Urban Society and Social Change

Why Urban Society and Social Change? 

Many students are drawn to Urban Studies by their desire to understand and address the unique problems confronting cities today.  This concentration focuses on issues in contemporary urban society, and on the tools and concepts that can bring about change to improve urban life.  Courses focus on a diverse range of issues, from environmental degradation to racial and class inequality.  Students also learn how community action, urban planning and design, and organizations in nonprofit, for-profit, and government sectors address these challenges.

This concentration prepares students to enter graduate programs concerned with urban affairs, community service, and public policy, and to work with local governmental agencies and for-profit and nonprofit organizations engaged in community service and development.

Advising

Students in this concentration may select as their advisor either
Michael Kahan (email) (read more)

Or Doug McAdam (email) (read more)

Special Programs and Opportunities

Students in the Urban Society and Social Change concentration should consider applying for a Haas Center Summer Fellowship, which provides funding for a summer spent working for a non-profit or government organization. 

Those interested in policy should also consider applying for a summer placement with Stanford in Government, or a quarter at Stanford in Washington.  Consult your Urban Studies advisor to determine if courses or internships taken in Washington can fulfill Urban Studies course requirements or the internship requirement.

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Required Course

The following course is required for the Urban Society and Social Change concentration:
POLISCI 133. Ethics and Politics of Public Service

Additional Courses

The following courses may be counted toward the Urban Society and Social Change concentration. Please consult with your advisor to select a program of courses that suits your intellectual and personal goals.

 

AUTUMN 12/13 COURSES:

CEE 100 Managing Sustainable Building Projects
CEE 124 Sustainable Development Studio
CEE 129 Climate Change Adaptation for Seaports: Engineering and Policy for a Sustainable Future (CEE 229)
CEE 141A Infrastructure Project Development (CEE 241A)
EARTHSYS 105 Food and Community: New Visions for a Sustainable Future (EESS 105)
EARTHSYS 112 Human Society and Environmental Change (EESS 112, HISTORY 103D)
ENGR 150 Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ENGR 250)
HUMBIO 116 Controlling Climate Change in the 21st Century (BIO 147, BIO 247, EARTHSYS 147, EARTHSYS 247)
MS&E 180 Organizations: Theory and Management
PUBLPOL 183 Philanthropy and Social Innovation
SOC 14N Inequality in American Society (SNIPP)
SOC 45Q Understanding Race and Ethnicity in American Society (SNIPP)
SOC 140 Introduction to Social Stratification (SOC 240)
URBANST 111 Urban Politics (PUBLPOL 133)
URBANST 115 Urban Sustainability: Long-Term Archaeological Perspectives (CLASSGEN 123, CLASSGEN 223)
URBANST 123 Approaching Research and the Community
URBANST 131 Social Innovation and the Social Entrepreneur
URBANST 133 Social Entrepreneurship Collaboratory
URBANST 160 Environmental Policy and the City in U.S. History (HISTORY 260E)

 

WINTER 12/13 COURSES:

CEE 64 Air Pollution and Global Warming: History, Science, and Solutions (CEE 263D)
CEE 124 Sustainable Development Studio
CEE 129 Climate Change Adaptation for Seaports: Engineering and Policy for a Sustainable Future (CEE 229)
CEE 141B Infrastructure Project Delivery (CEE 241B)
CEE 171 Environmental Planning Methods
CEE 172 Air Quality Management
ECON 150 Economic Policy Analysis (PUBLPOL 104, PUBLPOL 204)
ECON 155 Environmental Economics and Policy
ENGR 150 Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ENGR 250)
HUMBIO 122S Social Class, Race, Ethnicity, and Health
HUMBIO 127A Community Health: Assessment and Planning I
HUMBIO 128 Community Health Psychology (PSYCH 101)
OSPCPTWN 32 Learning, Development, and Social Change: Service Learning in the Contemporary South African Contex-
SOC 16N African Americans and Social Movements
SOC 118 Social Movements and Collective Action (SOC 218)
SOC 119 Understanding Large-Scale Societal Change: The Case of the 1960s (SOC 219)
SOC 146 Introduction to Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity
URBANST 132 Concepts and Analytic Skills for the Social Sector
URBANST 166 East Palo Alto: Reading Urban Change
URBANST 167 The Automobile and the City

 

SPRING 12/13 COURSES:

ANTHRO 32 Theories in Race and Ethnicity: A Comparative Perspective
ASNAMST 146S Asian American Culture and Community (AMSTUD 146, COMPLIT 146, CSRE 146S)
CEE 124 Sustainable Development Studio
CEE 129 Climate Change Adaptation for Seaports: Engineering and Policy for a Sustainable Future (CEE 229)
CEE 131A Professional Practice: Mixed-Use Design in an Urban Setting
CEE 246 Entrepreneurship in Civil & Environmental Engineering
EARTHSYS 104 The Water Course (GEOPHYS 104)
EARTHSYS 181 Concepts of Urban Agriculture (EARTHSYS 281, EESS 181, EESS 281)
ECON 150 Economic Policy Analysis (PUBLPOL 104, PUBLPOL 204)
ENGR 150 Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship (ENGR 250)
HISTORY 106A Global Human Geography: Asia and Africa
HISTORY 206 History and Geography of Contemporary Global Issues
HISTORY 260 California's Minority-Majority Cities (CSRE 260)
HUMBIO 127B Community Health: Assessment and Planning II
MS&E 180 Organizations: Theory and Management
OSPCPTWN 22 Preparation for Community-Based Research in Community Health and Development
OSPCPTWN 32 Learning, Development, and Social Change: Service Learning in the Contemporary South African Contex-
POLISCI 236 Theories of Civil Society, Philanthropy, and the Nonprofit Sector (ETHICSOC 232T, POLISCI 236S)
PUBLPOL 102 Organizations and Public Policy (PUBLPOL 202)
PUBLPOL 135 Regional Politics and Decision Making in Silicon Valley
SOC 135 Poverty, Inequality, and Social Policy in the United States (SOC 235)
SOC 145 Race and Ethnic Relations in the USA (CSRE 145, SOC 245)
SOC 161 The Social Science of Entrepreneurship (SOC 261)
URBANST 133 Social Entrepreneurship Collaboratory
URBANST 137 Innovations in Microcredit and Development Finance
URBANST 163 Land Use Control
URBANST 164 Sustainable Cities
URBANST 172 Design Approaches to Mending a City: Rethinking the 101 in East Palo Alto

 

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