Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Unlocking The Power Of Data: Enhancing Public Policy Through Advanced Data Infrastructure And Language Model Analysis, Zahid Asghar

CBER Conference

Data is the fundamental building block for advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), general AI (GAI), machine learning (ML), and large language models (LLMs). This study emphasizes the critical need for robust data infrastructure, arguing that without it, countries cannot fully benefit from technological advancements in various economic sectors. Governments possess vast repositories of both structured and unstructured data across multiple domains such as the judiciary, parliaments, and civil bureaucracy. However, these potential goldmines remain untapped due to inadequate data management capabilities and a lack of appreciation for the necessity of high-quality data. The research identifies key issues in public data …

The Energy Efficiency Price Premium Of Residential Buildings In Three Italian Regions, Elena Giarda, Demetrio Panarello

CBER Conference

The aim of this paper is to investigate whether a higher energy efficiency of residential buildings translates into higher house prices in Italy. We employ novel, and almost unexploited, data on Energy Performance Certificates of three Italian regions (EmiliaRomagna, Lombardy and Piedmont) and merge them with house prices and socioeconomic variables at various aggregation levels. The relationship between house prices and energy efficiency is estimated by means of hedonic regression models, quantile regressions and fixed effects panel data models. Our results reveal the existence of an energy-efficiency price premium in the three regions, with significant differences among them. Heterogeneity is …

Infrastructure And Innovation: Unveiling The Impact Of City Size On Individual Innovation Perceptions From A Global Dataset, Muhammad Faraz Riaz

CBER Conference

Cities are hubs of diverse capital resources, fostering knowledge-driven environments conducive to creativity, entrepreneurship, and technological awareness. This study explores the role of socioeconomic, cultural, and demographic factors in shaping the innovation intentions of individuals, analyzing individual perceptions of science and technology’s value using a multi-wave global dataset. The three latest waves of the World Values Survey (2005-2009, 2010-2014, and 2017-2020) are used to analyze the relationship between individual intentions to innovate and the town size. The findings suggest that residents in big cities tend to see science and technology as making their lives easier, healthier, and more comfortable, and …

No. 32: Narratives Of Food Consumption And Food Insecurity: Zimbabwean Migrants In Windhoek, Namibia, Godfrey Tawodzera

Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) Network

Decades of interlocking economic and political crisis have generated significant out-migration from Zimbabwe to other countries. Neighbouring countries with relative political stability and better livelihood opportunities, such as Namibia, have witnessed increased inflows of Zimbabweans. While there are studies documenting these movements, far less attention has been paid to the food security of Zimbabwean migrants in other countries. This paper investigates the changing dietary and food consumption patterns of recent Zimbabwean migrants in Windhoek, Namibia, and the impacts of these changes on household food security. The narratives of 35 Zimbabwean migrant households in Windhoek show that they face numerous food …

Steps In The Right Direction: The Pursuit Of Walkability Within The United States, Griffin Neuschaefer

Honors Projects

The benefits associated with walkability are well documented and observed across a number of disciplines. Benefits pertaining to the economy, physical and mental health, and safety are clearly associated with walkability and the implementation of walkable design within specific communities. Due to dominant practices pertaining to urban design within the United States and a history of increasingly single-use and low-density zoning, walkability and the use of walking as a form of transportation are rarely utilized to the same extent as similarly developed countries. This paper aims to evaluate the features of walkability related to the aforementioned benefits in order to …

No. 31: Precarity, Food Insecurity, And Migration: The Kerala-Gulf Nexus And Women Domestic Workers, Anand Panamthottam Cherian

Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) Network

Low-skilled Malayali women migrants employed as domestic laborers in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)1 countries navigate a transnational labor system that entrenches gendered hierarchies and structural inequalities. Ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Kerala and the United Arab Emirates utilizing biographical methods such as life history and oral history reveals that migration, often envisioned as a pathway to economic security, intensifies vulnerabilities through layers of exclusion, exploitation, and deprivation. These women’s lived experiences underscore the precarious conditions that define their labor trajectories, shaped by systemic governance failures and socio-cultural dynamics.

