Policy | Penn IUR

Special Briefing on State Budgets: The Big Squeeze Speakers: Susan Wachter William Glasgall State & Local Finance

May 08 2025 Past Event Special Briefing on State Budgets: The Big Squeeze Speakers: William Glasgall Susan Wachter Emily S. Brock Shelby Kerns Vikram Rai Jonathan Womer Teryn Zmuda State & Local Finance

News April 10, 2025 Penn IUR Celebrates 20 Years of Global Urban Leadership at Annual Forum The Penn Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR) will host the 20th Annual Urban Leadership Forum, a milestone event honoring visionary global leaders who have shaped today’s cities and have lessons for tomorrow's cities, on Friday, April 25. Urban Development

Article March 26, 2025 Urban Perspectives in Practice: Fellows in Urban Leadership Visit Washington, D.C. Penn IUR’s Urban Research Fellows traveled to Washington, D.C. for a day-long, immersive experience exploring the intersection of urban policy, advocacy, and community development. Urban Development

Article March 26, 2025 John MacDonald on Addressing Abandoned Housing to Improve Public Safety John MacDonald's article, “Lessons Learned from a Citywide Abandoned Housing Experiment,” offers valuable insights into the relationship between the built environment and community wellbeing. Housing

Apr 10 2025 Past Event Book Talk | Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence with Jens Ludwig Speakers: John MacDonald Jens Ludwig Urban Development

Article February 26, 2025 Megan Ryerson on Resilient, Environmentally-efficient Transportation Megan Ryerson's scholarship examines the interplay between transportation networks, urban development, energy efficiency and resilience. Urban Development

Article February 26, 2025 Navigating Economic Uncertainty: Insights from Special Briefing From government downsizing and budget cuts to trade tariffs and mounting national debt, the economic landscape is fraught with uncertainty. Penn IUR and the Volcker Alliance hosted a Special Briefing on February 20, 2025 with leading economists, policymakers, and financial experts for a timely discussion. State & Local Finance

News February 19, 2025 The University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Urban Research Announces New Partnership with the Travelers Institute 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 Special Briefing on the Fiscal Outlook of State and Local Governments webinar and podcast series. William Glasgall Susan Wachter Joan Woodward State & Local Finance

Mar 18 2025 Past Event Special Briefing: The Future of Mass Transportation under Trump and the GOP Speakers: Kurt Forsgren David Greising Randy Iwasaki Leslie Richards Polly Trottenberg Eugénie L. Birch William Glasgall State & Local Finance

Research Paper February 6, 2025 Megapolitan America Revisited: Demographic Trends to 2040 This report updates Nelson and Lang’s original analysis to provide demographic projections for all 23 megapolitan areas through 2040. This information, in turn, should be used by policymakers and planners to inform decisions about infrastructure investments, economic development opportunities, and housing demands. Arthur C. Nelson David Damore Urban Development Housing

michael mann on upenn campus

People Michael Mann

Vice Provost for Climate Science, Policy, and Action Presidential Distinguished Professor, Earth and Environmental Science Director, Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media

Climate Change & Resilience

Article January 28, 2025 Expert Voices 2025 | Access to Sustainable and Affordable Housing Each year, Penn IUR engages a distinguished group of international experts to address a pressing urban challenge. This year, we asked leading voices in housing policy, urban planning, and finance to share their perspectives on a critical question: What bold actions or structural reforms are needed to ensure access to sustainable and affordable housing, and particularly to expand supply? What are the effective strategies that national and subnational governments can use to address this challenge? Eugénie L. Birch Susan Wachter Henry Cisneros Lance Freeman Laurie Goodman Benjamin Keys John Landis Marc H. Morial, Esq. Vincent Reina Housing

Feb 20 2025 Past Event Special Briefing: The New Administration’s First Month Speakers: Mark Zandi Carolyn Bourdeaux Jeffrey Holland Eric Kim Vikram Rai Torsten Slok William Glasgall Susan Wachter State & Local Finance

Article December 9, 2024 Laura Perna on Access to Higher Education Among the nation's leading scholars on issues of college access and affordability, Laura Perna has advanced the discourse on equity in higher education through numerous highly acclaimed edited volumes, reports, and articles. Her scholarship examines the policy choices for enabling access—and success—for post-K-12 education, assessing college access, affordability, and success--especially for low-income, first-generation, and non-traditional students. Laura Perna Urban Development

Article November 18, 2024 Dennis Culhane on The Emerging Crisis of Aged Homelessness Dennis Culhane’s current research examines the relationship between homelessness and the aging of the “Baby Boom” cohort. Dennis Culhane Housing

Feb 27 2025 Past Event PhD Lunch & Lightning Talks Urban Development

Faculty Fellow Katharine Strunk

Dean, and George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education, Graduate School of Education

State & Local Finance Anchor Institutions

Faculty Fellow Emily Hannum

Professor of Sociology and Education and Associate Dean, School of Arts & Sciences

Climate Change & Resilience

Faculty Fellow Sanya Carley

Faculty Director, The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, Presidential Distinguished Professor of Energy Policy & City Planning, Stuart Weitzman School of Design

Climate Change & Resilience

Don’t miss the latest from Penn IUR. Subscribe to Urban Link.

Providing expert commentary on urban topics and highlighting Penn IUR's research in the context of pressing urban issues.

Urban Link Celebrating 20 Years of Urban Research | Dennis Culhane

Mayor Anne Hidalgo speaking in Paris

Urban Link SDSN Global Commission for Urban SDG Finance Marks Year of Progress

Andrew Melnik, Lauren Sorkin, Jaime Pumarejo at Urban Leadership Award Ceremony

Urban Link Celebrating 2024 Nussdorf Urban Leadership Prize Winners for Resilience