘21) for being selected as an Equity Scholar at the Urban Institute! In this role, she will work with the Urban Institute’s Office of Race and Equity Research and Racial Equity Analytics Lab to produce policy-oriented research on structural racism and share her insight... More
Kimberly Rhoten: Supporting Citizens Returning from Incarceration: Reflecting on my 2021 Fellowship with the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics
By Kimberly Rhoten, JD (they/them) (PhD Candidate, Sociology) Every year more than 3,000 people return to the City of Boston from prisons and jails, and over 6,000 people are released from the Boston-based South Bay Correctional Facility. Our City’s Office of Returning Citizens provides much needed resources, services, and referrals to... More
IOC Awarded Multi-Year Grant from The Rockefeller Foundation
The Initiative on Cities has been awarded a three-year grant for $355,000 from The Rockefeller Foundation to support the 2021-2023 Menino Survey of Mayors. This marks the fifth year of support from the Foundation, who previously provided support for the 2017-2020 Surveys. Citi Community Investing and Development also renewed their support for the 2021 Menino... More
Student Fellows on an Unforgettable Summer Working at Boston City Hall
BU Today: Six BU Students on an Unforgettable Summer Working at Boston City Hall 2021 City Scholars and Initiative on Cities Summer Fellows talk about an experience that influenced and shaped their career goals Three of this year’s interns were BU City Scholars Summer Fellows, a program funded by the University’s Government & Community Affairs office... More
Initiative on Cities Releases 2021 Annual Report
The Boston University Initiative on Cities (IOC) is proud to release our 2021 Annual Report. It reflects on the research, learning, events, and people that have empowered the next generation of civic leaders at Boston University and advanced inclusive urban transformation. As IOC Co-Directors Graham Wilson (now retired) and Katharine Lusk... More
Confronting Boston’s Challenges: Recommendations for the City’s Next Mayor
As the Boston mayoral race heads to the primary on September 14, the Boston Area Research Initiative, in partnership with local academic communities, including Boston University experts, just released a four-part white paper series to help advise the next mayor. The series considers how the City can continue moving forward... More
Racial Disparities in Neighborhood Arrest Rates During the COVID-19 Pandemic
The Initiative on Cities Working Paper Series recently published "Racial Disparities in Neighborhood Arrest Rates During the COVID-19 Pandemic," a new working paper by Jaquelyn Jahn (Post-Doctoral Scholar, CUNY Graduate Center); Jessica Simes (Assistant Professor of Sociology, Boston University); Tori Cowger (Doctoral Student, Harvard University); and Brigette Davis (Doctoral Student, More
IOC Founding Codirector Graham Wilson to Retire
BU TODAY: Graham Wilson, Founding Codirector of BU’s Initiative on Cities, Will Retire CAS political science professor helped create a nation-spanning partnership between US mayors and the University In 2014, Graham Wilson shared founding director duties at BU’s Initiative on Cities (IOC) with a marquis name. Working at the IOC with Boston’s... More
Coming Back Better: Building Healthy, Sustainable, and Resilient Cities post-COVID-19
Held on Thursday, July 1, 2021 By 2050, 66 percent of the world’s population is expected to live in cities. This panel explored how cities can be structured to support health and what we have learned about the future of urban living from the COVID-19 pandemic. Co-hosted with the School of Public... More
The Seaport…and Beyond: A conversation about racial diversity and economic equity in the Seaport—and in future neighborhood development
Tuesday, June 29, 2021 12pm–1pm ET Click here to Register The IOC is proud to support the Boston Globe and the Civic Action Project for an event discussing how public policy and private action can be used to assure that neighborhood development shares the space and the benefits equitably with people of all... More
2021 Early Stage Urban Research Awards
In Spring 2021, the Initiative on Cities issued its seventh request for proposals to support early stage academic research endeavors focused on urban challenges and urban populations, both domestic and global. We received 37 applications from 20 schools and departments at BU, and we are thrilled to announce we have... More
Youth Emergency Mental Health Response in Boston
Principal Investigator: Co-Principal Investigators: Many urban school districts are under-resourced to meet the mental health needs of their students and therefore rely on emergency service providers for crisis response. These emergency response services, however, can increase the likelihood that youth will be served in emergency departments and, in the case of police... More
Seeking Educational Spaces: Syrian Refugees and the Landscape of Amman, Jordan
Principal Investigator: Co-Principal Investigator: This dissertation research project centers how Syrian refugee youth and families, as well as their Jordanian peers, conceptualize the educational spaces they are able to access in light of the serious barriers they face in accessing such spaces in a foreign urban context. Amman presents a unique setting... More
Lived Experiences of Boston Youth During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Principal Investigator: Co-Principal Investigator: While the COVID pandemic has disrupted the education of all U.S. youth, it has disproportionately impacted racially and linguistically minoritized youth. Within the Boston Public Schools, the latest report shows that 30% of Black students and 31% of Latinx students are chronically absent compared with 12% of White... More
Examining Dually-Involved Black, Indigenous, and Youth of Color’s Reentry Experiences in Massachusetts
Principal Investigator: Co-Principal Investigator: Youth involved with child welfare system (CWS) are entering the juvenile justice system (JJS) at rates far higher than their peers, and Black, Indigenous, and Youth of Color (BIYOC) represent a disproportionate percentage of youth with dual-involvement. Scholarship on dual-involvement focuses on youth demographics and their experiences within... More