5th RC21-IJURR-FURS Summer School in Comparative Urban Studies

This information is about a past summer school that took place in August and September 2017. 

The 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), University College London (Bartlett School of Planning) and Leeds University (Sociology/Geography) invited applications for 25 places on our fifth collaborative School on Comparative Urban Studies, held in London and Leeds (UK) from August 30 to September 13 2017. The School was being held in conjunction with the RC21 Conference on the theme of “Rethinking urban global justice” held on September 11-13, 2017.

The Summer School is aimed at PhD students at the beginning of their doctoral studies (1st or 2nd year ideally), who have not yet finished conducting their field work; and possibly at students finishing a research master and planning to continue with doctoral studies. It is not suitable for students who are at the end of their PhD studies, as it focuses on introducing and discussing the use of various research methods and the development of comparisons in urban studies.

Date Morning Afternoon Evening
Wednesday 30 August 2017 (London) Arrival of participants in London. Check-in in student Hall of Residence nearly Euston Station

 

Welcome session and ice-breaker Welcome dinner
Thursday 31 August 2017 (London) Comparison as theory(-building) and method: tactics for a more global urban studies

Prof. Jenny Robinson (University College London (UCL), Geography)

What does it mean to compare in Urban Studies?

Prof. Patrick Le Galès (CNRS Research professor, Dean of the Urban School, Sciences-Po Paris)

Seminar group discussions: strategies for comparisons and case-study selections in students’ research Introduction to London: Planning, urban development and social struggles in a global city

Dr. Claire Colomb (University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning)

Prof. Mike Raco (University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning)

Friday 1 September 2017 (London) Ethnography in/of the city: conceptual quandaries, moral dilemmas, and practical problems

Prof. Dennis Rodgers (University of Amsterdam, International Development)

Seminar group discussions: urban ethnography in students’ research

 

Documentary film as a research tool (film screening and discussion with Mark Saunders, documentary filmmaker, Spectacle; associate lecturer, Birkbeck University of London)
Saturday 2 September 2017 (London) Being a researcher and an activist. Participatory action research and scholarly activism

Round table discussion with UCL and Leeds researchers-activists:

Michael Edwards (UCL Bartlett School of Planning, UCL Just Space network)

Myfanwy Taylor (UCL Geography, UCL Just Space network)

Joe Beswick (Leeds University, Radical Housing Network)

Walking tour around Brick Lane, Shoreditch and the East End: London’s melting pot and socio-spatial contradictions

Coordinated by Dr Claire Colomb (UCL, Bartlett School of Planning)

 

Free
Sunday 3 September 2017  (London) Free

 

Free Free
Monday 4 September 2017 (Leeds) Travel to Leeds (by train)

Check-in in student Hall of Residence

 

 

Welcome by Leeds coordinating team (Dr Andrew Wallace, Leeds University, Dept. of Sociology and colleagues)

Urban research at Leeds University (sociology and geography): a showcase

(among others, presentation of the Contested Cities project: researching resistance to gentrification across the global North and South (Dr Sara González and Dr Michael Janoschka, Leeds University, School of Geography)

Walk to Leeds city centre and social event
Tuesday 5 September 2017 (Leeds) Mixed methods in urban research  [combining quantitative and qualitative methods]

Prof. Mike Savage, LSE, Sociology

 

Seminar group discussions: mixed methods in students’ research Free
Wednesday 6 September 2017 (Leeds) Trans/multidisciplinary approach  in urban studies:

Prof. Laurent Fourchard (Sciences-Po Paris): Articulating historical and ethnographic approaches in urban studies: the example of policing poor neighbourhoods

Dr Claire Colomb (UCL, Bartlett School of Planning): Reconciling cultural and political economic approaches in urban studies: the example of the politics of urban imaging

 

Seminar group discussions: Trans/multidisciplinary approach in students’ research Lecture and debate: What is Theory in Critical Urban Studies?

