Please refer to your full assignment for required details of this project.
Understanding how to research and explain 21st century urban concepts of international cities is essential to comprehending their unique identities because cities are complex, dynamic systems shaped by historical, cultural, economic, political, and spatial forces. By critically analyzing urban concepts—such as spatial planning, migration, globalization, gentrification, or social stratification—we gain insight into how cities function, evolve, and express their character. This understanding allows us to move beyond superficial impressions and instead engage with the deeper narratives that define urban life, including the lived experiences of diverse populations and the power structures that shape their realities. Furthermore, studying these concepts in a global context highlight both shared challenges—like housing inequality or climate resilience—and localized solutions that reflect a city’s distinct cultural and historical context. In this way, urban research becomes a powerful tool not only for interpreting city identities but also for fostering more equitable, sustainable, and informed approaches to urban development and policymaking. An exercise in focused research and conceptual articulation will augment your writing skills and sharpen your critical and analytical thinking abilities, too. You will also practice how to use APA documentation style along with additional tutorials and sites located under the APA Documentation Resources heading in Canvas’ Modules.
This assignment asks you to select an urban concept currently taking place in any non-North American city that is of special interest to you. From the “List of Urban Concepts” on page 5 of these guidelines, select one of these urban concepts that interests you and apply it to a major non-North American city and one different from your Urban Architectural Essay. Do a general search of this urban concept to provide you with a basic understanding of its meaning. The narrow focus of topics and global cities for each of my essays this quarter is part of developing critical thinking, researching, and writing skills, while providing you with a breadth of understanding of international places and topics. Such basic skills are significant for any profession, so I want to practice them here.
In the Urban Concept Essay, you will explain your urban concept’s basic features and provide your own definition of it to demonstrate your understanding. Because this is explanatory writing, you will not argue that your explanation is true or correct. Do not focus on events. While some historical context may be relevant to ensure your discussion remains grounded in your city, you should organize your essay around sub-category break-downs that help explain your concept with greater detail and are supported with examples tied to your city in order to avoid writing a historical event or timeline. Also, be careful that don’t create a “tourist tone” in the writing, something that one would find in a travel brochure. Your sources may impact this. If you read too many tourist-centered sources, it’s likely you will start to mimic that kind of writing. Remember, what you are doing is explaining a concept as you would find in an urban studies encyclopedia, but applying research and critical thinking as it applies to your selected city.
To focus research and develop details for each section of this assignment, use the section content below to guide the different ways you can build analysis. Avoid generating the essay in a list-like manner. Instead, use the phrases to guide your responses and to create strong paragraphs that give unique details and flow coherently between support paragraphs. There are study questions for the essay’s design you can use to guide your research and convey your unique ideas based on your research. For each section, provide relevant information and details using strong, coherent sentences with significant examples. Utilize sentence variety to avoid sounding list-like or creating a mechanical delivery of information. Consult the Sample Student Urban Concept Essay under the Canvas Course Reader heading in Modules for a model example of this assignment.