A New Approach to Studying Complex Urban Systems

Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative (DECI) is the foundation of a new approach to studying urban systems. DECI focuses on the engineering of cities, policy development, and the creation of environmentally sustainable urban habitats that function for people and society.

Both the industrialized world and developing nations are experiencing unprecedented urban growth, with new urban centers as well as many older cities gaining population and density. This rapid growth is a double-edged sword: while cities offer access to economic opportunities and represent efficient delivery of services to large populations, growth puts a serious strain on the urban environment. DECI aims to address the challenges associated with this urbanization and to educate qualified engineers, designers, health practitioners and social scientists to implement solutions to the complex problems of overworked urban systems.

DECI departs from traditional approaches to managing regional and urban growth to research and develop new and innovative methods to design and manage safety, sustainability, and quality of life for urban dwellers. The initiative coordinates research activities among faculty from across the university whose interests touch on urban systems, and enables participants to conduct focused, high impact, problem-driven urban systems research and training. We anticipate that the research outcomes and training provided as part of this initiative will forever change the way cities are understood, planned, engineered, governed and managed.

Coordinating Multi-Disciplinary Research

DECI faculty are a truly multidisciplinary cross-section of the Drexel community, and represent all colleges and schools:

·         Arts and Sciences

·         Biomedical Engineering, Science, and Health Systems

·         Business

·         Engineering

·         Information Science and Technology

·         Law

·         Media Arts and Design

·         Medicine

·         Nursing and Health Professions

·         Public Health

DECI researchers look at the social, political, economic, technological and geographical forces at play in shaping and reshaping a city’s design and function. They consider the multiple aspects of a city’s infrastructure including health, transportation, water and sewerage, ports, energy, and communication as well as environmental engineering, environmental justice, and critical infrastructure protection, among others. Technical challenges are considered in light of larger social issues, including historical patterns in policymaking, citizen participation and the public understanding of science and technology.

Innovation, Applicability, and Connection with Urban Stakeholders

Research conducted as part of DECI has several distinct characteristics, including:

• An innovative, multidisciplinary focus that transcends conventional boundaries between traditional academic disciplines.
• Application-inspired research yielding high impact, implementable results. Specifically researchers want their results to be useful to those developing public infrastructure and technology policy, and to develop state of the art tools in urban technology systems development and management.
• Full and meaningful engagement with urban stakeholders throughout all stages of research, including problem definition, development of research methods, and implementation/technology transfer.

Local and International Relevance

Taking advantage of Drexel's urban setting, the initiative uses metropolitan Philadelphia – one of the nation’s oldest and largest cities – as a field laboratory and test bed for data collection and systems modeling. The scope of research is not limited to the Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, however. Drawing on the well established international focus of DECI researchers, the initiative considers a wide range of national and international regions and concerns.

DECI research encompasses six broad areas that are applicable to most urban centers, whether in the industrialized or developing world:

• Urban Systems Management
• Public Health and Medical Infrastructure
• Urban Systems Modeling
• Disaster and Emergency Preparedness
• Urban Agriculture
• Sustainability and Green Design
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

Smart Neighborhoods and Climate Change

DECI’s multidisciplinary approach situates it well to address the increasing importance of concerns like global climate change and security in a politically complex world. Two research themes address these concerns and connect the six task areas. With Smart Neighborhoods, DECI asks how we can enable, via physical infrastructure as well as social infrastructure, the development of neighborhoods that are more sustainable, resilient, equitable, and aesthetically pleasing. Examining strategies for design and retrofitting, Smart Neighborhoods considers new neighborhoods as well as those already “built out.”

DECI’s Adaptation to Climate Change theme asks what technological and institutional challenges and what solution scenarios exist for medium-term adaptation to climate change – temperature, precipitation, storm intensity, water levels, etc.  Researchers investigate what lessons can be learned from how cities have adapted or failed to adapt to related challenges in the past.

For further information, contact:

Professor Charles N Haas, Co-Director
Department of Civil, Architectural & Environmental Engineering
215-895-2283
haas@drexel.edu

Jennifer Britton, Program Manager
215.895.2552
jenbritton@drexel.edu

Drexel Engineering Cities Initiative
Curtis Hall: Room 251
3141 Chestnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(P): (215) 895-2341 (F): (215) 895-1363

© 2008 Oren Panitch (webmaster) Last Updated 5/17/08