Urban Planning Newsletter
October 18, 2019
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Contributions or ideas for the newsletter can be submitted to Lorraine Liao. For jobs, internships, and fellowships, please refer to the career portal.
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2019 Urban China Forum
The 6th Urban China Forum was successfully held in Avery Hall on October 5. It was also an event celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute. With the theme of “Urbanization and China: Understanding Impacts, Projecting Future” this year, the forum welcomed 9 speakers, including renowned scholars and emerging practitioners from the U.S., China, Canada, and the U.K. Centered on political and sociological dynamics as well as built environment, panelists shared their latest research on housing policy, urban poverty, land finance, migrants, smart city, air pollution, and public health. Each lecture was followed by a panel discussion, shedding light from different perspectives. Finally, Professor Weiping Wu concluded the forum with a summary of urbanization of Chinese cities. We look forward to this event next year.
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Lecture in Planning Series
Shin-pei Tsay, Founder and CEO of Make Public, a firm that specializes in social impact assessments that work towards justice presented a lecture talk entitled “Why We Count” on October 8. The talk focused on the social impact of decision making based on her work at Make Public as well as her own experience living in a suburb area versus living in a city. Tsay explained how social impact indicators play an important role in examining the short-term and long-term changes and in the reflection process of the design and operation of a project. Based on her own experience, she outlines the steps to build a social metrics framework to include the following: designing tools, building local capacity, analyzing data, and making recommendations.
Reflection written by: Xifan Wang (M.S. UP ‘21)
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Program Council 2019-2020
Congratulations to Yuning Feng (M.S. UP'21), Elaine Mingsum Hsieh (M.S. UP'21), and Gina Liu (M.S. UP'21) who were recently selected as the First-Year Program Council Representatives. They will be joining Jean Kim (M.Arch/M.S. UP'20) and Ri Le (M.S. UP'20) who are the Second-Year Program Council Representatives.
Urban Planning Program Council aims to shape the social and academic life at GSAPP.
They are looking for feedback on improvements for career services and LiPS speakers. Please submit your feedback via this form.
For upcoming program council events, please refer below.
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First-Year Program Council
Gina Liu
Where are you from?
Taiwan
Interest in Urban Planning
Real Estate
Something you cannot find on my resume is…
I have a Japanese Spitz in Taiwan.
A song I never get tired of listening to…
Take Your Time (Sam Hunt)
Invite me to your dinner party if it….
Has good milk tea
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Yuning Feng
Where are you from?
Kunming, China
Interest in Urban Planning
Urban Analytics
Something you cannot find on my resume is…
I taught stand-up to elementary school kids.
A song I never get tired of listening to…
Rachmaninoff piano concerto #2
Invite me to your dinner party if it….
is on Google Map
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Elaine Hsieh
Where are you from?
Berkeley, CA
Interest in Urban Planning
Data Analytics and Transportation
Something you cannot find on my resume is…
My enthusiasm and trials at stop-motion animation and food photography. lol.
A song I never get tired of listening to…
Dancing in the Moonlight
Invite me to your dinner party if it….
Has Japanese cheesecake
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Second-Year Program Council
Ri Le
Where are you from?
Sacramento, CA
Interest in Urban Planning
Data and technology
Something you cannot find on my resume is…
I dropped out of Hogwarts for a brief stint at Wakanda Department of City Planning.
A song I never get tired of listening to…
Teenage Dirtbag by Wheatus
Invite me to your dinner party if it….
Has ice cream in the winter and hot pho in the summer
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Jean Kim
Where are you from?
New York City
Interest in Urban Planning
Built environment + data analytics
Something you cannot find on my resume is…
I recently made it onto the fight team at a muay thai gym in midtown >:)
A song I never get tired of listening to…
The live version of Tadow by Fkj & Masego
Invite me to your dinner party if it….
Has pie
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Program Council Fall 2019 Events
BREAKS is a monthly event series hosted by program council where UP students come together over food and refreshments to reflect on the academic year and collaborate with other GSAPP student organizations.
BREAKS: November will feature the new student organization, Data Society, which was founded by Lorraine Liao (M.S. UP'20) as a community for students interested in urban analytics to discuss, skill share, and workshop ideas and resources.
Additionally, program council will be hosting a Fall Picnic next Saturday, October 26 from 12-2pm. Please meet at 11:45am in the UP lounge if you are interested in attending.
