Prehistoric Climate Patterns in the Pacific Northwest:
A Using Information from Ancient Trees to Help Plan
for Future Environments
Brown Bag Seminar with Dr. Erika Wise | Geography
Wednesday, April 18 | 12:30 to 1:45 p.m.
[beverages + light dessert provided]
Storms from the Pacific Ocean are a key influence on drought and flood patterns in the western United States. Changes in flow patterns have been identified as key features in hydro-climatic variability over the instrumental period. Over longer (centennial time scale) periods, storm track trajectory shifts over the north Pacific have been a persistent feature of the climate system and may have driven past North America "megadroughts." Characterization of isotope patterns that occurred during these droughts can provide a key test for determining potential climate drivers of drought. Circulation-dependent variability in the isotopic composition of precipitation, recorded in moisture sensitive archives such as tree rings, can reflect changes in pre-instrumental climate conditions. Tree ring-based isotope studies aiming to reconstruct circulation patterns have been completed or are underway in parts of Canada and the southwestern U.S. To study the Pacific Northwest provides an excellent opportunity to add to this body of knowledge. For a downloadable flier of this event to post, click here. To get more information, please contact Christy Sandy, Interim Associate Director, Center for Urban & Regional Studies, 919-962-3076 or csandy@email.unc.edu.
Music on the Porch with
The Heartaches
Thursday, April 12 | 5:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Hickerson House | 108 Battle Lane | UNC campus
The Heartaches play early country and string band music and have a passion for close vocal harmonies. Amanda Lynn Stubley is a Masters student in Folklore at UNC-Chapel Hill. Martin Horak is a visiting scholar at the Center for Urban & Regional Studies. They have made music together for more than a decade, performing regularly at home in London, Ontario. Their tight guitar/fiddle blend melds expressive instrucmental work with heartfelt vocals to bing you heartachin' duets, driving fiddle tunes, an dsongs of love and loss. The Heartaches will be joined by special guests, local musicians Dave Gardner and Richard Whisnant. To download a flier of the event click here. To get more information, please contact Christy Sandy, Interim Associate Director, Center for Urban & Regional Studies, 919-962-3076 or csandy@email.unc.edu.
CURS Update Winter 2012 Issue Now AvailableThe latest issue of the CURS Update, the Center's biannual newsletter, is now available here as a downloadable pdf file. If you'd like to have a hard copy mailed to you, please email urbanstudies@unc.edu and we can send you one via the US Postal Service. If you have any questions regarding information or projects that appear in this issue, please send us an email at the above address and we'll be happy to help you.
CURS Brown Bag Seminar Series
Martin Horak, Associate Professor, Political Science, University of Western Ontario, CURS Visiting Scholar 2011 | 2012 will present his current research, THE COSTS OF COORDINATION: Multilevel Politics + Urban Transit Infrastructure.
February 8, 2012 | 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. | Conference Room, 1st Floor, Hickerson House | 108 Battle Lane | UNC Chapel Hill campus | Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Bring your lunch | Light dessert + beverages provided
Building new public transit infrastructure in large cities is usually beyond the policy capacity of local governments. In order to realize major projects such as new subway and light rail systems, local advocates often require support from other levels of government. Whose influence prevails in the multilevel politics of urban transit infrastructure? How do agents coordinate power and resources to realize transit infrastructure projects? How does multilevel politics change these projects? Martin Horak is exploring these questions through structured comparisons among major Canadian and American cities. This talk will present some preliminary findings from Toronto and Vancouver, where multilevel policy processes have increased the vulnerability of transit projects to short-term political pressures. It will also lay out a strategy for investigating the impact of multilevel politics on transit development in comparable cities in the United States.
Announcing the Fall 2012/2013 Scholar-in-Residence Program
With support from the Dean's Office, College of Arts & Sciences, the Center for Urban & Regional Studies (CURS) is pleased to solicit applications for its Scholar-in-Residence Program.
The CURS Scholar-in-Residence Program provides an opportunity for faculty members in the College of Arts & Sciences to concentrate on developing major research proposals by providing funds for a course buyout and for proposal development expenses. In addition, the CURS Scholar-in-Residence will have full administrative support from the Center’s financial and clerical support staff. This opportunity will be provided during either the fall semester 2012 or spring semester 2013 based on the candidate’s preference. Click on application and complete details of the program for more information.
