View past events from our Urban Seminar Series! Click on a post to view a recap or recording, if available. While some upcoming events may appear below, view the full list on our calendar.

Event Recap: Homelessness is a Housing Problem (4/3)

Watch the full recording here! Full Event Recap forthcoming On April 4, 2023, BU Initiative on Cities and the School of Social Work hosted a discussion on homelessness in America. Why do some cities have higher rates of homelessness than others? What explains that regional variation, and what can local leaders do to reduce and prevent homelessness? […]

Event Recap: When Cities Lobby Book Talk & Panel (3/29)

Event recap by Dhruv Kapadia Watch the full recording here! On Wednesday, March 29th, the Initiative on Cities (IOC) and the American Politics Seminar Series hosted a discussion titled “Cities, Lobbyists, and Power” that investigated why mayors rely on professional lobbyists to amplify their voices and represent their city’s interests in state politics. More generally, […]

Film Screening of Shadowlands with Producer Nida Kirmani

Date & Time: Tuesday, April 18, 2023, 5:00-6:15 pm ET Location: 121 Bay State Road, Boston. MA 02215 RSVP Join the Boston University Center for the Study of Asia and the Initiative on Cities for a featured film screening of Shadowlands, followed by a discussion with producer Nida Kirmani. This documentary follows two residents of […]

Homelessness is a Housing Problem: Book Talk & Panel Discussion

Date & Time: Monday, April 3, 2023, 1:00-2:30 pm ET Location: Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road Lunch will be provided Register Join the BU Initiative on Cities and the School of Social Work for a discussion on homelessness in America. Why do some cities have higher rates of homelessness than others? What explains […]

Cities, Lobbyists, & the Power to Influence Politics

Date & Time: Wednesday, March 29, 2023, 12:00-1:30pm Location: Initiative on Cities, 75 Bay State Road Lunch will be provided Register Join the BU Initiative on Cities and the American Politics Seminar Series for a discussion that explores why mayors rely on professional lobbyists to amplify their voices and represent their city’s interests in state […]

A Reckoning in Boston: Film Screening & Discussion

Date & Time: Tuesday, November 29th, 5-7:30pm ET [Film Screening: 5-6:30pm; Panel Discussion: 6:30-7:30pm] Location: Leventhal Center Auditorium, 233 Bay State Road, Boston, MA 02215 Register Join us for a screening of “A Reckoning in Boston,” a film that explores the historical impacts of multi-faceted layers of interpersonal and structural racism on Black Bostonians and the […]

Let’s Talk About Cities with new IOC Director Loretta Lees

Monday, September 19, 2022 | 4:00–6:00 PM ET 610 Commonwealth Ave: Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering (1st Floor Colloquium Room & Lobby) Please join the Boston University Initiative on Cities, Department of Sociology, and Center for Innovation in Social Science as we welcome Professor Loretta Lees, Faculty Director of the Initiative […]

Research To Action: Local Government Partnerships

Thursday, May 19, 2022 5:00–6:00pm ET The BU Clinical & Translational Science Institute (CTSI) Community Engagement Program is hosting a panel discussion to explore how researchers can partner with local government to engage residents, build trust, and inform policy. Katharine Lusk, Co-Director of the Initiative on Cities (IOC), will moderate a discussion with: Taylor Cain […]