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Penn Institute for Urban Research

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Penn IUR enters its third decade
From left: Genie Birch, Judith Rodin, and Susan Wachter

Housed in Meyerson Hall, the Penn Institute for Urban Research (IUR) is a campus-wide enterprise that draws from the collective wisdom of experts around the Penn and beyond to inform urban development and actions on public policy to support the sustainable growth of metros. Now entering its third decade, President Emerita Judith Rodin and Penn IUR co-directors Eugénie Birch and Susan Wachter reflect on the Institute’s history and impact.

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Penn IUR enters its third decade

The Penn Institute for Urban Research enters its second decade. President emerita Judith Rodin and co-directors Eugénie Birch and Susan Wachter reflect on the Institute’s history and impact.

10 min. read

Expert Voices 2025: Access to sustainable and affordable housing
Tiny homes under construction in Baltimore.

New development of affordable tiny houses in East Baltimore.

(Image: iStock/Robbie Becklund)

Expert Voices 2025: Access to sustainable and affordable housing

Twelve leading voices in housing policy, urban planning, and finance were asked to share their perspectives on the challenge of affordable housing in the country.

From Penn IUR

Turning the desert into an oasis
People gather around a large map placed on the floor.

In Senegal, the ambitious Dakar Greenbelt project seeks to create an extensive network of ecological infrastructure in and around the city to sustainably address environmental concerns and enhance urban life. With support from David Gouverneur and Ellen Neises, Ph.D. candidate Rob Levinthal in the Weitzman School of Design led two courses that included a field trip to Dakar, that culminated in students presenting their visions for parts of the Greenbelt.

(Image: Courtesy of Chaowu Li)

Turning the desert into an oasis

Students from the Weitzman School of Design journeyed to Senegal to help with a massive ecological and infrastructural greening effort as part of their coursework. The Dakar Greenbelt aims to combat desertification and promote sustainable urban growth.
Penn IUR, the United Nations Environment Programme unveil new framework to address gap in urban nature finance
Farmers in rural Peru.

(Image: Courtesy of UN Environment Programme)

Penn IUR, the United Nations Environment Programme unveil new framework to address gap in urban nature finance

The Penn Institute for Urban Research has released a report for the United Nations Environment Programme Cities Unit’s State of Finance for Nature in Cities, From Grey to Green: Better data to finance nature in cities, during COP16 Colombia.

From Penn IUR

Penn students present work to help rebuild Ukrainian city
Students from Penn and Eugenie Birch stand with members of the US Department of State and the Ukrainian Ambassador.

Weitzman students at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C. with Oksana Markarova (Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States), Dorothy McAuliffe (U.S. Special Representative for Global Partnerships, Department of State), John Thompson (Deputy Assistant Secretary for Environment, Department of State) and Eugenie Birch (co-director, Penn IUR).

(Image: Courtesy of the U.S. Department of State)

Penn students present work to help rebuild Ukrainian city

With the two-year anniversary of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine looming, city planners begin to strategize solutions to rebuild, sustainably.
Exchanging climate knowledge at COP28
cop28 exterior

Image: Dominika Zarzycka/NurPhoto via AP

Exchanging climate knowledge at COP28

More than two dozen researchers from schools and centers across the University traveled to Dubai for the UN’s annual climate change conference.
How will Philadelphia finance climate change?
Philadelphia Inquirer

How will Philadelphia finance climate change?

In an Op-Ed, Eugenie Birch of the Weitzman School of Design, William Burke-White of Penn Carey Law, and Mauricio Rodas of the Penn Institute for Urban Research write that Philadelphia will need to blend public and private climate financing to adapt to ever-growing climate risks.

Recession or soft landing?
Closeup Benjamin Franklin face on USD banknote with stock market chart graph for currency exchange and global trade forex concept.

Susan Wachter, of the Wharton School and the Penn Institute for Urban Research, co-hosts the monthly webinar with William Glasgall, a Penn IUR Fellow, featuring panel discussions about the COVID-19 pandemic’s fiscal effects on cities and states. Penn Today spoke with Wachter and Glasgall about the latest episode, which explores effects of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes.

(Image: iStock / Dilok Klaisataporn)

Recession or soft landing?

Susan Wachter and William Glasgall of the Penn Institute for Urban Research discuss key takeaways from their webinar on interest rate increases by the Federal Reserve.