Department of Urban Planning and Policy at UIC

Department of Urban Planning and Policy at UIC Grounded in social equity and sustainability, we use innovative concepts and technology to understand and address urban issues.

In one of the world's great cities, Urban Planning & Policy (UPP) at UIC has led the way in preparing students for professional and academic careers for over 40 years.

The Spring 2026 MUPP Spatial Planning Studio wrapped up its final presentation by showcasing an ambitious and grounded ...
05/22/2026

The Spring 2026 MUPP Spatial Planning Studio wrapped up its final presentation by showcasing an ambitious and grounded community planning effort focused on the 16th Street corridor in North Lawndale.

Building from last year’s The Rhythm of 16th Street studio, this year’s plan, Turning Rhythm into Reality, explored how community-centered planning can move from visioning into implementation. Through spatial analysis, market research, stakeholder engagement, and corridor-based planning strategies, students developed actionable proposals focused on equitable development, anti-displacement, housing, governance, and long-term community wealth building.

Over the semester, students worked closely with community stakeholders and development partners including the Steans Family Foundation, CannonDesign, North Lawndale organizations, and practitioners from across Chicago. Jurors and guests from CannonDesign, SOM, SmithGroup, and community leadership joined the final review, creating an incredibly thoughtful conversation around implementation, feasibility, and the future of 16th Street. Huge thanks to Chris Eagan, Jonathan Kelley, Rozanna Rivera, Richard Townsell, Michael Kmak, Evan Gambino, Alejandro Stochetti, and Merav Argov for their comments and support!

The studio presented a compelling narrative of balance between planning and action, not simply imagining change, but carefully studying how development tools, zoning, market realities, governance structures, and community stewardship can work together to support North Lawndale residents without displacement.

Universities run on labor.Our graduate workers teach classes, conduct research, and sustain the daily operations that ma...
05/04/2026

Universities run on labor.

Our graduate workers teach classes, conduct research, and sustain the daily operations that make institutions like UIC possible. Yet they are still fighting for the basics: a living wage, healthcare, job security, and protections for international students.

This is one of those moments where those values of systems, equity, and justice in urban planning and policy have to show up in practice. As faculty in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy, we are in solidarity with the members of the Graduate Employees Organization, as they fight for a fair contract.

Learn more about the 2026 Strike: https://www.uicgeo.org/2026-strike

In a recent segment from WBEZ Chicago’s In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons, our own Kate Lowe, PhD, joined a conversation...
04/24/2026

In a recent segment from WBEZ Chicago’s In the Loop with Sasha-Ann Simons, our own Kate Lowe, PhD, joined a conversation on the future of the CTA Red Line Extension, and what’s at stake for South Side residents.

The episode comes at a critical moment: a federal judge has ordered the release of more than $3 billion in previously withheld funding for the project, a decision that could determine whether long-awaited transit expansion moves forward.

The discussion situates the Red Line Extension within broader questions of mobility justice, access, and investment. Expanding service beyond 95th Street has long been framed as a way to reconnect communities to jobs, services, and opportunity, while also addressing historic inequities in Chicago’s transit system. Kate Lowe brings that perspective to the conversation, offering insight into how transit decisions shape everyday life and who benefits when investments are delayed, redirected, or finally realized.

🎧 Listen to the full conversation on

Admitted Student Day at UPP remains a fan favorite for a reason, and this year, it showed up in full force!We welcomed a...
04/17/2026

Admitted Student Day at UPP remains a fan favorite for a reason, and this year, it showed up in full force!

We welcomed a cohort of newly admitted MUPPs to CUPPA Hall, with several traveling in from across the country to get a closer look at what makes our Urban Planning and Policy programs unique. They came with questions, ambition, and the energy that comes with taking the next step in your educational journey.

This year, the experience went even deeper. Members of our Urban Planning and Policy Student Association were front and center, sharing candid insights into student involvement, courses, and what it actually feels like to be part of UPP. They also led tours through the building, highlighting the institutes and centers that expand research opportunities, and offering a peek into the Master of City Design studio.

From program structures and specializations, to internships and career pathways, admitted students had the chance to connect directly with faculty, staff, alumni, and current students shaping the field in real time.

We’re excited about the energy this group is bringing, and we have a feeling we’ll be seeing many of them back in CUPPA Hall this fall! Many thanks to our faculty, staff, UPPSA members, and all who made the day as dynamic and welcoming as ever.

Our last Information Session of the semester is in a few weeks! Get to know our Master of Urban Planning and Policy and ...
04/06/2026

Our last Information Session of the semester is in a few weeks! Get to know our Master of Urban Planning and Policy and Master of City Design programs, from required courses, specializations, and studio opportunities - and see which of these degrees is right for you!

