| About Global Urban Studies at MSU |
Welcome to the Global Urban Studies Program at Michigan State University. The 2009-2010 academic year represents the fourth year of operation for GUSP. When our first students began the program in the fall of 2006 GUSP had three faculty, two full-time staff, and four graduate research assistants. We begin the fall of 2009 with 21 faculty, staff and graduate research assistants. We would like to welcome the four new faculty members joining GUSP this year:
- Dr. Najib Hourani, Anthropology
- Dr. Eva Kassens, Urban and Regional Planning
- Dr. Zachary Neal, Sociology, and
- Dr. Sarah Reckhow, Political Science
They are joining current GUSP faculty: Guo Chen, Geography; Edward Murphy, History; Xuefei Ren, Sociology; and myself in Political Science and Urban Planning.
The growth in the size of GUSP is matched only by the breadth of the types of urban issues and areas that serve as the focus of the teaching and research of those associated with the Global Urban Studies Program. To provide just a few examples, GUSP faculty and research assistants are:
- Identifying the causes and trajectories of urban poverty and deprivation in China and impacts on housing and welfare policy;
- Assessing models for developing and redeveloping cities in the Arab world, particularly those challenged by past unrest;
- Finding solutions to transportation problems for cities hosting mega events such as the Olympics and pilgrimages to Mecca;
- Understanding the lifecycles of irregular housing development and identifying means to foster citizenship in Chilean cities;
- Highlighting the role of culinary and gastronomic resources in niche development for urban areas;
- Assessing the impact of foundation funding on urban school systems;
- Exploring the effects of global architectural networks on urban form and power systems in China;
- Evaluating the role of culture, the arts, quality of life, and public services in the economic health of Canadian and US cities.
The two photos included here are of very similar bridges in very different cities. The first is located in Lisbon, Portugal, and the second in Charleston, South Carolina. While they speak to current state of the art in cable stayed bridge design, I selected them because they also illustrate the common issues that all urban areas face regardless of national setting. The challenge of ensuring safe and affordable housing is very different in the rapidly growing cities of China and Latin America than in declining and depopulating areas in the US; local governments in both contexts face the need to house their citizens in challenging circumstances with scarce resources. Looking at the range of research being conducted in GUSP, it is clear that urban challenges- poverty, diversity, housing provision, transportation, economic development, public services, and citizenship- are common across nations. And, it is also apparent that cities can learn from each other’s solutions, even across national boundaries and contexts.
Please take a look at our course offerings, faculty and graduate assistant profiles, and contact information. If you are on the MSU campus, make every effort to attend the Global Urban Workshop series for the 2009-2010 academic year. The workshops present cutting edge global urban research of both MSU faculty and top researchers across the US and abroad. Given the varied and diverse research topics, faculty disciplines, and geographic foci represented in GUSP, if you are interested in anything urban in any area of the world, you will find it in the Global Urban Studies Program.
Laura Reese, Director
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