| SES # | TOPICS | KEY DATES |
|---|---|---|
|
Part I: Foundations Key demographic, economic, and political trends affecting urban areas; major controversies tied to equity and equitable development. | ||
| 1 | Introductory Class: The "just city" in context: Trends, dilemmas, scales (neighborhood, city / town, region). | |
| 2 | The Just City: Equitable development concepts and cross-national comparisons. | |
| 3 | Demographic shifts and neighborhood change: Segregation, migration, and aging. | |
| 4 | Income, wealth, and the political economy of inequality. | |
| 5 | Civic context: Engagement and political representation. | |
| 6 | The nature of community in 21st century America: Networks, places, social capital. | |
|
Part II: Community-based Organizing and Development Contrasting approaches to community development: Social movement building and program and policy development, debates and complementarities. | ||
| 7 | History and development: Politics and program. | |
| 8 | Institutional context: CDCs and other CBOs, intermediaries, government, foundations / donors, labor unions and other, private partners. | |
| 9 | Governance at multiple scales (neighborhood, city, region): Issues of representation, accountability, co-production, coalitions, power. | Midterm exam due one day after Session 9 |
| Part III: Affordable and Inclusionary Housing and Homeownership | ||
| 10 | Housing markets and policy (A): Supply and demand fundamentals, shifting preferences, efficiency and affordability outcomes. | |
| 11 | Housing markets and policy (B): Homeownership. | |
| 12 | Rental housing. | |
| 13 | Housing as a market good: Gentrification and fair housing. | |
| 14 |
Public housing, income concentration, and mixed-income housing. Guest: Larry Vale, Ford Professor of Urban Design and Planning at MIT. | Detailed team problem statement due one day after Session 14 |
| 15 | Affordable housing, smart growth, and regional land use. | |
| 16 | Alternative housing models: Land trusts and more. | |
| 17 | Mobility and the tensions between fair housing, affordable housing, and community development. | |
| Part IV: Local Economic Development | ||
| 18 | Introduction to LED. | |
| 19 | Workforce development and cooperative enterprise. | |
| 20 |
Job quality and upgrading. Guest: Paul Osterman, member of the Department of Urban Studies & Planning at MIT. | |
| 21 |
Entrepreneurship and business development. Guest: Karl Seidman, Senior Lecturer in Economic Development, MPP Harvard. | |
| 22 | Fostering and upgrading manufacturing. | |
| 23 | Toward the healthy city. | Individual decision memo due one day after Session 23 |
| Part V: Wrapping Up | ||
| 24 | Course review. | Team presentations |
| 25 | Final team briefings. | Team presentations (cont.) |