Urban Studies Commons^™

Legislative Transparency And Self-Government: Nevada And First Amendment Application, Allister Dias

Student Research

With the rise in political tension in the United States, the call for transparency from elected officials has reached an all-time high. While the role of American democracy is to promote a sense of participation from constituents, the lack of information regarding policy decisions has exempted the public from the halls of the legislature. This policy brief examines legislative transparency in Nevada through the concept of self-government theory. Despite a 1994 constitutional amendment to require publicly accessible legislative committee meetings, exemptions from Open Meeting Law and statutory exemptions continue to limit public access and further the divide between the government …

Pedaling Toward Justice: Exploring The Role Of Community Advocacy In Shaping Bicycle Policy In Oakland., Claire Farrell Lowe

Master's Projects and Capstones

The way people move through a city fundamentally shapes their access to jobs, essential services, and economic and social opportunities. While Oakland’s bicycle infrastructure has improved over the past decade, vehicle-centric planning has historically sidelined cycling, creating mobility inequities. This thesis examines the role of community advocacy in advancing equitable bicycle planning and prioritizing cycling infrastructure as a core element of urban development. This thesis project follows the question: what role do advocacy groups play in addressing the gaps between the Oakland Bicycle Plan and its implementation? Through policy analysis, community engagement, and interviews with key informants from Bike East …

The Politics Of Being Heard: Communication And Power Struggles In Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, Caroline Trejo

Master's Projects and Capstones

The environmental and public health challenges in Bayview-Hunters Point have catalyzed widespread community activism, as residents and advocates respond to the ongoing fallout from radiological contamination at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard. Communication plays a vital role in bridging the gap between affected communities and government entities throughout the cleanup process. This research asks: how have the communication strategies of advocacy groups influenced government actions and policies during the Bayview-Hunters Point Shipyard cleanup? To explore this question, I conducted semi-structured interviews with three community advocates, two former members of a non-partisan civil jury, one independent researcher, and one government official. …

Having A Home To Come Home To: How Subsidized Housing Impacts Unhoused Pregnant Women, Stephanie O. Porvaznik

Master's Projects and Capstones

Community based organizations (CBOs) lead the charge in the fight to end housing insecurity and often must make up where local governments fall short. San Francisco is an example of a municipality that has a long history of addressing instances of housing insecurity for its residents, and where CBOs step in to provide housing support for populations with unique and special circumstances. One CBO that operates in San Francisco that I was interested in studying was the Homeless Prenatal Program (HPP), and the Jelani House, a housing subsidy that is funded and operated by the HPP for pregnant women who …

Federal And State Governments Can Help Solve The Employment Problems Of People In Distressed Places To Spur Equitable Growth, Timothy J. Bartik

Upjohn Institute Policy Papers

Places in the United States differ greatly in their residents’ access to jobs, especially good jobs. Although the federal and state governments provide about $80 billion annually to create jobs through multiple programs, these job-creation initiatives are rarely targeted to economically distressed places, where the job-creation benefits for local residents are greatest. Moreover, many of these programs take the form of business tax incentives, which are less effective at job creation than customized services for businesses and workers. I argue that the prime-age employment rate of places should be used to target job-creation programs and review which such programs are …

Puerto Rico's Coast: Preservation Through Positive Obligations On Property Owners And The State In The Context Of Climate Change, Jaime Villeta-Garcia

Journal of Comparative Urban Law and Policy

The rise in sea level, the obvious rampant coastal erosion and the uncertain future due to climate change urge the need to rethink the coast, through property and administrative law. The security of life, property and the fair and orderly use of the ultra-valuable resources that is the coast depend on a new concept for properties in the coastal zone and its effective execution by a conscious and responsible State. Centered on the community of Ocean Park in San Juan, Puerto Rico, it’s no longer a question of whether coastal property rights can contribute to safeguarding the coast, but rather …

Introduction, Karen Johnston

Journal of Comparative Urban Law and Policy

This article provides an introduction to the Journal of Comparative Urban Law & Policy, the Study Space Program offered by Georgia State University College of Law, and the articles resulting from the Study Space Rio de Janeiro Program held in June 2024.

Unmarried, Married, And Divorced People In The Mountain West, 2023, Dre Boyd-Weatherly, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Demography

This fact sheet presents the ratio of unmarried men to unmarried women, as well as percentage rates of single, married, and divorced people for sixteen Mountain West cities in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico. The Smart Asset report, “Where Most People Are Single or Married – 2025 Study” reports data for the 119 most populous cities in the U.S. from the 2023 one-year American Community Survey conducted by U.S Census Bureau.

Quality Considerations In The Pedestrian Realm: Dead Space Intervention And Prevention, Alycia Ramage

Masters in Architecture Program: Theses

What if every space deemed “unadmirable” was reimagined as a stage for community life? Efforts to find solutions to this question prompted a more complex question: how can new construction promote interaction between architecture and the pedestrian realm?

