GUDL Awards Third Pilot Partnership Seed Grant Between Boston University and Lowell Community Organizations
The Boston University Initiative on Cities Gentrification & Urban Displacement Lab (GUDL) is proud to announce the third recipient of our pilot partnership seed grant program. This award supports a collaboration between Lowell Alliance, the Merrimack Valley Project, and Yeşim Sungu-Eryilmaz, Assistant Professor and Director of the Boston University Metropolitan... More
2025-2026 MetroBridge Recap
MetroBridge, the experiential learning program of the Boston University Initiative on Cities, collaborated with 19 municipal and community partners on 20 projects over the 2025-2026 academic year. During the fall and spring semesters, 410 students worked on applied learning projects, gaining real-world experience addressing urban challenges. Municipal and community partners interested... More
Meet Reuben Danyali, 2026 Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library Summer Research Intern
We are excited to share that Reuben Danyali (CAS/KHC '28) is the inaugural Norman B. Leventhal Map & Education Center Summer Research Intern at the Boston Public Library! Reuben will contribute to geospatial research and data analysis of historic housing patterns, evictions, and property ownership in Boston and across Massachusetts... More
Meet Iliana Colie, 2026 City of Boston Streets Cabinet Intern
We are excited to share that Iliana Colie (CAS '27) is our inaugural City of Boston Streets Cabinet Intern! Iliana will aid in the Streets Cabinet's community engagement and outreach initiatives for transportation projects and mobility programs, including creating social media content, designing communications materials, and working on the ground... More
Meet Dominic Muratore, 2026 City of Boston Planning Advisory Council Intern
We are excited to share that Dominic Muratore (Pardee '28) is this year's City of Boston Planning Advisory Council (PAC) Intern, representing the Initiative on Cities and Boston University this summer at the City of Boston Planning Department. Dominic will work under the Executive Director of PAC Katharine Lusk, who... More
Meet Briannya Evans, 2026 City of Boston Equity & Inclusion Cabinet Intern
We are excited to share that Briannya Evans (Pardee '27) is this year's City of Boston Equity & Inclusion Cabinet Intern! Briannya will be contributing to efforts to address racial equity policy priorities in the City of Boston, to community engagement with stakeholders and residents of Boston, and to developing... More
Meet Metis Christodoulou, 2026 City of Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM) Fellow
We are excited to share that Metis Christodoulou (WED '26) is this year's City of Boston Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics (MONUM) Fellow representing Boston University and the Initiative on Cities! Metis will join a cohort of fellows to develop, research, or implement innovative, actionable prototypes, policies, and experiments... More
BU Artists Featured in Icons of Franklin Park Poster Competition
Inspired by classic Works Progress Administration (WPA) poster designs, the Icons of Franklin Park Poster Competition invited artists to submit original works highlighting the park's physical and cultural icons, past and present. The City of Boston, the Boston Society of Landscape Architects, and the Franklin Park Coalition sponsored the competition. Franklin... More
GUDL Awards Second Pilot Partnership Seed Grant
The Boston University Initiative on Cities Gentrification & Urban Displacement Lab (GUDL) is proud to announce the second recipient of our pilot partnership seed grant: a collaboration between the City of Boston Mayor’s Office of Housing (MOH) and Shomon Shamsuddin, Associate Professor in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy... More
2026 Early Stage Urban Research Award Recipients
The Boston University Initiative on Cities (IOC) is pleased to announce the recipients for our 12th request for proposals for the 2026 cycle of the Early Stage Urban Research Awards. These seed grants support early-stage academic research focused on urban challenges and urban populations across various disciplines and scopes. Research... More
Gentrification & Urban Displacement Lab (GUDL) Awards First Community-Centered Collaborative Pilot Partnership Seed Grant
[BOSTON, MA] May 19, 2026 — The Boston University Initiative on Cities Gentrification & Urban Displacement Lab (GUDL) is proud to announce the recipients of our first pilot partnership seed grant between the City of Cambridge Redevelopment Authority (CRA), City of Cambridge Economic Opportunity and Development Division (EODD), and the... More
The Right to the City: Visualizing Home, Resistance, and Belonging
When: Friday, June 12, 2026, 12:00 - 1:30 PM Where: Faye G., Jo, and James Stone Gallery, 855 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215 Join the Boston University Initiative on Cities for a discussion highlighting work from our upcoming exhibition, Right to the City. Henri Lefebvre coined the “Right to the City” in 1968 to... More
Right to the City Opening Reception
When: Thursday, June 11, 2026, 5:00 - 7:00 PM Where: Faye G., Jo, and James Stone Gallery, 855 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215 Join the Boston University Initiative on Cities for the opening reception of Right to the City, a new exhibition featuring the work of photographer and advocate Dominic Moulden. Essmaa Litim, More
Ellie Nakasone-Amaguin Awarded the 2026 Initiative on Cities Student Prize
The Initiative on Cities (IOC) is excited to announce that Ellie Nakasone-Amaguin (CAS ’26) has been awarded the IOC Student Prize for the 2026 school year. Ellie is an Architectural Studies student and will be pursuing a master's degree in Urban Planning at Columbia University this fall. The $1,000 prize... More
IOC Director Loretta Lees Awarded Royal Geographical Society’s 2026 Patron’s Gold Medal
We are delighted to announce that Loretta Lees, Director of the Initiative on Cities and Professor of Sociology at Boston University, has been awarded the prestigious 2026 Patron's Medal by the Royal Geographical Society. Recognition of Groundbreaking Scholarship The Patron's Medal, one of the Society's two highest honours and requiring approval by... More
Event Recap: Territories of Southern Urbanism
By Sasa Ramos | Photos by Onjoli Palmer On Tuesday, April 22, the Center on Forced Displacement, the Boston Urban Salon, and the Initiative on Cities welcomed Associate Professor Romola Sanyal (London School of Economics) for a lively discussion exploring how displacement – both structural and episodic – shapes people’s lives, More
Event Recap: Boston & The Making of a Global City
By Angelina Baicu | Photos by Ting Wei Li On Wednesday, April 1, 2026, the Boston University Initiative on Cities, alongside the City Planning & Urban Affairs Program, welcomed BU Urbanist and Lecturer, Jim O'Connell, for a discussion surrounding his new book “Boston and the Making of a Global City.” In it, he highlights... More
Territories of Southern Urbanism: Race, Displacement, and Edge Populations
When: Tuesday, April 21, 2026 | 5:00–6:30 PM ET (reception: 6:30-7:00pm) Where: Boston University Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215 Join the Boston University Initiative on Cities, Center on Forced Displacement, and the Boston Urban Salon for a discussion exploring how displacement – both structural and episodic –... More
Apply to be the 2026–2027 IOC Menino Fellow with the National League of Cities!
Applications for the Initiative on Cities (IOC) 2026–2027 Menino Fellowship with the National League of Cities (NLC) are now open for Boston University undergraduate students and due May 31, 2026. The Menino Fellowship provides one Boston University undergraduate student with the opportunity to explore interests in public service, city-level programs and policies, More
2025 Menino Survey of Mayors: Unlocking Housing Supply
New Survey Examines Mayors’ Views on Housing, Policy Solutions, and Political Constraints Mayors Increasingly Back Housing Supply, But Back Away From Policies That Would Enable It Democratic Mayors More Supportive of Supply-Focused Reforms Than Republicans April 1, 2026 — A new report from the Menino Survey of Mayors, based at Boston University’s Initiative... More