Urban Policy Project
The project should consist of a policy proposal on an urban economics issue. It should be a specific policy related to the New York City or Nassau or Suffolk County (if you wish to analyze a different urban area please discuss this with me for a prior approval). You are encouraged to compare and contrast those issues with other cities across the globe.
The policy proposal should be clearly structured, have a policy recommendation, as well as a clear discussion of the argument in favor and against its implementation. Your argument should be based on relevant data and theory. This project will be split in two parts. Part 1 - Proposal, Short Outline, and Photovoice Journal for Urban Policy Project Due Monday, October 28 Part 2 - Urban Policy Project Due Tuesday, December 17 |
Part 1: PhotoVoice |
PhotoVoice is a research method in which a person photographs their surroundings to increase knowledge of topics important to them. There are three (3) main purposes of PhotoVoice:
Take six photos related to your Urban Policy Issue. At least two of the photos should show strengths and positive characteristics of your community that positively contribute to the issue. And, at least two photos should show weaknesses and negative characteristics of the issue. The 5th and 6th photos can be positive or negative—you choose! Use your smart phone or a digital camera to take the photos. Title each photograph and write a 1-2 sentence description for each. Ideally, you should write the description immediately after taking the photograph so that you do not forget the photograph’s meaning. You should also describe why you took the photographs that you took. You are also encouraged to find pictures online of similar things in other cities in order to make a comparison or contrast. For example, picture of a street lamp on Long Island vs a picture of a street lamp in Slovenia. You should explain what is the main difference (is it good? is it bad?) or what are the similarities (is that good or bad?) |
More About PhotoVoice |
Using Images and Stories to Create Community Change: An Introduction to Photovoice - Quick Introduction to PhotoVoice - a pdf file
Here is a nice video that shows how Photovoice can be use for civic action.
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Part 2: Urban Policy Project |
A clearly written up project that connects the PhotoVoice with the actually issue and policy suggestions. Minimum of 1500 words and no more than 3000 words (text in PhotoVoice, tables, graphs, figures, bibliography, table of contents, abstract, etc. does not count towards this word count).
Your final project (or research paper) should first be on your website. This is a requirement. The project should include all the parts that you have put together for Part 1 - proposal with the PhotoVoice. You should include your pictures and expand on those. The project should have the introduction, main body, and discussion/conclusion. You should also include other material - this can include links to articles, photos, graphs, data, videos, podcasts, etc. The way you cite that work is by providing links to those cited works, rather than using an official bibliography as you do in other papers. So, the final product should look like a really well written website that includes all the relevant information about your topic, your policy question and proposal. Deadline: December 19 |
How to Submit Your Work |
All you work will be submitted online.
First, you will have to create your own webpage where you will be using a Creative Commons License – more info about this will be provided later one. On your page you will have at least two other pages. One for your Proposal, Short Outline, and Photovoice Journal and another one for your Final Urban Policy Project. You are encouraged to make your pages as attractive and informative as you wish and can include additional information about the issue or urban economics in general. If you are citing other work (and you really should) please include a link to the page or provide proper citation. You can also include videos or interviews with people in the community. You can ask them about their opinions about the issue. Make sure that you always get a written and signed consent from people if you are thinking of publishing the interviews online. Always feel free to come and talk to me about your project. You are also encouraged to submit a preliminary versions in order to get some feedback from me. |
Suggested Topics |
Here are some suggested questions that deal with cities and sustainability:
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