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Urban Research Workshop Alumni

Avi Alpert (2005-2006)
Anthropology CC’06

 

Jim Becker (2004-2005)
Urban Studies and History, CC’05
As a participant in the URW, Jim worked with Manmeet Bindra comparing the informal economies of New York and Mexico City, drawing from interviews of street vendors and day laborers around New York's Times Square and Mexico City's Zocolo. After graduating, Jim Becker worked as a research assistant to Professor Hilary Ballon for a book and Museum exhibit series on Robert Moses.  He then worked for New York Cares, Inc, managing children's education programs.  This year he changed course, moving back to his hometown of Philadelphia to finish pre-medical requirements at the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Nate Bliss (2004-2005)
Urban Studies and Political Science, CC’05

 

Jess Clancy (2004-2005)

Environmental Chemistry, CC’05

 

Rob Crauderueff

Urban Studies and History, CC’05

 

Jeff Engler (2004-2005)

History, CC’05

 

Jules Federle (2005-2006)

Urban Studies and Political Science, CC’06

Jules studied informal housing growth and housing stability in Mexico City and New York.

 

Eli Kamara (2005-2006)

Applied Math¸ SEAS’06

Eli did his research project on the sustainability of street vending in Mexico City and New York.

 

Manmeet Kaur Bindra (2004-2005)

Anthropology and History, BC '05
Manmeet’s primary interests are labor, migration, urban development and gender.  She spent her time in the URW workshop comparing informal labor markets in New York City and Mexico City. At present, Manmeet is working with an NGO in India called MAYA on a program, LabourNet, which works to improve working and living conditions for unregulated, construction workers in India.

 

Jessica DiCamillo (2004-2005)

 After graduating in 2005, Jessica traveled to Costa Rica before returning to her native San Francisco Bay Area. She worked for about a year at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and now works at a small law firm that provides death penalty mitigation support for defense attorneys. Jessica will start law school at UC Berkeley in August, 2007, and plans to pursue a career in Environmental Justice advocacy.

 

 

Chloe Good

Urban Studies and Environmental Science, CC’06

Chloe wrote her thesis on Central Park in New York City and Xocimilco in Mexico.

 

Jesse Jou (2005-2006)

Urban Studies and Physics, CC’06

Jesse graduated from Columbia College in 2006 with majors in Urban Studies-Economics and Physics.  He is currently a management consultant, and plans on attending business school.  In URW, he explored strategies in public transportation planning used to achieve sustainable transportation and environmental goals.  Jesse credits the workshop for piquing his interest in corporate social responsibility.

 

 

Gabi Kozak (2005-2006)

Sociology¸ BC’06
Gabi graduated Magna Cum Laude from Barnard College in 2006, earning a B.A. in Sociology. Taking an interest in the social implications of urban sustainability, Gabi focused on education and completed her senior thesis entitled "Education Policy as an
Anti-Poverty Strategy: A Case Study Comparison between Mexico City and New York City". She currently lives in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and works for HBO.

 

Amie Lewis (2005-2006)
Environmental Science, BC’06
Amie wrote her thesis on food distribution systems and urban sustainability.

 

Mercedes Montagnes (2004-2005)
Urban Studies and Sociology, BC’05

 

CREATOR: gd-jpeg v1.0 (using IJG JPEG v62), quality = 85 Julia Nagle (2005-2006)
Urban Studies and Political Science, CC’06
Julia completed a comparative research project on New York City and Mexico City and focused on the topic of women's access to, and knowledge of reproductive health services.  She explored the various ways that reproductive health organizations advertise their services in these two global centers.  Julia found that reproductive health organizations utilize existing social systems, various forms of mass media and cultural-specific references, in addition to relying on outreach through the traditional clinic setting, to spread the word about the services available. Upon graduating, Julia took a field position with a progressive political organization.  After the 2006 mid-term elections, she became a legislative aid to Pittsburgh City Councilman William Peduto.

 

Roberto Reyes-Gaskin (2004-2005)
Political Science, CC’05
Roberto's research centered on tourism promotion and the privatization of public space. He completed his BA in Political Science and Anthropology at Columbia College and a MSc in Environment and Sustainable Development at University College London. He is currently a JD candidate at New York University School of Law. This summer Roberto is working for Hunton & Williams LLP in their energy and project finance group, whose clients include a variety of alternative energy companies

 

Seth Rosenfeld (2005-2006)

Political Science, CC’06
Seth wrote his thesis on government policy and private business in neighborhood gentrification in New York and Mexico City.

 

Hannah Roth (2004-2005, 2005-2006)
Urban Studies and Environmental Science, BC’06
Hannah wrote her Urban Research Workshop thesis on potable water access in Mexico City and New York City. She majored in Urban Studies with a concentration in Environmental Science at Barnard. After graduation she worked at the Parks Department as a New York City Urban Fellow. She currently works at the East River Development Alliance in Queens.

 

Emily Schwarz (2004-2005)
History, CC’05

 

Genevieve Rose Sherman (2006-2007)
Genevieve graduated in 2007 in Urban Studies and History from Barnard College. After traveling abroad her junior year to cities in Brazil, South Africa and France, Genevieve acquired an interest in the politics of historic preservation and heritage tourism in cities. She wrote her thesis on heritage tourist sites in Cape Town, South Africa and also studied such sites on the South Side of Chicago for the 2006-2007 Urban Research Workshop. She currently works at the Municipal Art Society of New York.

 

Chris Simi (2006-2007)
While at URW, Chris focused primarily on public housing and the effects of its demolition on the South Side. With the emphasis in 2006-2007 being the South Street Journal, he particularly concentrated on how the CHA's Transformation Plan was disseminated among the community as well as how the Journal's coverage and editorial stance on the issue. Having graduated in May 2007, he is now working at the Spatial Information Design Lab at GSAPP creating a digital map of Nairobi while I look for a more permanent job.

 

Sergio Torres (2005-2006)
Sociology and Political Science, CC’06
Sergio wrote his thesis on female immigrants and social sustainability in New York and Mexico City.

 

Shana Wertheimer (2005-2006)
Urban Studies and Architecture, GS’06
Shana did her research project on sustainability and green design in Mexico City and New York City. She is currently working for Common Ground Community, a supportive housing organization, as Assistant Director of the Christopher residence.

...+ The Center for Urban Research & Policy
T. 212.854.2072 | curp@columbia.edu