A Year in Review

While the global pandemic forced us to physically distance ourselves, the global dialogue on the past, present and future of cities has never been more vibrant or consequential.  Indeed, while the behavioral response to the pandemic prompted some to call into question the value of cities (primarily in the United States), this past year has seen bold new urban decision-making emerge on public health, mobility, digital privacy, the public realm and climate change among many others.

 

This year, at the GGCI we were extraordinarily fortunate to be joined by external thought leaders in this dialogue, among which we would like to highlight: 

 

- Jeffrey Sachs shared his insights into the long evolution of globalization, the principles of subsidiarity and the urgent need for local leaders to shape cities in alignment with global goals;

- Angela Glover Blackwell was joined by a faculty roundtable exploring the role and value of articulating community narratives in the context of community-based change;

- Mayor William Peduto shared reflections on leadership decisions he made during the pandemic and how institutionalized legacies of exclusion expressed themselves in Pittsburgh;

- Enrique Peñalosa, former mayor of Bogotá, shared how urban planning strategies can directly lead to happiness outcomes;

- The five most recent urban planning directors of the District of Columbia convened in a session exploring the proposed revisions to the DC Comprehensive Plan.

 

We are deeply thankful to Angela Glover Blackwell, who served as this year's visiting fellow and participated in countless roundtables with students, faculty and staff exploring the complex nexus of social equity, systemic racism, and community narratives. 

 

This year also included greater student-led engagements, culminating in students from across the university presenting their work at the Third Annual Student Research Summit. Building on this momentum, we introduced the Georgetown Global Cities Scholars Program which assists students in the advancement of their own research. We look forward to recruiting a new cohort of student scholars in the fall!

 

Finally, in keeping with our interdisciplinary approach to our dialogue, we benefited from meaningful collaboration with other partners across the University, including the Institute for Politics at the McCourt School, the Georgetown Humanities Initiative, the Urban Health Collaborative and the State and Local Government Policy and Law initiative at the Georgetown Law Center. 

 

We invite you to connect into our networks and share your feedback at globalcities@georgetown.edu.