Urban Empowerment through Community Outreach in Teaching and Design

Paper in proceeding, 2012

At the newly started Centre for Urban Studies in a stigmatized suburb of Gothenburg, the academic fields of teaching, social work and architecture are collaborating with the local community. This cooperation is part of the Centre’s mission, which is to work with widening participation in higher education, developing professions, and focusing on the role of citizens in urban design. The collaboration is also part of the research project Urban Empowerment funded by Mistra Urban Futures. The present paper will discuss the potential of working with urban empowerment by using students as engines – linking education, research and community outreach – and reflect on the accompanying problems and possibilities.