Applications are due no later than 5:00 p.m., Monday, February 13, 2012. The candidates will be notified of the outcome of the selection process in late February 2012.
For more information contact: Christy Sandy, Interim Associate Director, Center for Urban & Regional Studies, Hickerson House, CB# 3410, 919-962-3076 (O) or 919-962-2518 (F).
The Research Triangle: From Tobacco Road to Global ProminenceWilliam M. Rohe | University of Pennsylvania Press | 20% discount!
Written by CURS Director, Bill Rohe, The Research Triangle describes the history, current challenges, and future prospects of this fascinating metropolitan area. Focusing on the personalities and perspectives of key actors in the development of the region, the author traces the emergence of the Research Triangle Park and its role in the region's economic transformation. He also addresses some of the downsides of development, illustrating the strains that explosive population growth has placed on the region's school systems, natural resources, transportation infrastructure, and social cohesion. As Rohe shows, the Research Triangle is not a city in the traditional sense but a sprawling conurbation whose rapid, low-density growth and attendant problems are indicative of metropolitan life in much of America today. Although the Triangle's short-term prospects are bright, Rohe warns that troubling issues loom--the region is expected to add nearly a million residents over the next two decades--that need to be addressed through improvements in governmental cooperation, regional planning, and civic leadership. Finally, the author outlines key lessons that other metropolitan areas can learn from the Research Triangle's dramatic rise to prominence.
To order now and receive a 20% discount, click here.
The Charlotte Housing Authority's Moving Forward Program: Early Implementation and Baseline Data Evaluation
The Moving to Work Demonstration program (MTW) enacted by Congress in 1996, affords selected public housing authorities the flexibility to design and test innovative ways to provide low-income families with decent, affordable housing. Participating housing authorities are guided by three program goals: to achieve greater cost effectiveness; to increase the housing choices for low-income households; and to assist participating households in achieving self sufficiency. The Charlotte Housing Authority (CHA) has been chosen as one of the thirty-five public housing authorities to participate in the MTW program. CHA contracted with the Center for Urban & Regional Studies to conduct a long-term evaluation of their MTW program, Moving Forward. The Center's recently completed interim report, The Charlotte Housing Authority’s Moving Forward Program: Early Implementation and Baseline Data Evaluation presents a description of the CHA’s Moving Forward Program and an early assessment of its implementation.
Program on Chinese Cities / CURS Launches UNC-PKU Consortium
Center Director Bill Rohe and the Program on Chinese Cities Director Yan Song recently traveled to Beijing to formally launch the UNC-Peking University Consortium for Urban and Regional Planning and Management. Rohe, Song, and four UNC colleagues participated in a two-day symposium to present research and explore opportunities for future collaborations. The purpose of this consortium is to create opportunities for scholars and graduate students at both UNC and PKU to work together on research, education, and training activities. See the Program on Chinese Cities website for more information on the consortium and the symposium.
Impacts of Land Use Strategies on Travel Behavior in Small Communities and Rural Areas
CURS Senior Research Associate Brian Morton recently received a $649,995 grant from the Transportation Research Board to study the impacts of land use strategies on travel behavior in small communities and rural areas. Morton and City and Regional Planning professors Daniel Rodriguez and Yan Song will develop methods and provide an assessment of the impact of land use, development patterns, and the associated economic activities on travel behavior in small communities and rural areas. For more information contact Brian Morton at bjmorton@email.unc.edu
CURS Policy Briefs
The Center for Urban & Regional Studies offers Policy Briefs to summarize recently completed and timely research critical to issues affecting our region, state, and country. A Long Way from Home: The Impacts of a Limited Supply of Workforce Housing looks at the social, economic, and environmental benefits of providing affordable workforce housing to residents of a community in western North Carolina. The second brief, Weatherization, Rehabilitation, and Asset Preservation (WRAP) Program, addresses how the lack of coordination between weatherization and housing rehabilitation assistance impact the effectiveness of both programs. Watch for links to new Policy Briefs right here as they become available.
