Agenda
International Conference, Columbia University
September 30-October 1, 2010
Location: Italian Academy for Advanced Studies
Free and open to the public
Advanced registration required; email lehmancenter@columbia.edu
The conference is cosponsored by the Herbert H. Lehman Center for American History at Columbia University; the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies at Columbia University; the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, Columbia University; the Seminar on the City, University Seminars, Columbia University; and the Interuniversity Consortium for the Study of European-American Politics and History (CISPEA). Professor Lisa Keller, Chair of the Seminar on the City and Lehman Faculty Fellow, is chair of the conference.
The central question that the conference will address is the issue of cities in the United States and Europe with declining populations across different time periods, with a focus on the 20th and 21st centuries. We are accustomed to the modern world of the ever-expanding metropolis, in which populations aggregate in an ever-increasing number of mega cities. While there are countless examples of such growth, there are also numerous large urban centers in which the population is declining significantly, with concomitant social, economic and political impact. We are interested in examining what this means for the future of cities. In the midst of deindustrialization, severe economic challenges, and new immigration patterns, do these “shrinking” cities represent a downward spiral for urban settlement? Or does their contraction signify a way to save cities by making them more workable? What are the factors leading to shrinkage? What historical precedents are there for contraction? How have cities coped with such changes? What are the implications for future planning? Is contraction tied into decay, or is it symptomatic of a new urban reality in which smaller cities can be more efficient and effective? This cross-disciplinary conference will look at both historical and contemporary examples of cities with declining populations, and we expect historians, economists, urban planners, and others to participate in formulating a picture of the 21st century urban future.
Speakers:
Sandro Balducci, Politechnico Milano, Italy
Robert Beauregard, Columbia University
Matthias Bernt, University of Berlin/Leipzig, Germany
Tracy Campbell, University of Kentucky
Themis Chronopoulos, Stony Brook University
Emmanuele Cunningham-Sabot, University of Rennes, France
Margaret Dewar, University of Michigan
Allen Dietrich-Ward, Shippensburg University
Barbara Faedda, Italian Academy for Advanced Studies
Kathryn Foster, University at Buffalo Regional Institute, The State University of New York
Owen Gutfreund, Hunter College
Kenneth T. Jackson, Columbia University
Lisa Keller, Purchase College, SUNY
Jeffrey Kroessler, John Jay College
Jeffrey Manuel, Southern Illinois University
Guido Martinotti, University of Milano-Bicocca
Lars Nilsson, Institute of Urban History, Stockholm University
Deborah Popper, College of Staten Island
Frank Popper, Rutgers & Princeton Universities
Maria Prieto, Independent Scholar, Spain
Jaime Rodriguez, St. John’s University
Terry Schwarz, Kent State University
Elliot Sclar, Columbia University
Michael Skrebutenas, Deputy Commissioner, Housing & Development, New York State
David Smiley, Columbia University
Jose Vargas-Hernandez, University of Guadelajara, Mexico
Maurizio Vaudagna, University of Piedmont, Italy
Alberto Violante, University of La Sapienza, Rome
Inquiries to the Lehman Center:
lehmancenter@columbia.edu
212-854-3060