This thesis is conducted in three main parts: 1) understanding dead space, 2) reinventing dead spaces in existing conditions, and 3) creating a design handbook that works to minimize dead spaces in new design.

Using Lincoln, Nebraska as a case study, part one begins with observation- looking for spaces that could be deemed unadmirable by a pedestrian. Utilizing research and observation, the …

Entangled Exclusions: Borders, Frontiers And Urban Geopolitics From Northeast India, Prerona Das, Gaurav Mittal, Jasnea Sarma

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

An epicentre of ethnicity-based identity politics and exclusions, India's northeastern region has long been politically imagined as both a ‘frontier’ and ‘borderland’ for state control, territorialization, extractive economies and (re)developments by colonial and subsequent post-colonial regimes. In post-independence India, the region experienced many territorial assertions made on ethnic grounds. With the rise of religio-national and neoliberal politics, new urban ‘developments’ and connectivity projects in the region have deepened exclusions based on class, caste, ethnic and religious borders. These have, in turn, led to further displacement, enclavization, and ghettoization of minority communities who are deemed ‘non-native’ along ethnocentric lines. Taking two …

Barriers Individuals And Families Experience Utilizing Anti-Poverty Programs, Miranda C. Dube'

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This proposed study aims to explore the barriers experienced by residents of the High Desert communities. Using a quantitative method approach, the proposed research will employ surveys to provide a comprehensive understanding of the outcomes experienced by the High Desert residents. Participants will be selected within the High Desert communities, aged 18 years or older, who have or are currently experiencing poverty. The findings from this proposed study would contribute to bridging gaps in understanding the barriers residents of the High Desert experience. By identifying factors that suppress successfully utilizing anti-poverty programs, this research proposal would aim to inform the …

Limited Supermarket Access Areas In The Mountain West, 2010-2020, Taylor Volk, Ivan Sun, Mohit Pande, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Health

This fact sheet presents data on limited supermarket access areas in the Mountain West from 2010 to 2020. The “Limited Supermarket Access Analysis” report, published by the Reinvestment Fund, offers data for populations that reside in Limited Supermarket Access (LSA) areas in U.S. states and in major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) with a population of at least 1,000,000 people. This fact sheet presents both state-level and MSA-level data for the Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Contracting For Public Delivery: The Dynamics Of Relational Governance And Power Asymmetry In Public Infrastructure Project, Fazlur Rahman Hassan, Dzulfian Syaafrian, Dinda Ayu Maharani

BISNIS & BIROKRASI: Jurnal Ilmu Administrasi dan Organisasi

Government institutions often face a dilemma in providing goods and services: whether to ‘outsource’ or manage them ‘in-house’. Large-scale public services typically require complex contracts to ensure successful project completion. This study examines the dynamics of relational governance and power shifts that lead to contract failure using a mixed-method approach applied to a complex public service project in Jakarta, one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world. The findings indicate that a contractual win-win outcome can be achieved with strong governance rules, particularly relational governance. However, relational governance can weaken without robust contractual governance, particularly during conflicts or disputes. …

Extremely Low-Income Renter Households In The Mountain West, 2023, Anthony Arroyo, Yiselle Olivas Ruiz, Mia Tschan, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Housing & Real Estate

This fact sheet examines data from the 2025 National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) report, “The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Rental Homes,” which reported annual rental housing shortages in the United States. This fact sheet focuses on the number of extremely low-income renter households, affordable and available rental homes, and associated cost burdens in the five Mountain West states of Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah.

Beyond The Suburban Ideal: Addressing Southern California’S Strained Affordable Housing Market Through Density Bonus Programs, Alissa Larue

School of Public Policy Capstones

This study examines how expanding Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) could serve as an effective policy solution to address the housing affordability crisis. In San Diego, a Bonus Program has been implemented to incentivize the construction of affordable ADUs by relaxing burdensome regulations. A Differences-in-Differences approach using two-way fixed effects is employed to evaluate the program's effectiveness in promoting ADU development, using city-level data from San Diego and Los Angeles counties. ADU permit applications serve as a key indicator of policy impact. The findings strongly suggest that the Bonus Program influenced increasing ADU permit applications in San Diego. Because the model …

The Role Of Affordable Housing In Enhancing Tenants' Economic Stability In Connecticut: A Focus On Income, Employment, And Housing Stability, Osaid Zubi

Dissertations

This study examined the role of affordable housing in promoting economic stability among low- and moderate-income households in Connecticut. Focusing on income security, employment opportunities, and housing retention, this research highlighted the significance of affordable housing as a means to alleviate financial strain, support job retention, and foster community resilience. Utilizing a phenomenological approach, the study gathered insights from tenants, policymakers, and developers through conducting interviews and a focus group. Connecticut was chosen as the study site due to its high cost of living and affordable housing shortage, exacerbated by its proximity to New York City. Findings underscore the economic …

