The University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Urban Research Announces New Partnership with the Travelers Institute

New Partnership with the Travelers Institute

Collaboration will expand reach of “Special Briefing” series on city and state fiscal sustainability

PHILADELPHIA–The University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR) is proud to announce a new partnership with the Travelers Institute, the public policy division of Travelers, to help support Penn IUR’s acclaimed Special Briefing on the Fiscal Outlook of State and Local Governments webinar and podcast series. 

Now in its fifth year, Special Briefing, produced in collaboration with the Volcker Alliance, continues to provide timely, in-depth analysis of city and state fiscal sustainability, bringing together urban and national experts to explore pressing challenges facing metropolitan economies.

The Special Briefing series features leading academics, economists, and policymakers discussing the fiscal outlook for state and local governments. Topics span the full spectrum of metropolitan economic health, from housing and the environment to pensions and infrastructure. 

“This series has become an essential resource for policymakers, practitioners and the public,” said Susan Wachter, Co-Director of Penn IUR and the Albert Sussman Professor of Real Estate and Professor of Finance at The Wharton School, who moderates the series with William Glasgall, Volcker Alliance Public Finance Adviser and Penn IUR Fellow. “By partnering with the Travelers Institute, we can expand these critical discussions on urban resilience, municipal finance and economic sustainability at a time when cities and states need informed strategies more than ever.”

Past episodes have included “Rolling Out the $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act—What’s Being Built and What’s in the Pipeline,” featuring U.S. Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), and “America’s $900 Billion Water Crisis,” with national water policy expert Howard Neukrug. The series has engaged over 10,000 viewers and listeners across podcasting platforms annually. 

Glasgall emphasized the importance of the partnership: “State and local fiscal health underpins nearly everything, from public infrastructure to risk mitigation. We tap into the best expertise out there for in-depth, real-time commentary on hot issues, and this collaboration with the Travelers Institute will help us extend our reach further.”

The next Special Briefing, scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 20, will offer a deep dive into the President’s first month and the impact of new policies, while future episodes will examine timely matters such as mass transportation, housing affordability and insurance.” 

As part of this new collaboration, Penn IUR’s experts will join Travelers’ Joan Woodward, Executive Vice President of Public Policy for Travelers and President of the Travelers Institute, on an upcoming episode of Wednesdays with Woodward®, the Travelers Institute’s signature webinar series, to discuss critical issues facing cities today. 

“We are thrilled to support Penn IUR’s Special Briefing and its conversations advancing sustainable urban growth and development,” said Woodward. “Their discussions on the most pressing challenges facing cities offer great value to our audience.”

For more information about Penn IUR’s Special Briefing series, visit penniur.upenn.edu. To learn more about the Travelers Institute, visit travelersinstitute.org. 

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Media Contacts:

Penn Institute for Urban Research:

Megan Schmidgal | Communications Director

215-573-8386

megands@upenn.edu

Travelers Institute:

Kassondra Mangione | Media Relations

860-277-0731 

kmangion@travelers.com
 

Volcker Alliance:

Idalis Foster | Communications Manager

646-343-0155

ifoster@volckeralliance.org