UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Michael Glass, director of the Urban Studies Program at the University of Pittsburgh, will discuss how infrastructural futures are constructed, experienced and changed by the stakeholders that inhabit the region in a Penn State Department of Geography Coffee Hour talk titled “Seeing Equitable City-Region Futures? Negotiating The Epistemic Dimensions of Infrastructure Change in a Lagging Region.” His talk will be held at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 10, in 112 Walker Building on the University Park campus and via Zoom.

The present policy context for infrastructure planning in the U.S. is confounded by a mosaic of decision-making authorities that hamper the development of cohesive approaches to sustainable and equitable development. This situation underscores the need to identify how urban infrastructure futures are assembled and scaled and marked by the diverse capacities of various stakeholders. Glass' most recent research examines the ways that infrastructure shapes regions and influences regional equity.

Glass is an urbanist who works at the intersection of geography and planning. His primary research is on city-region governance and planning, housing and urban infrastructure. He earned his master of science in geography from the University of Auckland and his doctorate in geography from Penn State.

Glass’ talk is part of the spring 2023 "Coffee Hour" seminar series hosted by Penn State’s Department of Geography. To learn more and access the Zoom information, visit the Coffee Hour event webpage.