The Insurgent Smart City: How A Social Movement Created An Alternative Imaginary Of The Smart City, Andrew Stokols

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

Urban scholars have critiqued smart cities for their association with neoliberal governance, narrow focus on quantifiable aspects of urban systems, and failure to incorporate citizens’ needs or aspirations. The “smart city” remains a contested concept and as such is subject to reappropriation. Here, I analyze the case of an urban social movement, the 2019–2020 Hong Kong Anti-ELAB protests, as an alternative, “insurgent smart city.” Following from an earlier network analysis of Telegram channels used during the protests, I show how the communications system underpinning much of the protest action simultaneously enabled coordination while also remaining open to grassroots decision-making and …

Active Transportation Data Fusion: Incorporating Big Data To Estimate Volumes, Joeseph Broach, Sirisha Kothuri, Nathan Mcneil

PSU Transportation Seminars

Planners and decision-makers have increasingly voiced a need for network-wide estimates of bicycling and walking. Such volume estimates have for decades informed motorized planning and analysis but have only recently become feasible for non-motorized travel modes. Recently, new sources of activity data have emerged derived primarily from GPS-based smartphone location data, both app-based and passively collected. The project team has led several research projects aimed at evaluating and integrating the emerging sources with conventional demand data, including observed bicycle and pedestrian counts, to assess the value added of various emerging sources and the potential for estimating network-wide volumes. This presentation …

Housing Affordability Impacting Factors In U.S. Urban Areas From 2010 To 2020: An Empirical Review Of Theoretical Factors, Colby Lee Woodson

Community and Regional Planning Program: Theses

This study examines housing affordability in United States Combined Statistical Areas (CSAs) and counties from 2010 to 2020, using American Community Survey and Building Permits Survey data. It evaluates theoretical frameworks from George Galster and Kwan Ok Lee. Using a multiscalar approach, affordability is assessed through a costs-over-income ratio, incorporating both supply- and demand-side factors. A novel contribution is the integration of elder dependency rates, which limit housing turnover and exacerbate supply constraints. Findings indicate that rising full homeownership—particularly among older households—has reduced tenure mobility. The study also shows that CSAs offer a stronger analytical resolution than counties. Despite home …

Why Ai’S Role In Advancing Sustainability Is Underestimated, Lipika Bhattacharya

CCX Research

AI has quietly, but powerfully, woven itself into the fabric of our everyday lives. Yet, AI's potential impact on creating a more sustainable world is undervalued. The author examined artificial intelligence's (AI) role in advancing sustainability. She outlined how AI can be applied in various domains such as agriculture, water management, industry, urban planning, and biodiversity conservation for transformative effects.

Preventing Carbon Emissions With Imaging-Based Civil Infrastructure Assessment And Evaluation, Thomas Schumacher

PSU Transportation Seminars

For concrete bridges without existing plans, simplified and highly conservative load rating (structural evaluation) methods may be used, which can lead to unnecessary load restrictions, unjustifiable strengthening, or in the worst case, preventable replacements. Avoiding these outcomes not only saves money but it prevents carbon emissions from longer travel and construction activities and resources associated with replacement.

This presentation discusses a case study of a prestressed concrete bridge that required a load rating, and for which no plans existed. Imaging and image fusion using radar and ultrasonic measurements taken from the top and bottom of the slab were performed to …

برنامج نافس في عامه الثالث: دراسة تحليلية في إطار السياسات العامة, Sara Almessabi

Theses

Nafis Program in its Third Year: A Public Policy Analysis

Emiratization in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stands at the forefront of government priorities, with policymakers placing significant emphasis on it as a fundamental pillar for providing citizens with a dignified life and enhancing their participation across various economic sectors. Emiratis are considered integral contributors to driving their country's economic development. Recognizing this importance, the UAE government has focused its efforts since the country's establishment on enacting public policies that enable Emiratis to integrate into both the public and private labour markets. However, these policies have faced several challenges, most …

Island Platforms And The Hyper-Terrestrialisation Of Singapore's Smart City-State, Orlando Woods, Tim Bunnell, Lily Kong

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This paper foregrounds the importance of underlying territorial formations in realising a vision of the smart city. It argues that as a political technology of the state, territory should be understood as a platform upon which data works and the smart city unfolds. In this view, island territories – of which bordered city-states like Singapore provide paradigmatic examples – provide an integral, yet hitherto unexplored, component in the realisation of urban “smartness”. We illustrate these theoretical arguments through an analysis of how the territorial constraints that characterise Singapore’s island platform enable the state to accurately and effectively realise its vision …

