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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Project Themes

Year Awarded

724 result(s) found.

  • Promoting Academic Success in Urban Head Start Children: A Pilot Study to Enhance Cognitive Control Through Metacognitive Monitoring

    June 15, 2016
    Principal Investigator Co-Principal Investigator Assistant Professor Amanda Tarullo from the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Assistant Professor Kathleen Corriveau from the School of Education, and Associate Professor and Director of the Family Certificate Program Ruth Paris from the School of Social Work will conduct a study of urban preschool children in Boston to determine if […]
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    Promoting Resilience and Racial Inclusion: Lessons from the City of Boston

    October 20, 2016
    What is the City of Boston doing to address racial disparities? Boston Mayor Martin Walsh has challenged the city and his administration to take on racial inequity as a key economic, social and moral imperative. Senior members of his leadership team will come together at BU to share plans and lessons learned from the City's own efforts to […]

  • Proposing Solutions to Homelessness in Downtown Framingham

    March 4, 2022
    By Amelia Murray-Cooper Boston University students supported the City of Framingham in determining how to best assist individuals who are chronically homeless in the City’s downtown area. During the fall 2021 semester, Lecturer Kaytlin Eldred taught an undergraduate course on Cultural Humility, Racial Justice, and Health in the Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. […]

  • Protecting our Urban Water Sources: Developing a Solar Energy-Activated Reduction Catalyst

    July 19, 2017
    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 […]
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    Protecting Urban Water Sources

    July 17, 2017
    Principal Investigator Co-Principal Investigator Associate Professor Linda Doerrer with Ph.D. candidate Jessica Elinburg recently developed a pre-catalyst that uses solar energy to reduce nitrate in water. Pollution of urban water sources with excess nitrate presents a significant problem for cities and city residents. Nitrate-enriched rivers, lakes, and ponds fertilize the rapid growth of cyanobacteria, leading […]

  • Providence Fellow Shares His Summer

    September 20, 2018
    During my summer as the Initiative on Cities fellow for the City of Providence’s Department of Innovation, I worked on researching, writing, and creating a diversity and equity plan for city employees. The fellowship and project gave me the opportunity to apply my skills as a historian to contemporary issues and learn more about the […]

  • Providence Summer Fellow – Johnathan Williams

    May 4, 2018
    The Initiative on Cities is delighted to welcome Johnathan Williams as its Graduate Student Fellow for the City of Providence’s Department of Innovation this summer. Johnathan Williams is a Ph.D. candidate in History in the College of Arts and Sciences. He received a BA and MA from the University of Northern Iowa, where he focused […]

  • Punishing Places: The Geography of Mass Imprisonment

    October 24, 2021
    Held on Wednesday, November 17, 2021. Watch a full recording of the event, or scroll down to read a recap and watch event highlights. Recap by Amelia Murray-Cooper On Wednesday, November 17, 2021, the Boston University Initiative on Cities (IOC) hosted a conversation with Jessica Simes, Assistant Professor of Sociology in the BU College of […]

  • Punishing Places: The Geography of Mass Imprisonment

    July 9, 2018
    Principal Investigator Sociology Assistant Professor Jessica Simes seeks to bridge the gap in sociological research between the political and economic causes of the prison boom and the neighborhood-level impacts of mass incarceration to help explain a phenomenon found in small cities and suburbs: a disproportionately high rate of imprisonment, compared to larger cities. For example, […]

  • Pushing Boundaries – Women Scientists at the Forefront of Community-Engaged Research

    October 2, 2021
    On Thursday, October 21 at 3pm ET, join the BU Urban Climate Initiative and Initiative on Cities for an in-person panel discussion on the challenges and opportunities of community-engaged research with a focus on environment and health in cities. The open conversation will explore themes of initiating research, funding, mentorship, tenure, and impacts.