Prof. Adrian Favell, Chair in Sociology & Social Theory, Leeds University

Thursday 7 September 2017 (Leeds) Social networks: capital forms and their spatial expressions

Prof. Eduardo Marques (University of São Paulo, Political Science and Metropolitan Studies)

Prof. Alberta Andreotti (University of Milan-Bicocca, Sociology)

 

Seminar group discussions: social network analysis and related approaches in students’ research Free
Friday 8 September 2017 (Leeds) In the field: observing urban issues in the Leeds city-region: guided tours in small groups

Coordinated by Dr Andrew Wallace (Leeds University, School of Sociology) and colleagues

In the field: observing urban issues in the Leeds city-region: guided tours in small groups (continued)

Coordinated by Dr Andrew Wallace (Leeds University, School of Sociology) and colleagues

 

Free
Saturday 9 September 2017 (Leeds) How to publish in Urban Studies

Dr. Claire Colomb (UCL, Bartlett School of Planning)

 

Preparing good applications for research funding

Prof. Yuri Kazepov (University of Vienna, Sociology)

 

Free
Sunday 10 September 2017 (Leeds) Free

 

Free Final dinner and evaluation of the summer school
Monday 11 September 2017 (Leeds) RC21 Conference RC21 Conference

 

Tuesday 12 September 2017 (Leeds) RC21 Conference RC21 Conference
Wednesday 13 September 2017 (Leeds) RC21 Conference

 

Mobile workshops (optional)

 

To be shared with the selected Summer School participants by 31 July 2017

Themes

As in previous years, the School will focus on the interaction of theory and methodology in the study of the city. The School will address three broad themes:

  1. 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?
  2. What (new) research tools and methodologies are appropriate to make sense of the changes occurring in contemporary urban society? How should we make use of, or combine, qualitative research methods and the analysis of quantitative data?
  3. 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 and urban research, linking theory and method, and providing insights into quantitative and qualitative methods. Classes will focus on the global North and global South and will draw from the teaching scholars’ own research.

Format

The School builds upon the lessons learned from the previous four Summer Schools held in São Paulo in 2009, in Amsterdam in 2011, in Berlin in 2013 and in Urbino in 2015 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. Formal sessions will be spread across 10 days. Sessions will typically comprise presentations/lectures by senior scholars in the morning, followed by interactive seminar discussions and student presentations in the afternoon. These will offer the opportunity to discuss the application of particular research approaches and methods to the participants’ own research projects. Participants will be required to prepare some readings in advance and a short piece of writing in advance. In addition, one day will be set aside for dedicated sessions of how to get work published and how to apply for research funding. A number of evening lectures or film screenings, as well as tours in particular neighbourhoods of London and Leeds and its city-region, are also scheduled. .

Participants will be required to prepare a number of readings in advance and complete a (short) piece of writing on their research before attending the Summer School. Participants will receive an e-reader with the syllabus well in advance. The language of the School will be English. Students will also be required to submit an abstract to present a paper at and participate fully in the RC21 conference.

Coordinators of the Summer School (in alphabetical order):

  • Dr Claire Colomb, University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning, on behalf of RC21
  • Prof. Laurent Fourchard, Sciences-Po Paris, on behalf of IJURR (International Journal for Urban and Regional Research)
  • Dr Andrew Wallace, Leeds University, School of Sociology and Social Policy, on behalf of the Local Organising Committee of Leeds University hosting the 2017 RC21 conference

Contributing scholars (in alphabetical order):

  • Prof. Alberta Andreotti, University of Milan-Bicocca, Sociology
  • Dr. Claire Colomb, University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning
  • Michael Edwards, University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning; UCL Just Space
  • Prof. Adrian Favell, Leeds University, Chair in Sociology & Social Theory
  • Prof. Laurent Fourchard, Sciences-Po Paris
  • Dr Sara González and Dr Michael Janoschka, Leeds University, School of Geography
  • Prof. Yuri Kazepov, University of Vienna, Sociology
  • Prof. Patrick Le Galès, CNRS Research professor, Dean of the Urban School, Sciences-Po Paris
  • Prof. Mike Raco, University College London (UCL), Bartlett School of Planning
  • Prof. Eduardo Marques, University of São Paulo, Political Science and Metropolitan Studies
  • Prof. Jennifer Robinson, University College London (UCL), Department of Geography
  • Prof. Dennis Rodgers, University of Amsterdam, International Development
  • Mark Saunders, associate lecturer, Birkbeck University of London; documentary filmmaker (Spectacle)
  • Prof. Mike Savage, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Sociology
  • Myfanwy Taylor, University College London (UCL), Geography; UCL Just Space
  • Dr Andrew Wallace, Leeds University, School of Sociology and Social Policy

The Summer School would not be possible without their generous, voluntary participation and contributions. Thanks to all of them!

