SOC317H1

Urban Policy

Urban policies reflect how cities and urban areas are designed, built, and managed. They actively shape the ways in which people live. From transportation to housing, crime prevention to climate change, urban policies cover a number of areas of great concern. While cities are heralded as sites of innovation and economic activity, they are also sites of deep inequality. Cities across the world have produced different responses to address these issues. However, urban policy is not only shaped by policymakers; rather, many different institutions shape public policymaking. Given the range of issues facing urban areas, it is important to understand the policies are designed and implemented, and the multiple actors engaged.