Intersections: Understanding Urbanism in the Global Age

Urbanism is a global phenomenon, presenting us with a range of pressing issues to consider: economic, political, material, and—most of all—human. Our conference was designed to stimulate a broad-based discussion about “the urban” in the 21st century, a much more complicated concept than 19th- and 20th-century cities. This change has been much studied by social scientists, but we often overlook how these new urban centers are being experienced by their inhabitants. This Radcliffe Institute conference takes multidisciplinary and international approach to explore the challenges and tensions that people in urban communities face today.