How is the Initiative on Cities Making a Difference in Urban Scholarship?

We catalyze early-stage research that deepens understanding of cities and urban populations. Today, with over half the world’s population living in urban areas, it is more crucial than ever for scholars and practitioners to address the complex challenges facing 21st-century cities – and to shape the policies and practices that will shape their future. If you are a member of the BU community and interested in submitting a proposal, we encourage you to review our annual requests for proposals, which typically open in December or January.  
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724 result(s) found.

  • Megan Smith, IOC Seed Grant Recipient, Published in Housing Policy Debate; Receives BARI Research Funding

    September 22, 2021
    Congratulations to Megan Smith, a doctoral candidate in the Boston University School of Social Work (SSW), for her recent publication in Housing Policy Debate and for receiving a 2021–2022 Research Seed Grant from the Boston Area Research Initiative! “Locked Out: The Systematic Exclusion of Poor Renters From Federally Subsidized Housing,” was funded by the Initiative […]
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    Menino Archive to be Housed at BU

    October 29, 2015
    On Tuesday, October 27th, the Menino family, alongside Boston University President Dr. Robert Brown, announced that the official Mayor Thomas Menino Archive would be housed at BU at the Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center. As the Co-Founder of the Initiative on Cities alongside current Director Graham Wilson, Mayor Menino was instrumental in creating the research […]
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    Menino Authors Publish Research from Survey Data

    February 8, 2017
    Authors of the 2014, 2015 and 2016 Menino Survey of Mayors, Boston University Political Science Assistant Professors Katherine Levine Einstein and David Glick, recently published research from their interviews with over 70 American mayors in the acclaimed journal, Urban Affairs Review. Their article, Mayors, Partisanship, and Redistribution: Evidence Directly from U.S. Mayors, explores the relationship […]
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    Menino Survey Authors Publish Article in Publius

    May 15, 2017
    Lead authors of the Menino Survey of Mayors and Assistant Professors of Political Science Katherine Levine Einstein and David Glick published their article, Cities in American Federalism: Evidence on State–Local Government Conflict from a Survey of Mayors, in the acclaimed Publius: The Journal of Federalism. Using data from the Menino Survey of Mayors research project, their article explores variations […]
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    MetroBridge Announces Menu of Project Options for Local Governments and Community Organizations

    June 1, 2020
    Despite the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, we know that the financial and operational impacts on local governments and community organizations will be severe. In acknowledgement of these difficult times ahead, the Initiative on Cities wants to make you aware of the ways the MetroBridge program can help you fill capacity gaps and continue to move projects forward. We have developed a “menu” of […]
  • Map of municipalities in Massachusetts with MetroBridge projects in Fall 2020

    MetroBridge Fall 2020 Recap: Community-Driven Design Concepts to Honor the Lives Lost to COVID-19 in Revere, MA

    February 27, 2021
    By Claudia Chiappa With 2020 behind us, it is now more important than ever to remember and honor everything that was lost during the coronavirus pandemic. This sentiment sparked a collaboration between MetroBridge, the City of Revere and a BU class in the College of Fine Arts. The MetroBridge program helps connect BU students, faculty, […]

  • MetroBridge Fall 2020 Recap: Insight into Community Processes in Framingham to Help Inform the Mayor’s Racial Equity Initiative

    March 19, 2021
    By Claudia Chiappa The COVID-19 pandemic and the continuous racial tensions in the country led several local governments to recently rethink their efforts towards equity and inclusion. The City of Framingham’s Racial Equity Initiative aims to advance the city’s efforts in equity and inclusion through educating residents, engaging the in community conversations, and implementing activities […]

  • MetroBridge Fall 2021 Recap: Students Support Local Government and Community Partner Needs

    February 7, 2022
    By Amelia Murray-Cooper During the fall 2021 semester, students at Boston University partnered with local governments and community-based organizations through the MetroBridge Program to address real-world urban challenges. MetroBridge is the Initiative on Cities’ experiential learning program that enables students to meet the distinct needs of local partners through research on topics like racial equity, […]
  • Paige Dolci, MetroBridge Program Manager (left) with Dr. Deborah Breen, Director of the BU Center for Teaching & Learning

    MetroBridge Program Awarded Two-Year Grant by Davis Educational Foundation

    May 31, 2022
    The Initiative on Cities’ MetroBridge experiential learning program has been awarded a two-year grant for $25,000 from the Davis Educational Foundation to support urban, place-based experiential learning at Boston University. The Davis Educational Foundation was established by Stanton and Elisabeth Davis after Mr. Davis’ retirement as chairman of Shaw’s Supermarkets, Inc. MetroBridge is a university-wide […]

  • MetroBridge Program Connects BU Students, Faculty & Local Governments in Fall 2020 Projects

    December 11, 2020
    By Claudia Chiappa In the fall 2020 semester, MetroBridge continued to benefit students at Boston University and local governments despite disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. MetroBridge is an Initiative on Cities program that connects students and local communities by embedding real-world projects for local governments into courses across Boston University, giving students a valuable […]