Analysis Of Access And Egress Mode Choice To High-Speed Railway Stations, Jiaoe Wang, Yongling Li, Junfeng Jiao

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

High-speed railway (HSR) has become a key mode for short- to medium-haul transportation intercity trips in China and has been regarded as a competitor to air transportation. While significant research has explored daily travel mode choices and access/egress modes for other intercity transport hubs, the factors influencing access and egress to HSR stations – particularly those related to the built environment – remain underexamined. This paper analyses access/egress mode choices for intercity travel along the Beijing-Shanghai HSR corridor using 2015 survey data. The findings show that, during the access stage, the number of bus stations at HSR stations reduces car …

Expectations Versus Reality In New Cairo's Gated Communities: An Interdisciplinary Analysis Of Socio-Spatial Features, Ala'a Marwan

Theses and Dissertations

This research aims to introduce a new framework to identify the disparities between gated community residents’ experiences and real estate developers' visions towards the development. As New Cairo experiences significant growth, many residents are increasingly relocating to gated communities. It has become crucial to assess users’ expectations before moving and their lived experience post-moving to allocate the gaps between their expectations and reality, otherwise, the GC developments will grow apart from users’ updated preferences. The research focuses on the socio-spatial qualities such as accessibility to services and facilities, community interaction, and vast green areas between buildings for privacy, all of …

Charging Ahead: Prioritizing Renewable Energy For Electric Minibuses In The Philippines, Thomas Stringer, Sandy Mae Gaspay, Varsolo Sunio, Manuel Burelo

Center for Urban Studies Publications and Reports

This study evaluates the environmental and economic impacts of transitioning to electric minibuses (e-jeepneys) in the informal transportation sector of the Philippines. Using a comprehensive model that simulates different e-jeepney uptake scenarios and electricity grid configurations, we analyze carbon emissions and energy costs. Data from the 2023 energy grid and vehicle emission standards are utilized to assess various grid scenarios, including net-zero and natural gas options. Our findings reveal that a 10% increase in e-jeepney uptake results in significant reductions in both carbon emissions (36 gCO2/km) and energy costs (0.70 PHP/km) when paired with a decarbonized grid. The study underscores …

The Causes And Impact Of Evictions In Southern Nevada, Mohit Pande

Student Research

As the Southern Nevada region continues to quickly grow, evictions have become a structural feature of the region’s rental market. The region has one of the highest eviction filing rates in the country and this trend has continued to increase in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. This paper examines the availability of market-rate affordable housing and the expansion of subsidized affordable housing to understand how the local housing conditions contribute to the number of evictions in Southern Nevada. Additionally, the paper studies local legal processes, such as the summary eviction system and habitability procedures, to understand the relationship between …

The Economic And Environmental Impact Of Shinkansen And High-Speed Rail Infrastructure: A Comparative Analysis Of Economic Growth And Carbon Emissions Reduction, Dillan R. Victory

SPARK Symposium Presentations

The development of Japan's high-speed rail system, the Shinkansen, has played a pivotal role in the country's post-war economic resurgence. Introduced in 1964 with the Tokaidō Shinkansen, this transformative infrastructure investment significantly reduced travel times, bolstered economic activity around station hubs, and facilitated regional development by enabling urban decentralization. This paper explores the long-term economic benefits of high-speed rail, including its impact on land value, business expansion, and carbon emissions. The case study of the Linear Chuo Shinkansen, Japan's latest maglev project, underscores both the economic promise and the political resistance to expansion, particularly in regions such as Shizuoka.

Using …

Shared Tracks, Divided Rule: The Role Of Polycentrism In Shaping Public Transportation In U.S. Metropolises, Dev Purohit

Honors Theses

American public transportation is notably less comprehensive and efficient relative to peer nations. The reliance on private automobiles and commercial air travel for routes that can be served by high-speed rail is a uniquely American phenomenon. This inefficiency is deeply rooted in governance structures, where centralized decision-making has often failed to address the complexities of metropolitan transit systems spanning multiple jurisdictions. This project explores polycentric governance as a potential mechanism to address these shortcomings by fostering competition, enhancing collaboration, and promoting localized responsiveness within metropolitan transit systems. By developing an empirical inventory to measure governance polycentricity and comparing transit outcomes …

Searching For The City - A Study Of Tourism And Urban Development, Ethan Miskelly Paul

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis uses an interdisciplinary study of urban tourism development to examine a number of points of interest with regard to urban tourism governance. It explores what motivates cities to plan development projects intended to attract tourism, what distinguishes the city as ‘place to visit’ from ‘place to live’ from the perspective of a resident, and if tourism is a viable strategy for promoting sustainable development and resident wellbeing in an urban environment.

These questions are ever more relevant as tourism itself comes to represent a major driver of the global economy. Beginning with a review of the relevant literature …