Protecting our Urban Water Sources: Developing a Solar Energy-Activated Reduction Catalyst
Principal Investigator Chemistry Associate Professor Linda Doerrer with Ph.D. candidate Jessica Elinburg seeks to adapt her invention, an NO3– reduction system, for implementation in urban water sources to prevent harmful algal blooms and to make available clean water sources for urban residents in an affordable, environmentally-friendly way. Doerrer and Elinburg will conduct this research on […]
3D Models and Virtual Reality Techniques for Mapping & Analyzing Above and Underground Urban Infrastructures (UIMAGE)
Principal Investigators Co-Principal Investigators Earth & Environment Ph.D. candidate Yaxiong Ma, in collaboration with Earth & Environment Professors Sucharita Gopal and Nathan Phillips, will design and build a prototype model using 3D Models and Virtual Reality Techniques for Mapping & Analyzing Above and Underground Urban Infrastructures. The model, called UIMAGE (Underground Infrastructures Mapping Analyzing Geospatial), […]
Mapping Amman, Jordan: A 21st Century City
Principal Investigator Co-Principal Investigator Professor Betty Anderson, in cooperation with Georgetown Associate Professor Fida Adely, seek to conduct a mapping study in order to understand the modern population of Amman. A growing private sector and Jordan’s status as one of the safest countries in the Middle East has made Amman a safe haven for immigrants […]
Impact of Air Pollution and Climate on Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes
Principal Investigator School of Public Health Ph.D. candidate Lindsey Butler will investigate the the impacts of maternal exposure to traffic related air pollution (TRAP) and extreme ambient temperatures on the risk of structural birth defects and stillbirth, particularly those resulting from placental dysfunction. Lindsey will serve as the project’s PI in collaboration with four co-PIs […]
Hidden Problems in Secret Corals: Exploring Microplastic Abundance in Local, Temperate Corals Along an Urban Gradient
Principal Investigators Research Assistant Professor Randi Rotjan, in collaboration with Associate Professor Juanita Urban-Rich from the University of Massachusetts-Boston, Assistant Professor Koty Sharp from Rogers Williams University and Associate Professor Sean Grace from Southern Connecticut State University, will study New England coral to determine the extent and impact of microplastics and microbial biofilms. Specifically, she […]
Examining the Role of Crime, Race, & Politics in City‐Level Crime Control Outputs
Principal Investigator Assistant Professor Shea Cronin will construct a cross‐sectional dataset of large cities which can be used to test questions about crime concentration, segregation and crime control outputs. Professor Cronin will address the following research questions: To what extent are measures of the geographic concentration of crime (compared to the absolute levels of crime) […]
Closing the Opportunity Gap in Early Education and Care by Recruiting and Training High Quality Literacy Teachers
Principal Investigator Associate Professor Stephanie Curenton, in collaboration with Paul Leech, Chief Operating Officer of the Boston-based childcare provider Nurtury, Inc., will analyze cultural competency training and programs for early childhood educators intended to improve outcomes for urban preschool students. Over the course of this research project, Professor Curenton and Nurtury will partner with Jumpstart, […]
Dehumanization in the City: How Urban Ghetto Black Male Imagery Activates Dehumanizing Attitudes toward Black People
Principal Investigator Through his research, Political Science Assistant Professor Spencer Piston seeks to address the problem of urban police violence against black people by focusing on their dehumanization. Specifically, he will identify conditions under which this form of prejudice shapes public attitudes and, in doing so, develop methods to combat dehumanization. For example, a common […]
Summer Mental Health Access for Urban Youth
Principal Investigators Associate Professor Jennifer Greif Green in collaboration with Assistant Professor Elizabeth Bettini, Professor Donna Pincus and Ph.D. candidate Rachel Oblath will investigate mental health service access for urban youth during the three summer months when school is not in session. The aim of this research is to examine whether and where urban youth receive mental […]
Armored Cities: Violence and Urban Seclusion in Latin America
Principal Investigator Sociology Assistant Professor Ana Villarreal seeks to examine a new form of urban seclusion taking place in municipalities and communes across Latin American metropoles in response to increased violence and fear. Villarreal is targeting cities that have created enclaves of gated communities, dubbing them armored cities. They are characterized by upper-class leverage of […]