The IOC is dedicated to supporting urban research by Boston University faculty and students. Our Early Stage Urban Research Awards provide seed funding across campus, distributed each year through a spring RFP. Want to learn about all of our 2016 Awards Winners? Click here to see a complete list! This year, we are funding 11 […]
A local law enforcement expert at the intersection of public safety and working with immigrant communities, Richard Biehl serves as Chief of Police for the City of Dayton, Ohio. IOC Director Graham Wilson recently spoke with Chief Biehl spoke about balancing his duties with efforts to build an inclusive, welcoming culture. Click here to access […]
We’re proud to share that this summer, we’ll be funding two IOC Summer Fellows, one in the City of Boston’s Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics, and another in the City of Providence’s Mayor’s Innovation Department. Find out more about our two outstanding fellows below! Dan Lesser – City of Boston Fellow Dan Lesser, an […]
Karl Dean, the former Mayor of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee, completed his term as the first Initiative on Cities Mayor-in-Residence in May 2016. As Mayor-In-Residence, Mayor Dean spent the 2016 spring semester as a member of the IOC team on the Boston University campus, helping reinforce our focus on connecting […]
With the conclusion of the 2016 spring semester, Boston University student Sana Johnson (class of 2017) completed her term as the inaugural National League of Cities (NLC) Menino Fellow. Through this Fellowship, Johnson spent the 2015 fall semester paired with IOC Director Graham Wilson in an on-campus Directed Study program. She then spent her 2016 […]
In the spring of 2015, Fiscal Leadership and the Modern City, the Initiative on Cities’ third City Leadership Summit, convened Mayors, CFOs, public officials, fiscal watchdogs, academics and members of the private sector for a two-day discussion focused on a critical question: how we will pay for the cities of the future? The IOC hopes […]
As cities grow, adapt, and develop, some struggle to promote a vibrant arts and cultural community. How can urban leaders embrace the arts and use them to benefit the city as a whole? What is the value in urban “placemaking?” Join us Wednesday April 13th, 4:00pm-5:30pm at the Katzenberg Center on the 3rd floor of […]
England is in the midst of a major political shift on the municipal level. The creation of metro city governments are ushering in the first wave of directly elected mayors, including Mayor Joe Anderson of Liverpool. This fundamental change in the way cities operate is reviving the importance of local government and changing the power […]
Join the Initiative on Cities and the Boston Society of Architects (BSA) for an evening discussion with former Mayor of Nashville Karl Dean, currently serving as the IOC’s first Mayor in Residence. This event will take place on Tuesday, March 29th, from 6pm-8pm at the BSA Space, 290 Congress Street, Boston. Click here to find […]
The City of Boston recently kicked off Imagine Boston 2030, a community-focused comprehensive planning process that will lay out a vision for the city’s future. What will the plan ultimately look like? Do city plans work? How can we help create a great city for the next generation? Join us for lunch and a conversation […]