Description
This module grounds students in an understanding of urbanism as ways of coming to know andÌýexperience the urban, with a focus on methodologies and practices. This encompasses numerousÌýpractical and creative interventions and styles of producing and performing the urban. This moduleÌýpresents advanced urban research as a fundamentally transdisciplinary field. Its emphasis is onÌýengaged urbanism, work that critically and purposefully responds to the concrete problems andÌýissues that are important to improving quality of life for city dwellers. This involves collaborationÌýacross disciplines and other knowledge silos, bringing theory and practice into productive interaction.ÌýEngaged urbanism increasingly takes place outside of traditional academic environments, featuringÌýstrong collaborations between academic, professional groups, community-based organisations,Ìýartists, activists and others. Students will be encouraged to develop an engaged, hands-on approachÌýto urbanism that is sensitive to local contexts and employs collaborative, interactive and participatoryÌýmethods.ÌýThrough a survey, with examples from the modern city to the present, the course will locate differentÌýtraditions, concepts and techniques for knowing the city historically and geographically, integratingÌýmaterial from a wide range of disciplines which feature the urban (e.g. anthropology, architecture, artÌýhistory, engineering, fine art, heritage studies, literature, philosophy, planning, sexuality studies andÌýurban history). Urbanism is presented as a broad endeavour, focused on understanding urban lifeÌýand culture, the analysis of urban development, and the advancement of urban knowledge andÌýpositive interventions in the planning, design and management of human settlements.ÌýThe survey will highlight different ontological and epistemological positions and configurationsÌýbetween theoretical and empirical work, the varied forms of data that shape cities, and questions ofÌýresearch ethics, positionality and collaboration. In order to advance experimental urbanism, studentsÌýare exposed to novel uses and combinations of research practice that challenge orthodoxies in theÌýproduction of urban knowledge and planning of cities. Students are guided to undertake specialistÌýreading around a particular method, or intersection of methods, leading to an essay.
Module deliveries for 2024/25 academic year
Last updated
This module description was last updated on 19th August 2024.
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