ARCH GU

French colonialism in the 19th and 20th centuries was marked by a relentless and often oppressive pursuit of overseas territories. Colonial cities, the focal points of the French empire, were erected in the nation’s image and characterized by wide boulevards, impressive parks and squares, and monumental buildings echoing the elegance of Paris. These urban centers, scattered across Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Caribbean, often served as administrative, economic, and cultural hubs for the colonial administration. This seminar will explore the profound impact of colonial cities as laboratories for experimenting with new ideas in city planning, infrastructure, architecture, and civic governance. Once tried and tested in the colonies, these innovative “norms and forms” were often imported back to metropolitan France, where they helped shape various aspects of its society, culture, and economy. The seminar is chronologically structured around six French colonial cities: Cap-Français, Cairo, Algiers, Casablanca, Dakar, and Hanoi. Each city is examined through the lens of a distinct set of colonial policies and practices. Cap-Français is studied from the perspective of the universalist values of the French Enlightenment and the double standard evident in the terror of the Atlantic slave trade. Cairo, while colonized for only a brief period, ignited new passions for the East and is viewed as a repository of exotic fantasies and a site for infrastructural modernization. Algiers is studied through the policy of assimilation and the destruction of Algerian religious identity. Casablanca is considered in relation to new planning practices and colonial policies of association. Hanoi is examined through cultural and architectural forms of hybridity. Finally, Dakar is viewed through colonial theories of acclimatization and hygiene policies. As we traverse the diverse landscapes of these colonial cities, this seminar invites participants to critically reflect on the enduring echoes of French colonialism, exploring how the urban experiments of the past reverberate in the present and influence our perceptions of global cities and their histories

Subject

ARCH GU

Credits (min)

4

Credits (max)

4

Credit unit

points

Type

course

Edition

2026

Source

catalog.barnard.edu

Urbanization is inherently unequal, inscribing social, economic, environmental, and political unevenness into the spatial fabric of the city. But the distribution of such inequality is not inevitable. Urbanization is a product of the collective decisions we make (or choose not to make) in response to the shared challenges we face in our cities. And, thus, the patterns of urbanization can be changed. This is the task of urban planning and the starting point for this advanced seminar, which asks how we can reshape our cities to be more just—to alleviate inequality rather than compound it. In embarking on this effort, we face numerous “wicked” problems without clear-cut solutions. The approaches one takes in addressing urban inequality are therefore fundamentally normative—they are shaped by one’s place in the world and one’s view of it. The central challenge in addressing inequality is thus establishing a basis for collective action amongst diverse actors with differing—and sometimes conflicting—values and views. In other words, planning the just city a matter of both empathy and debate. In this course, we will endeavor to develop informed positions that can help us engage with others as a basis for taking collective action. The course is organized into four 3-week modules, each of which addresses a dimension of the just city: equity, democracy, diversity, and sustainability. In the first week of each module, we will discuss how the issue has been understood in history and theory (with an emphasis on tradeoffs between different priorities and values); in the second week, we will apply this discussion to a global case study prepared and presented by a team of students; and in the third week, we will hold an in-class debate to determine what should be done. Specific case studies vary each year

Subject

ARCH GU

Credits (min)

4

Credits (max)

4

Credit unit

points

Type

course

Edition

2026

Source

catalog.barnard.edu