Food security, positioned at the nexus of material survival and symbolic significance, emerges …

Piloting A Zero-Emission Delivery Zone In Downtown Portland, Art Pearce, Sarah Pullman, Jacob Sherman

PSU Transportation Seminars

The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) was awarded a nearly $2 million Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant by the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) in Fall 2023 to pilot the country’s first regulated Zero-Emission Delivery Zone in downtown Portland and test digital infrastructure tools. This project will test an innovative set of incentives and regulations to better understand what technology and strategies municipalities can use to support and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the freight sector.

While other cities in the United States have piloted voluntary Zero-Emission Delivery Zones (ZEDZs) to encourage the transition of commercial fleets to …

The Loss Of Institutional Knowledge And Capital: The End Of Notre Dame College, Molly Schnoke, Kristen A. Blazek, Candi Clouse

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

Notre Dame College of Ohio was a staple in South Euclid Ohio for over 100 years, starting as a women’s training college and moving to a college helping local disadvantaged students experience a place of higher learning, closed in May 2024. Over a century of learning in their hallowed halls, students no longer sit in the classroom and venture the grounds. This tale of a small college closure is a growing trend throughout the United States. Small cities are having to grapple with the loss of their hometown institutions. Not only are the students left with limited options for continuing …

Shale Investment Dashboard In Ohio Q3 And Q4 2023, Mark Henning, Andrew R. Thomas, Samuel Owusu-Agyemang

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

This report presents findings from an investigation into shale-related investment in Ohio, looking at up, mid and downstream activities. The investment estimates are for July through December of 2023. The report also includes an estimate of cumulative investment into shale in Ohio from 2012 through December 2023. Prior biannual investments are included in previously posted reports that are available from Cleveland State University.

2024 Update On Electricity Customer Choice In Ohio: Deregulated Markets Continue To Save Ohio Ratepayers Nearly $3 Billion Per Year, Andrew R. Thomas, Mark Henning

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

This study provides an update to the research team’s 2016 and 2019 reports on the performance of deregulated electricity markets in Ohio since restructuring first took effect in 2009. This latest study covers the important pandemic and post-pandemic era, when electricity retail markets experienced considerable volatility.

Key findings:

1. Despite recent energy market upheaval, deregulated markets continue to save Ohio ratepayers nearly $3 billion per year. From 2019-2023, Ohio consumers saved 13.5$ billion due to deregulation, with an additional $2.7 billion in savings expected for 2024.
   
   
2. Total savings of $37.5 billion since 2011 translate to $261 per household each year and …

Toward An Urban Food Commons: Participatory Action Research On Food Apartheid And Community-Based Agrifood System Governance In Louisville, Ky., Mary Abigail Rudolph

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the structural inequities fueling food apartheid in Louisville, Kentucky’s agrifood system and explores community-based governance as a path toward food justice. Through a participatory action research (PAR) framework, this study combines participatory geographic information systems (PGIS), focus groups, and autoethnography to engage directly with affected community members and collaborate with the Food in Neighborhoods (FIN) coalition. By prioritizing the voices of those most impacted by food insecurity, this research offers contributions to the fields of food justice, participatory governance, and urban food commons. The study situates Louisville’s food access issues within the broader neoliberal global agrifood system, …

Affordable Housing Solutions: Navigating The Cienega Heights Application Process, Valerie Solorzano

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The lack of affordable housing and widespread knowledge about the eligibility and application process in Santa Cruz County has created significant challenges for the community. This project focuses on addressing these issues by increasing public awareness of affordable housing opportunities and providing guidance on the application process. MidPen Housing, a nonprofit organization specializing in affordable housing, serves as a key example of efforts to meet this need. Their development in Watsonville provides housing for low-income and farmworker families.

