2026 Initiative on Cities Summer Internship Applications Now Open
Calling all Boston University students: IOC’s 2026 summer internship applications are now open! This year, the Initiative on Cities is offering four full-time, paid summer internships in the public sector. You can now apply: all information related to the internships is on their respective pages. Please note that, to apply, you must be in good […]
Event Recap: Boston University City Hall Day
By Danielle Mulligan Photos by Ting Wei Li On December 3rd, the Initiative on Cities (IOC) hosted the inaugural BU City Hall Day, building on the success of three cohorts of the IOC’s Public Impact Scholars (PIS) program. The goal of this event was to build relationships between BU faculty and City Hall leaders to […]
Advancing Climate Action in Small and Midsize Cities
When: Wednesday, December 10, 2025 | 1:00 – 2:00 PM ET Where: Virtual; Access recording here The Boston University Initiative on Cities hosted a webinar exploring how small and midsize cities are advancing climate action – and the creative strategies they are using to fund and implement it. The event will spotlight findings from a […]
2025 Greater Boston Housing Report Card
By The Boston Foundation, November 12, 2025 Boston, MA – A new report on the current state of housing in Greater Boston presents a picture of strong construction, a concerning trend in building permits, and critical affordability challenges in the region. The mixed signals are the focus of the 2025 Greater Boston Housing Report Card, […]
Short-Term Rentals in Boston: Regulation, Compliance, and Impact
The Boston University Initiative on Cities and the School of Hospitality Administration released a new brief examining how Boston’s short-term rental (STR) regulations are working in practice. The brief summarizes key insights on how the rules have reshaped the size and characteristics of the city’s STR market, as well as what the data reveal about […]
Multiplied Displacements: The Climate-Housing Nexus Conference
Where: Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A. When: January 15-17, 2026 Conference Co-Chairs: Karen Chapple (School of Cities, University of Toronto), Loretta Lees (Initiative on Cities, Boston University), and Jesse M. Keenan (Center on Climate Change and Urbanism, Tulane University) Conference Sponsors: Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Development Grant and Tulane […]
Third Spaces Zine: Call for Submissions
The Boston University Initiative on Cities is excited to launch Third Spaces: an interdisciplinary, student-led zine that brings together diverse stories on urbanism. Third Spaces celebrates the rich diversity of city life. We foster relationships across communities and hold civic leaders accountable to public needs. Through an interdisciplinary approach, Third Spaces addresses urban inequalities to […]
Seed Funding Opportunity: Pilot Partnerships in Massachusetts
GUDL is launching a special, time-limited pilot program to support the development of partnerships addressing gentrification and displacement in Massachusetts. We invite local organizations and individuals to submit requests for collaboration for a chance to receive seed funding in early 2026. This pilot aims to foster new, cross-sector partnerships that bridge local knowledge, research, and policy to […]
2025 Careers in Transportation Information Session
When: Tuesday, November 18, 2025, 4:00 – 5:30 PM Where: Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215 Join the Boston University Initiative on Cities and City Planning & Urban Affairs Program at Metropolitan College for our annual Careers in Transportation Information Session! This session provides a direct venue for students and aspiring […]
The Multilayered Geography of Scale in ‘The Pointillistic City’
When: November 3, 2025 | 12:00 – 1:30 PM ET Where: Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215 Join the Boston University Department of Sociology and Initiative on Cities for a special session of the Urban Inequalities Workshop featuring Dr. Daniel T. O’Brien’s (Northeastern University) latest book, The Pointillistic City (MIT Press, […]