Research Committee 21 (RC21) of the International Sociology Association, the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (IJURR), the Foundation for Urban and Regional Studies (FURS) and the University of Amsterdam invite applications for 25 places on the second collaborative School on Comparative Urban Studies, to be held in Amsterdam from 1 to 12 July 2011.
The School is being held in conjunction with the RC21 Conference on the theme of ‘The struggle for home: Belonging and diversity in 21st century urban settings’, to be held from 7 to 9 July.
The School will address three broad themes:
- The value added of comparative research in urban studies and the changing nature of the urban question. How and why are cities across the world changing, and with what consequences?
- What new research tools and methodologies are appropriate to making sense of the changes occurring in contemporary urban society? How should we make use of or combine, ethnographic research and the analysis of quantitative data?
- Are our theories appropriate for the study of contemporary urban form and society, especially in the global South where we often apply theories of the global North without regard to the specificities of old and new urban contexts in the South?
Lectures will cover topics cutting across these themes considering the theory and practice of comparison, linking theory and method, and providing insights into quantitative and ethnographic methods.
Format
The School follows the precedent of the inaugural School held in São Paulo in 2009 in providing younger scholars with an opportunity to learn from established scholars, from diverse disciplines and parts of the world, through both formal classes and informal interaction. The School will also help younger scholars to present, discuss and prepare for publication their own work. Formal sessions will be spread across seven days. Each session will comprise presentations by senior scholars will give presentations or form a discussion panel, discussions, and student presentations. Participants will be required to prepare in advance and complete assignments during the School. In addition one day will be set aside for dedicated sessions of how to get work published (both as books and in journals) and how to raise funds for research. Participants will also be able to enroll on guided tours around parts of Amsterdam, and time will be scheduled for them to meet informally with senior scholars for detailed comments on their assignments, with the goal of helping students to learn how to prepare and organize work for presentation at an international conference and publication in an international journal. Participants will receive ane-reader with the syllabus well in advance. The language of the School will be English. Students will also be required to present a paper at and participate fully in the RC21 conference.
Scholars
Speakers at the School will include: Isa Baud (U. of Amsterdam), Talja Blokland (Humboldt U. at Berlin), Anouk de Koning (U. of Amsterdam), Ewald Engelen (U. of Amsterdam), Philip Kasinitz (City U. of New York), Yuri Kazepov (University of Urbino and President of RC21), Patrick Le Galès (Sciences-Po, Paris), John Mollenkopf (City U. of New York), Clara Mulder (U. of Amsterdam), Jenny Robinson (University College London), Mike Savage (U. of Manchester), Jeremy Seekings (U. of Cape Town and co-editor of IJURR), AbdouMaliq Simone (Goldsmiths College, London) and Jeroen van der Waal (Erasmus U.).
Scholarships
Funding from FURS and RC21 has allowed approximately 15 scholarships for students from developing countries. Scholarships will provide a flat rate contribution to travel expenses, local shared accommodation from 1 to 12 July, and fees for the School and the Conference. The scholarships will not cover daily subsistence expenses (meals, local transportation costs, etc.).
For more information on fees, deadlines and scholarship applications please visit the Comparative Urban Studies School website by clicking here.
