Archive of Urban Futures: Oakland, CA
Brandi Summers, Professor
Geography
Applications for Spring 2024 are closed for this project.
The Archive of Urban Futures is a collaborative project with Moms 4 Housing -- most recently known for their work in organizing the Moms 4 Housing movement in West Oakland. The archive will take the form of a database of material, and related activities/programs, about Oakland, CA and visions of and for its future over time. Fundamentally this project is about documenting Oakland’s history and how it has changed over time, as well as efforts to foster emplacement and produce new worlds and urban futures. The project is also an effort to create a more just present/future--both through reimagining archival principles and materially through informing the pursuit of structural repair, particular for Black Oakland residents, past and present. In particular, we hope to address key issues that address questions about the right to place, memory/erasure, and community value. A necessary component of this work is to provide a clear picture of Oakland’s past and how it reverberates into the city’s present and future.
Role: I am looking for undergraduate apprentices who have experience collecting data, and performing visual analysis (using ArcGIS, et. al.). For this portion of the project, we are identifying how many companies/corporations own houses in Oakland and mapping them accordingly.
Apprentices will also have the opportunity to work with team members in other research groups that support the project:
1. The Afterlife of Urban “Renewal” (1949-2019): For this part of the project, we want to think about the relationship between the past and the present-day as it relates to Oakland. In particular, we want to examine historical procedures, plans, and policies that had a direct impact on the development of the city. That means we must look at federal, state, county, and municipal policies over time, and determine the lasting impact of these policies. In particular, we want to examine six interrelated areas to gain insight into what disparities remain: the economy (wealth), education, health, housing, environment, and policing.
2. The Living Archive: This collaborative, community-engaged part of the project seeks to incorporate the voices and faces of Black Oakland’s residents, both past and present. Here, we hope to realize the creative and life-affirming possibilities of transforming the city in service of its Black residents, and determine their top priorities. We will develop an ongoing oral history project and set up community boards for people to be able to share their own stories about how they came to be in/leave Oakland, and to mark the places and spaces that have meant the most to them. Long-term outcomes: Oral history database, survey data, memory-keeping workshops, historical and speculative maps, and walking tours.
3. Reclaim and Remain: This final part of the project will focus on plans for the future. We will review all of the collected data and work towards advocating for solutions to enable Black Oaklanders to reclaim and remain in their place in the Town.
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Apprentices will learn about interdisciplinary research methods, particularly suited for humanistic social sciences.
Qualifications: - Keen interest in research on race, space, geography, urban studies, and political economy
- Proficiency in using ArcGIS or similar geospatial mapping tools, Google Drive, Adobe, and Word suite products
- Attention to detail
- Experience gathering historical and contemporary data is preferred
- Students should also be comfortable collaborating as part of a team and actively contribute to group meetings that include off-campus organizations
Hours: to be negotiated
Related website: https://branditsummers.com/
Related website: https://www.mellon.org/grants/grants-database/grants/university-of-california-at-berkeley/2203-12307/