Stay tuned for details regarding program council’s annual Thanksgiving Potluck event.
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APA Student Representatives
2019-2020
Congratulations to Savannah Wu (M.S. UP'20) and Regina Alcazar (M.S. UP'21) who were recently selected as the APA student representatives for 2019-2020.
Savannah Wu (M.S. UP'20)
Savannah Wu was born in Taipei, raised in Shanghai and studied architecture and sustainable energy at Boston University prior to coming to Columbia to deepen her understanding on topics such as spatial justice, environmental planning, and historic preservation. Her concentration is in international development.
“As a second year in the UP program, I am excited to help the APA NYC Metro Student Representative Committee plan professional development and social events on behalf of Columbia’s planning students. Having the opportunity to present the work of our studio last semester, the Future of Pier 76, at the APA Urban Planning Student Showcase was a memorable experience, and I hope to help coordinate similar events in the future. Please reach out if you have any questions or professional development and event suggestions!” -Savannah Wu
Regina Alcazar (M.S. UP'21)
Regina Alcazar was born in Saipan, CNMI and raised in Houston, Texas and Los Angeles, California; experiences that have shaped her perceptions of the world. She completed her B.S. in Policy, Planning, and Development with an emphasis in Sustainable Planning at USC Price in 2014. For the past five years, she has been working in Los Angeles with a consulting firm, advising on community development, outreach and engagement initiatives across Southern California. In addition to her passion for empowering communities, the role of the equitable use of data piqued her interest in returning to school.
“As a planning professional and academic who is new to New York City, I understand there are amazing resources available at our fingertips as Columbia students. As the new GSAPP Student Rep, I look forward to sharing opportunities to build our planning networks and expand our knowledge of innovative ideas for urban resiliency and change through APA’s New York Metro Chapter programs.” -Regina Alcazar
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Columbia Giving Day October 23
Columbia Giving Day is a time for the GSAPP community to voice its appreciation and support of the School. Friends, family, and alumni can make contributions towards supporting facility upgrades, travel stipends, and research opportunities through this link
GSAPP students can participate and support the School by simply posting a photo on social media!
Last year, GSAPP earned an additional $20,000 by winning various challenges. This year, you can help us win the Origami Challenge. Here’s how:
- Grab an origami kit by the mailboxes on the 4th floor of Avery.
- Post an image of the Alma Mater origami to Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram using #ColumbiaGivingDay and @ColumbiaGSAPP before Wednesday, October 23
Pro tip: Make one and share it with classmates.
Courtney Zimmerman ‘03 MSHP placed Alma Mater atop her own replica of Low Library, shown above.
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Upcoming Events
“Book Talk with George C. Galster,“ October 21, The New School
This Book Talk with George. C. Galster delves deep into the question of whether American neighborhoods are as efficient and equitable as they could be—socially, financially, and emotionally—and if not, what we can do to change that. He aims to redefine the relationship between places and people, promoting specific policies to reduce inequality. More info
"2019 APA-NYM Chapter Annual Conference,” Friday, October 18, Scandinavia House, 58 Park Ave
Join this year’s APA New York Metro (APA-NYM) Chapter Annual Conference, together with hundreds of regional planners, officials, students, and allied professionals. This year’s conference program will cover topics including biophilic urbanism, expanding
opportunity through technology, business improvement districts, zoning for cannabis, and the “pink tax” on transportation. Session times, details, and speakers will be announced in early September. More info
“APA-SRC Happy Hour,” Saturday, November 2, Haymaker Bar and Kitchen
The APA student representatives committee will be hosting a happy hour for planning students across the NYC metropolitan to meet and socialize. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP here
“Dean’s Lecture Series: Richard Sennett,” Wednesday, November 6, Wood Auditorium, Avery Hall
A lecture by Richard Sennett on Climate Change in Cities: A Problem in Urban Ethics with response by Weiping Wu, Director of the Urban Planning program at Columbia GSAPP.
Richard Sennett is the Centennial Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics and a Senior Fellow of the Center on Capitalism and Society at Columbia University. His most recent book Building and Dwelling: Ethics for the City, published in 2018, traces how cities are built and how people live in them from ancient times to now. He draws on his deep learning and intimate engagement with city life to form a bold and original vision for the future of cities. This event is free and open to the public. More info
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