Study Group
Urban Gentrification and Diversity
Stan Marcuss, M-RCBG Senior Fellow 2015-2016
Victoria Alsina Burgues, M-RCBG and Ash Center Fellow
September 27, 2018 Belfer 503 (M-RCBG conference room)
4:00-5:00 pm
Gentrification and lack of diversity are of great concern in cities around the world. The tools for measuring diversity and its impact, however, often deal mainly with geographic diversity and ignore the question of whether populations that may or may not be physically diverse in their neighborhoods experience diversity in the workplace, their schools, the places they shop or the venues in which they seek entertainment or partake of cultural opportunities. Existing tools also often do not adequately measure the relationship between geographic and social diversity, on the one hand, and indicators of ultimate well-being such as income, employment opportunity, educational attainment, family stability and the like, on the other. This seminar will explore why existing tools for measuring urban diversity and its impact are often inadequate and explore a number of methodological alternatives. Among the participants in the seminar will be Professors Sean Fitzpatrick and Garth Myers of Trinity College, Connecticut. Both are noted scholars in the area of urban development and the complex issues associated with understanding its social and economic dynamics.