On June 14, IMFG Post-Doctoral Fellow Hsi-Chuan Wang presented his ongoing research on informal settlement policies in two capital cities in the global south: Accra, Ghana, and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Both countries experienced significant financial system reform, economic liberation, and far-reaching public sector restructuring in the 1990s. Since that time, Accra and Buenos Aires have taken different approaches to housing and infrastructure provision in informal settlements. The findings suggest that the perceptions and approaches toward low-income residents changed in both places at the national and local levels between the 1980s and 2000s.
Find out more »

In this video, IMFG Visiting Scholar Gerard Turley presents on the story of Ireland’s new residential property tax, covering the background and country context, design features, implementation, and reform lessons.
Find out more »

On May 25, 2022, IMFG Visiting Scholar Gerard Turley presented on the story of Ireland’s new residential property tax, covering the background and country context, design features, implementation, and reform lessons.
Find out more »

IMFG Graduate Fellow Fernando Calderón Figueroa explored the relationship between trust and the built environment of neighbourhoods across Canadian municipalities. First, he used data from Statistics Canada’s General Social Survey to show that trust is spatially concentrated. Second, he argued that the spatial composition of cities is positively correlated with trust, and that a having a lot of amenities in close proximity to each other promotes the kind of recurrent casual encounters that lead to higher levels of trust.
Find out more »

On May 10, 2022, IMFG Graduate Fellow Fernando Calderón Figueroa explored the relationship between trust and the built environment of neighbourhoods across Canadian municipalities. First, he used data from Statistics Canada’s General Social Survey to show that trust is spatially concentrated — in other words, that people with similar levels of trust towards others tend to be in proximity to one another. Second, he argued that the spatial composition of cities — measured through people’s proximity to amenities like libraries, parks, and schools — is positively correlated with trust, and that a having a lot of amenities in close proximity to each other promotes the kind of recurrent casual encounters that lead to higher levels of trust.
Find out more »

On April 26, IMFG Graduate Fellow Shervin Ghaem-Maghami examined how selected municipalities in the GTA are engaging immigrants in planning decisions, and how such public participation activities can be improved to most meaningfully draw upon the strengths and adapt to the needs of newcomer communities.
Find out more »

In this 2022 talk, IMFG Graduate Fellow Shervin Ghaem-Maghami examined how selected municipalities in the GTA are engaging immigrants in planning decisions, and how such public participation activities can be improved to most meaningfully draw upon the strengths and adapt to the needs of newcomer communities.
Find out more »

The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on global cities in particular. Many of the assets of global cities – connectivity, proximity, agglomeration – almost overnight proved also to be vulnerabilities. As cities emerge from the pandemic into the economic recovery phase, their underlying strengths are re-emerging. But cities will need to adapt and adjust to address some of the changes that have resulted from the pandemic, particularly regarding urban inequalities. In this presentation, Professor Mark Kleinman of King’s College London discussed these issues with a particular focus on London UK, but drawing also on comparative evidence.
Find out more »