The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs

Summary

The Cities Alliance (www.citiesalliance.org) is a global coalition of cities and their development partners committed to scaling up successful approaches to poverty reduction. They seek to promote the positive impacts of urbanization, and are committed to working with local authorities in planning and preparing for future growth. The Cities Alliance is developing a new mode of work in the University Urban Research Initiative (UURI) which would directly engage universities in both developing and developed countries to strengthen urban development initiatives. To date, universities and research institutions have been relatively absent from the urban policy and assistance process, yet they represent an under-utilized source of expertise, potential advocacy, and locus of problem-oriented capacity building. The proposed Initiative is intended to complement existing networks and professional associations, and to enhance the contribution of the Cities Alliance to urban development.

Description (Revised 8-27-09)

In the Spring 2009 semester PIA participants had the opportunity to begin working with the Cities Alliance in the strategic development and planning of a new University Urban Research Initiative (UURI). This Initiative has been established by the Cities Alliance to increasingly involve universities and research institutes in both developing and developed countries to strengthen the study, teaching, advocacy, networking and support of urban development initiatives in developing countries. The UURI aims to strengthen the effectiveness of urban assistance through undertaking research and evaluation on its long term impacts, with particular emphasis on the two operational programs of the Cities Alliance: city development strategies and slum upgrading. The UURI would work to build interest and active engagement among faculty, students, young professionals, and society at large in the work of the Cities Alliance.

The Spring 2009 semester was dedicated to planning a meeting on June 26-27, 2009, in Marseille, France, of Cities Alliance members, as well as selected academics from across all regions, to discuss the launching of the UURI by the Cities Alliance, and its intended approach to promoting systemic change and scaling up good practices in urban development.

Activities that the students were involved in included strategic development of the Initiative; development and preparation of materials distributed for review and discussion at the meeting in Marseille, France; as well as participating in meeting planning and logistics coordination. In addition to drafting a working paper concerning the establishment of the Initiative for circulation and discussion at the meeting in Marseille, students identified a series of deliverables that the Initiative could potentially offer. These deliverables were formulated into a series of technical notes, written by the students, and discussed with the staff at the Cities Alliance Secretariat in Washington, D.C. Students also developed a list of potential universities across all regions, and identified universities with potential to participate in the Initiative. Finally, students began developing an action plan for the first year of the Initiative.

At the meeting in Marseille, France on June 26-27, several deliverables were discussed in detail and were more clearly defined. It was determined that three essential deliverables would be prepared for presentation at the Cities Alliance tenth anniversary meeting in Mumbai, India in January 2010. The Fall 2009 International Urban Assistance Project with the Cities Alliance will focus on supporting and contributing to the development of these deliverables through in-depth research, analysis, and writing.

The primary focus for the PIA team will be the research and preparation of a paper which will identify collaborations between universities and local and national governments on urban development-related issues. This paper will be an inventory of good examples drawn from the knowledge and experiences of CA members and partners. Additionally, this paper will seek to highlight important issues, discuss lessons learned, as well as to provide guidance for the operationalization of the UURI.

In addition, students will have the opportunity contribute their skills to another deliverable, also for presentation at the Mumbai meeting; a paper which will propose various modalities for operationalizing the UURI. Finally, a feasibility study for a comprehensive review of existing CA knowledge products, and discussion on how to improve such products, will be prepared during the semester and there may be an opportunity for students to also participate in this process.