Critical Perspective on Urbanism
The Better City Assignment
Group Assignment (3–6 people in a group)
Topics decided in advance in class/tutorial
In small groups you will be responsible for developing a creative proposal for
improving a neighbourhood or city by way of a manifesto, proposal, or call for
change.
Theme: Your proposal will have a singular theme, decided in advance, for which
you have signed up with your other group members.
Examples include: The Just City; Sustainable City;
The Smart Neighbourhood; City of Racial Equity;
Bicycle Commons; Affordable Housing, etc.
Format: The final format of the proposal will vary depending on your theme and
group skill set but could feasibly take shape as a small book–format manifesto, a
website, video with accompanying text, or even a comic book, depending on the tone
you wish to set forward.
Content: Your proposal should contain 1500–2000 words in total and include
images (photographs, drawings, or images from online). And the content should
include scholarly research of precedents and/or theoretical frameworks that
support your argument.
Issues addressed: The assignment should address the following issues.
What are the ideas and themes informing your project?
What are the critical problems that you desire to change?
Who are you addressing? Who is your audience? This will inform your presentation format.
What is your design concept? Are you staging a resistance? Writing a policy paper? Creating a proposal?
Which user groups will be impacted by your project?
What are the precedents for your ideas? Are they historically informed? Have there been previous attempts to bring about change?
What is the “tone” of the project that you are trying to achieve? Is it an over–the–top manifesto? A serious call to action? A policy piece?
Structure Suggestion (unless if you find something else that works better)
1) Open with a 1–2 page (single–spaced) overview of your major theme,
historical precedents, and theoretical frameworks.
2) Organize the rest of the proposal around problems and your proposals for “a
better city.” Aim to have each student in your group take on 1 or 2
problems/proposals.
Citation of research: All research must be cited according to the Chicago Manual of
Style. Please use at least two scholarly sources (peer reviewed books and/or
journals). You may use the readings provided in this course.
You are encouraged to draw upon scholarly research, but you may augment it with
podcasts, online sources, visual media, and interviews.
