SPUR – Spatial Development and Urban Policy
Research at SPUR covers urban planning and urban policy-making for sustainable development.
We live in an urban and urbanizing world. Cities are places where environmental, economic, and social problems manifest themselves, but they are also key pathways to every aspect of global sustainable development.
To examining urban sustainable development, the SPUR group conducts two overarching research agendas. Densification policy analysis and the urban policy analysis for sustainable development. Both research agendas are interdisciplinarily informed and aim to contribute to the goal of global sustainable development.
Densification policy analysis
This research agenda examines how the densification of the build environment can be realized in a democratic way and without amplifying social inequalities. We examine two main research questions:
- What drives the acceptance and public support for densification projects and densification policies?
- What are the socio-economic effects of urban densification policies?
Housing Situation and Acceptance of Densification in Global Metropolises
This research project assesses the housing situation and the acceptance of densification project in cities by conducting survey research in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Berlin.
Project description
Socio-Economic Effects of Upzoning
The research projects analyzes the effects of upzoning in cities on the housing supply, housing prices and socio-economic segregation.
Project description
Co-Creating Mobility Hubs
Methods for assessing societal demands.
Project description
Urban Policy Analysis for Sustainable Development
This research agenda studies urban planning and urban policy-making for global urban sustainable development. We examine two main research questions:
- What kind of policies and plans do cities formulate to plan for global sustainable development?
- How effective are urban sustainable development policies? What are the capacities and constraints of cities to effectively plan and react to global sustainability challenges?
Global Urban Policy
This research projects aims to develop a specifically urban policy analysis from a theory-development and empirical perspective.
Research project description follows
Urban Participatory Governance in South Africa
This research project studies citizen’s expectations of participation in South Africa’s urban planning system.
Project description
Sanctuary Cities in Europe
This research project examines urban policies in support of irregular migrants (also called sanctuary cities) in European cities.
Research project description follows.