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.

  • Natalia Chavez: My Summer with the Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics

    September 3, 2019
    Mitigating Displacement for Small Businesses and Nonprofits By Natalia Chavez Innovation is not usually associated with government. Government has been thought to be uncreative, inefficient, and overly bureaucratic, and in many instances, I’ve seen this to be true. So when I saw there was a summer fellowship at the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban […]

  • National League of Cities Menino Fellowship Showcase & Info Session

    February 13, 2024
    When: February 21, 2024 | 12 PM - 1 PM ET Where: Initiative on Cities Seminar Room, 75 Bay State Road Lunch will be provided Join us for a featured presentation by An Pham (CAS ‘24), our 2022-2023 National League of Cities (NLC) Menino Fellow. He will present his NLC research on how city fines/fees […]

  • National Survey of Mayors: Research Spotlight

    January 12, 2015
    What are the most significant obstacles facing 21st-century mayors? Which policy areas do mayors care most deeply about? With federal support diminishing as urban populations steadily rise, how can mayors lead their cities toward a more stable and sustainable future? In a first-of-its-kind National Survey of Mayors, the Initiative on Cities examined how America’s most […]

  • Nayeli Quiles: My Summer with the City of Boston Equity & Inclusion Cabinet

    September 16, 2025
    This past summer, I had the privilege of serving as a Racial Justice fellow with the City of Boston’s Equity and Inclusion Cabinet. My interest in this internship stemmed from some of my past experiences working in City Hall and with a variety of elected officials in Massachusetts, as my most interesting and fulfilling work […]

  • New Brief: Political Lessons Learned from the Initial MBTA Communities Act Rollout

    March 14, 2024
    In partnership with the Initiative on Cities' MetroBridge program and the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), Urban-H Associate Director Katherine Levine Einstein and students enrolled in the Inequality in American Politics (CAS PO 519) course during the Fall 2023 semester recently published their findings concerning the implementation of the 2021 MBTA Communities Act (MBTA-C) in Arlington, […]

  • New Orleans Conference: Preservation Matters

    May 23, 2014
    On April 16, Mayor Thomas Menino traveled to New Orleans to serve as a keynote speaker for the “Preservation Matters: The Economics of Authenticity.” Co-sponsored by the Tulane School of Architecture and the Preservation Resource Center, “Preservation Matters” convened public officials, preservation organizations, and academics from around the nation to explore the impact of historic […]

  • New Paper by IOC Director that Traces Gentrification Induced Displacement in London

    November 21, 2022
    Initiative on Cities' Director Loretta Lees published a new paper in the journal Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space that investigates and quantifies the displacement of residents due to new development and gentrification of council estates in London. This paper was co-authored with Jonathan Reades (Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, University College London), Phil […]

  • New Partnership with Community Solutions to Research Homelessness Policy

    September 26, 2022
    Community Solutions — a leading nonprofit committed to creating a lasting end to homelessness — and researchers from Boston University and Cornell University will study the landscape of homelessness public policy and its consequences Numerous government agencies at all levels make public policies that are influential to the well-being of people experiencing homelessness in the […]

  • New Policy Briefs on Mayors’ Housing Production Goals & Use of Economic Incentives

    December 4, 2019
    The Boston University Initiative on Cities is pleased to release two new policy briefs based on findings from the 2018 Menino Survey of Mayors. These briefs provide additional context and deeper understanding of mayoral perspectives on housing production goals and on the use of economic incentives to attract new businesses. Mayoral Views on Housing Production: […]

  • New Program for BU Faculty: Public Impact Scholars

    January 29, 2020
    The Boston University Initiative on Cities is pleased to announce a new two-day program to equip BU faculty with skills and knowledge to influence local and state policy and discourse for positive societal impact. Through our Public Impact Scholars program, faculty will have an opportunity to gain new perspectives on state and local government, evidence-based […]