GGR259H1

Urban Growth and Decline

The growth and decline of cities have been and continue to be preoccupations of scholars and practitioners alike. This course is an introduction to the causes and consequences of urban growth and decline at the neighbourhood, municipal, and regional levels. Special attention will be paid to North American cities, but others outside of that sphere will be discussed as well. Concepts and topics will include a consideration of the following: rural to urban migration; industrialization and deindustrialization; urban renewal; suburbanization; austerity and neoliberalism; racial avoidance and discrimination; gentrification; and capital switching and uneven development.