The fee for the course is EUR 1,000. This amount covers the organizational costs and includes accommodation for 14 nights (in single rooms in student halls of residence in London (5 nights) and Leeds (9 nights)), a welcome and a final reception, the e-reader, the registration fee for the conference and RC21 membership for 4 years. For those who do not need accommodation in one of the two cities (London or Leeds), the fee will be reduced. The registration fee will be due in May or June, once the results of the summer school selection process are known.

A number of full scholarships are available – see next tab “Scholarships”.

Funding from the Foundation of Urban & Regional Studies (FURS) and RC21 allows us to offer approximately 15 full scholarships to students currently registered for a postgraduate or doctoral research degree in a developing country-based academic institution (classified as B or C by the International Sociological Association, see: http://www.isa-sociology.org/table_c.htm). Scholarships will provide a flat rate contribution to your travel expenses (=up to a maximum level to be determined according to distance and available funding), accommodation for 14 nights (in single rooms in student halls of residence in London (5 nights) and Leeds (9 nights)), a welcome and a final reception, the e-reader, the registration fee for the conference and RC21 membership for 4 years. The scholarships will not cover daily subsistence expenses (meals, drinks, local transportation costs) and the costs of a visa. (Note: the travel expenses of participants who are granted a scholarship will have be paid upfront by the participants and will be reimbursed after the Summer School upon presentation of receipts and original tickets).

 

A small number of partial scholarships (= subsidizing a portion of the fee) for students currently registered for a postgraduate or doctoral research degree in an A country-based academic institution (classified as A by the International Sociological Association, see: http://www.isa-sociology.org/table_c.htm) will be available, subject to funding.

The Summer School is aimed at PhD students at the beginning of their doctoral studies (1st or 2nd year ideally), who have not yet finished conducting their field work; and possibly at students finishing a research master and planning to continue with doctoral studies. It is not suitable for students who are at the end of their PhD studies, as it focuses on introducing and discussing the use of various research methods and the development of comparisons in urban studies.

In order to participate to the fifth RC21-IJURR-FURS School on “Comparative Urban Studies”, interested candidates are required to:

1) Filling in the online form here

2) Send in the following documents to this email address: RC21summerschool@gmail.com

  • A CV in English
  • A motivation statement following the template indicated below, including the names and contact details of two referees (see below)
  • A copy of your RC21 conference abstract (see below point 4)

3) Ask two scholars who know you best to send two reference letters by email directly to RC21summerschool@gmail.com (preferably sent from their institutional email address, not personal, if possible)

4) Submit an abstract proposal for the RC21 conference both to the conveners of the relevant session (see details at https://rc21leeds2017.wordpress.com/) by 10 March 2017 and to the summer school organisers. When you send in your abstract for the RC21 conference, please specify that you also applied for the Summer School in “Comparative Urban Studies”. If your abstract is not be accepted for the conference, this will not automatically exclude you from the Summer School, but we strongly encourage Summer School candidates to present at the RC21 conference.

The deadline for application (both submission of the online form and receipt of the above mentioned document at the email address provided) is MONDAY 3 APRIL 2017 at midnight GMT.

The selection process will take place in April 2017 (the applications will be assessed by 6 senior scholars participating in the Summer School) and you will be informed about the outcome of your application at the end of April/early May.

Content of your motivation statement (maximum 2 pages of A4):

  •  Briefly introduce yourself and your academic/disciplinary background.
  •  Why do you want to participate in the Summer School and how would you benefit from it?
  •  What specific perspectives, experience, skills and expertise would you bring into the discussions at the Summer School?
  •  What is the topic of your postgraduate or doctoral research? Provide a short abstract (half a page), including the geographical focus and/or case-studies if relevant
  •  Which research methods are you thinking of using in your research?
  •  Which urban theories are you thinking of using in your research?
  •  Please provide the name and contact details of two referees who know you well, and specify your link to them.