A key component of this project involves conducting a public educational outreach event to inform the local community about qualifying for Cienega …

The Scale Question As An Urban Question: The Making Of Homo Urbanicus Amid State Entrepreneurialism, Yong Zhang

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This research bridges two influential strands of literature on urban China—state entrepreneurialism and homo urbanicus (城市人). By revisiting how China’s post-reform urban transformation has unfolded and connecting it to current development strategies, this research provides a fresh perspective on the country’s urbanization processes and their implications for future governance. The analysis proposes an alternative periodization of three phases: anti-migration urbanism, anti-settlement urbanism, and anti-civitas urbanism. Beyond understanding urbanization as a crisis-driven, state-rescaling phenomenon pivoting around the blending of state and market forces, this research repositions the concept of homo urbanicus, or the urban citizen, as central to understanding the urban …

Emerging Storylines In The Context Of The Pandemic For The Mainstreaming Of Bicycles In The Transport System, Varsolo Sunio, Andre Joseph Theng, Philip Peckson, Jedd Carlo Ugay

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Using Metropolitan Manila in the Philippines as a case study, we investigate how the Covid pandemic has opened up a window of opportunity for the de-legitimization of dominant storylines marginalizing cycling and the legitimization of alternative storylines favoring the mainstreaming of bicycles in urban transport systems. Storylines are condensed summaries of complex narratives deployed as convenient shorthand in discussions. Through a content analysis of posts from ten Facebook groups by cycling advocates, we identify six pairs of contending storylines and their key narratives. Furthermore, through semi-formal interviews and an online survey, we determine the level of agreement and the consensus …

Economic Foundations Of Contraceptive Transitions: Theories And A Review Of The Evidence, Mahesh Karra, Joshua Wilde

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

We review the foundations of the economic development–contraception nexus, focusing on the pathways through which economic factors drive contraceptive adoption and change. We investigate the channels through which the relationship between economic development and contraceptive dynamics is mediated. Using global data, we document the correlations between economic development and contraception transitions over time and across geographies. We briefly examine the evidence of the role of fertility, both desired and realized, as a central pathway through which the relationship has been historically theorized and empirically verified. We also discuss a range of mechanisms through which economic development drives contraceptive use independently …

Estrategias Para Promover Comportamientos Urbanos Responsables En Los Campus Universitarios: Un Análisis Cualitativo Del Alcance, Willian Sierra-Barón, Pablo Páramo

The Qualitative Report

Los Comportamientos Urbanos Responsables (CUR) son fundamentales para garantizar la convivencia y la sostenibilidad ambiental. A pesar de que se han implementado diferentes estrategias para fomentarlas en diferentes entornos públicos por parte de las administraciones municipales o su testeo en los campus universitarios, no existen estudios que recojan los resultados de estas experiencias dentro de la literatura científica. El propósito de esta investigación fue identificar publicaciones relacionadas con estrategias para promover comportamientos urbanos responsables, para describir las principales características y hallazgos de su implementación, particularmente en los campus universitarios. Se realizaron búsquedas en Scopus y Web of Science, revistas especializadas …

Ev Charging At Multifamily Properties: Moving Beyond Barriers, Whit Jamieson, Anna Guida, Connor Herman

PSU Transportation Seminars

Transportation is the top contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in the US and light-duty vehicles are the #1 contributor to transportation emissions. Mass adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is key in the fight toward a more sustainable future, but there are several factors that have delayed our transition to EVs.