We’re excited to share the forthcoming book by our incomparable Dr. Sevin Yildiz: Neither Land nor Water: Planning Throu...
04/03/2026

We’re excited to share the forthcoming book by our incomparable Dr. Sevin Yildiz: Neither Land nor Water: Planning Through Fringe Ecologies in the Meadowlands (1896–2020).

The book offers a compelling urban and environmental history of the New Jersey Meadowlands, a landscape where marshland, infrastructure, and urban development collide.

Through this lens, Dr. Yildiz introduces the concept of “fringe ecologies,” examining spaces that are neither fully natural nor fully urban, but constantly shaped by both. Tracing more than a century of planning, environmental transformation, and resistance, the book reveals how these hybrid landscapes challenge conventional planning approaches, especially in the context of climate change.

By bringing together ecological thinking, planning history, and design, Neither Land nor Water pushes us to rethink how we engage with dynamic, unstable, and contested environments, and what it means to plan in a world where boundaries are no longer fixed.

Our Dr. David López-García is out with a new paper exploring how commuting patterns reveal deeper inequalities across Gr...
03/24/2026

Our Dr. David López-García is out with a new paper exploring how commuting patterns reveal deeper inequalities across Greater , titled “Mobility situations in Mexico City Metropolitan Area: An exploration of time and distance in the journey to work through machine learning.”

Co-authored with Diego Hernández and Armando Sánchez-Vargas, the paper examines how commuting time and distance interact, not always in predictable ways. By combining spatial analysis with machine learning, the research identifies four distinct mobility conditions, showing that similar distances can result in vastly different travel experiences depending on infrastructure, urban form, and socioeconomic context.

The findings highlight a critical reality that more infrastructure or proximity alone does not guarantee better mobility outcomes. Instead, commuting patterns are shaped by the uneven distribution of opportunity, where central areas benefit from shorter, more efficient trips, while peripheral and lower-income communities often face longer or less efficient commutes.

Access now via LinkedIn

UPP’s Spatial Planning Studio students recently presented their midterm work focused on the revitalization of North Lawn...
03/23/2026

UPP’s Spatial Planning Studio students recently presented their midterm work focused on the revitalization of North Lawndale’s 16th Street Corridor: an effort grounded in community context, spatial analysis, and actionable design thinking to Turn Rhythm Into Reality.

Framed through a multi-scalar approach spanning site, corridor, and neighborhood, students explored how economic vitality, community wealth-building, and a stronger public realm can be advanced together. Their proposals engaged existing community assets and initiatives, identified opportunities to retrofit and redevelop underutilized buildings, and examined how connectivity, accessibility, and streetscape conditions can better support everyday life along the corridor.

The review was shaped by insights from Michael Kmak, AIA of CannonDesign, Dr. Philip Ashton, UPP Department Head, Professor and MCD Program Director April Jackson, PhD, Chris Eagan of the Steans Family Foundation, and Jonathan Kelley of the North Lawndale Pop-Up Spot, whose feedback pushed students to think critically about implementation, community alignment, and long-term impact.

We’re excited to highlight new research from Assistant Professor Andres M. Urcuqui-Bustamante, whose latest publications...
03/17/2026

We’re excited to highlight new research from Assistant Professor Andres M. Urcuqui-Bustamante, whose latest publications explore how communities navigate the intersections of urban development, environment, and decision-making.

In “Contesting Urbanization”, he examines a housing development conflict in Cali, Colombia, showing how efforts to address disaster risk and housing needs can collide with environmental conservation, all underscoring how resistance and participation play a critical role in shaping more just outcomes.

ritten alongside UIC’s Nikolas Ballut and Emily Minor of Department of Biological Sciences, the authors explore how people interact with urban wildlife, revealing how seemingly small, everyday choices are shaped by deeper social and psychosocial dynamics that influence environmental outcomes at the neighborhood scale.

Read both papers via our LinkedIn!

We’re excited to highlight one of our students, Danny Villalobos, whose work was recently featured in Block Club Chicago...
02/26/2026

We’re excited to highlight one of our students, Danny Villalobos, whose work was recently featured in Block Club Chicago.

On his own time, Danny developed Garfield Ridge 2050, a thoughtful vision for the future of his Chicago neighborhood. His work reflects how students apply the planning, research, and community-focused skills they build in the MUPP program to real places and real challenges.

It’s inspiring to see students take initiative and use planning tools to imagine what’s possible for the communities they care about. Congratulations to Danny on the feature and on advancing a bold vision for Garfield Ridge.

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