SFU Urban Studies students awarded SSHRC scholarships

Kerry Davidson:

My research explores the intersection of creative arts and urbanism, examining the ways in which community-based arts projects can provide an opportunity for those who have been historically excluded, or marginalized, by traditional political institutions to become active civic participants, outside of those same institutional structures.

Using the 2003 theatrical production, In the Heart of a City: The Downtown Eastside Community Play as a case study, my research considers whose voices are included, or excluded, in the shaping of our cities and communities, and the ways in which alternative modes of participation, particularly those grounded in artistic expression, offer an inclusive model for civic engagement beyond conventional institutional frameworks.

Dakota Tryhuba:

My research follows the money behind walking and cycling infrastructure in Surrey. It examines how the City’s development cost charge (DCC) and servicing-plan frameworks divide funding between growth-related projects and retrofits in established neighbourhoods, and what that split means for which active transportation improvements get prioritized and for neighbourhoods that were designed around the car.