EV charging at home is the most convenient and cost-effective charging option for EV drivers, but people living in multifamily housing face serious barriers to accessing home charging. During this session, we will explore why EV charging at multifamily housing is critical to mass adoption of EVs, barriers to charging …

Bike Buses: An Evaluation Of An Emerging Active Transportation To School Intervention, Evan Howington, Nathan Mcneil, John Macarthur

TREC Faculty and Staff Publications

Bike buses are a relatively new form of active transportation to school (ATS) that have primarily emerged in Europe and the United States. A form of coordinated, group bike riding along a defined route to school, bike buses are an outgrowth of Safe Routes to School interventions in North America that seek to reverse the declining rates of walking and biking to school among children. Our initial phase of research included a literature review of social and environmental factors affecting ATS in the contemporary North American context, and two convenience surveys of bike bus coordinators and parent participants. This initial …

Development And Migration: A Case Study Of Agricultural Households In Northern Ghana, Otoniel Ramos

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

This study explores the intricate relationship between economic development and migration patterns in Northern Ghana's agricultural communities. Utilizing data from the EGC-ISSER Ghana Socioeconomic Panel Survey, the analysis focuses on the economic motivations driving migration, considering factors such as urbanization and economic growth. The findings reveal that while urbanization and economic prosperity individually decrease migration, in line with the assumptions of the human capital models of migration, their interaction significantly increases it, suggesting that growing wealthy urban centers; the emergence of new; or the growth of smaller urban centers (made possible due to economic growth) offer enhanced opportunities that attract …

Auction-Based Tolling Systems: Addressing Behavioral Economics And Social Equity Concerns, Tung Huy Vo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The value of time (VOT), or willingness to pay (WTP) to reduce travel time in the context of transportation, is not homogeneous across all road users. Everyone has their own unique VOT and may have multiple values for the VOT associated with factors such as the time of day or the trip purpose. However, the traditional distance-based, time-based, or demand-based congestion pricing methods cannot reflect the true WTP for the use of tolled facilities of the road users. Recent studies have explored and proposed an innovative congestion pricing scheme that integrates auction mechanisms into tolling systems, known as auction-based tolling …

Navigating Change: Youth Civic Engagement At Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association, Alex R. Whitacre

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the impact of gentrification on the Tampa Heights community in Florida, focusing on the role of Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association (THJCA) in fostering civic engagement and youth empowerment amidst urban transformation. Using a mixed-methods ethnographic approach, including participant observation, archival review, spatial analysis, surveys, and interviews, the research investigates how THJCA affiliates conceptualize and respond to gentrification, space, and community change. Employing urban place theories and social capital frameworks, the research challenges deficit-oriented narratives in examining the experiences of current and former residents, the effects of gentrification on youth educational services, and THJCA's strategies for maintaining …

Analysis Of The Impact Of Pavement Characteristics On Road Traffic Safety And Pavement Management Using Statistical Heterogeneity Models, Huiqing Lyu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Pavement shall accommodate current and predicted traffic needs in a safe, durable, and cost-effective manner. Among pavement surface characteristics, pavement friction is a critical factor contributing to roadway safety, as it directly impacts a driver's ability to execute steering, braking, and acceleration maneuvers safely. Ensuring an adequate level of pavement friction is essential to minimize the skidding risk for all road users. Continuous pavement friction measurement (CPFM) has recently become a proven approach, revolutionizing safety-related pavement management and skidding crash injury prevention. Meanwhile, pavement roughness has long been linked to vehicle fuel efficiency and pavement structural degradation. Perceptions of pavement …

Beyond Direct Education And Facilitation: Revisiting The Role Of Extension In Community & Regional Food Systems Development, Catie M. Demets, Lindsey Day Farnsworth

Journal of Extension

The fundamental issues that community and regional food systems aim to address are inherently systems problems, yet many Extension programs continue to focus food system development efforts on activities and actors that directly support the food value chain. While important, the impact of these interventions is limited. Drawing from interviews with directors of four of the nation’s leading Community and Regional Food Systems Extension programs, this article makes a case for rethinking Extension’s role in community and regional food systems development in relationship to key leverage points through a typology of Extension roles and corresponding examples.

Addressing Transportation Emissions Through State Climate And Energy Policy, Amy Schlusser

PSU Transportation Seminars

Oregon has adopted policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the energy and transportation sectors. This presentation will provide some background on these policy frameworks and explore how these policies impact transportation fuels and the transportation sector more broadly.

Understanding And Alleviating The Impact Of Convective Weather To Airfield Efficiency, Huang Feng

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Extensive research in predicting annual passenger throughput at airports has been conducted, aiming at providing decision support for airport construction, aircraft procurement, resource management, flight scheduling, etc. However, few studies have been conducted on how airport operational throughput is affected by convective weather in the vicinity of the airport and how to predict short-term airport operational throughput. Convective weather near the airport could make arrivals miss their positions in the arrival stream and reduce airfield efficiency in terms of utilizing runway capacities. This research leverages the learning-based method (MB-ResNet model) to predict airport hourly throughput. It uses the Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta …

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of Edge Line Sinusoidal Rumble Strips On Lane Departure Crash Prevention And Injury Severity, Shubhankar Chintamani Shindgikar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Lane departure crashes are one of the most prevalent accidents in Florida and the United States. Various forms of rumble strips have been employed to mitigate and decrease these incidents. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) recently adopted a new sinusoidal rumble strip pattern for statewide implementation of audible and vibratory treatment (AVT). Recent research indicates sinusoidal rumble strips are highly effective in alerting drivers audibly and through tactile vibrations, thus aiding lane departure prevention. Moreover, they generate less external noise compared to other rumble strip textures.

However, a systematic assessment of the safety effectiveness of sinusoidal rumble strips in …

From A Traditional City To A Smart City: The Measurement Of Cities’ Readiness For Transition, Egypt As A Case Study, Ahmed Hassebo, Mohamed Tealab, Mosaad Hamouda

Publications and Research

The transition from traditional legacy cities to smart cities represents a pivotal juncture in urban development and governance. As cities worldwide grapple with the challenges of rapid urbanization, resource constraints, and the need to enhance the quality of life for their citizens, the concept of a “smart city” has gained significant attention. This paper delves into the multifaceted process of urban transformation, shedding light on the essential criteria and considerations that guide a city’s conversion into a smart city. To provide a comprehensive framework for the conversion process, this paper outlines a computer program utilized to measure the readiness to …

Imagine Lagos : Mapping History, Place, And Politics In A Nineteenth-Century African City, Ademide Adelusi-Adeluyi

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Written from a digital humanities perspective, this book combines historical sources, maps, and a walking cartography to create new perspectives on the nineteenth-century history of Lagos, West Africa’s most populous city.

What traces do people leave in the places where they live, and even where they die? This book addresses the spatial history of nineteenth-century Lagos, rebuilding its past as a series of encounters: between men and women, between past and present, between enslaved and free, between living and dead, and finally between land and lagoon. In Imagine Lagos, Ademide Adelusi-Adeluyi argues that the invention, destruction, and reinvention of spatial …

Fast-Tracking Transit: Unveiling Portland's First Bus Rapid Transit Line And Signal Optimization Strategies, Mark Haines, Jesse Stemmler

PSU Transportation Seminars

This presentation on the Division Transit Project will provide an overview of the project elements including roadway design, bus station design, traffic signal timing and operations and the Next Gen Transit Signal Priority (TSP) system. We will discuss some lessons learned and provide before and after results from the project.

Patterns Of Government In Onondaga County: Structure And Services Of County, City, Town, And Village Governments (2024), Focus Greater Syracuse, Syracuse University, Maxwell School, Community Benchmarks Program

Community Benchmarks Program

The 2024 revised Patterns of Government is an important resource for elected and public officials, citizens, students, businesses, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, and the general public. Patterns of Government also serves as the textbook for Citizens Academy, co- sponsored by FOCUS Greater Syracuse and Syracuse University Community Engagement. Local government courses at Maxwell School of Syracuse University and Newhouse School of Public Communications also use Patterns of Government as an educational tool. This book contains vital information that ordinarily can be found only when one researches multiple sources. This informational book will help you understand how local governments are organized, …