Geography 2400: Economic and Social Geography, Spring 2016

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Students with disabilities that have been certified by the Office for Disability Services will be appropriately accommodated, and should inform the instructor as soon as possible of their needs. The Office for Disability Services is located in 150 Pomerene Hall, 1760 Neil Avenue; telephone 292-3307, TDD 292-0901; http://www.ods.ohio-state.edu/. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ COURSE DESCRIPTION This course introduces students to a variety of topics in economic and social geography from the perspective that that the social and the economic are not separate spheres, but rather, integrally related. The course is underscored by a concern for in/social justice in light of problems of production, consumption, uneven development. The course is divided into 2 parts, indicated below. The first part of the course focuses on social and economic issues associated with spatial restructuring of cities in the United States over the course of the 20 th and 21 st centuries. In this section students learn how how uneven opportunities and constraints have evolved across city space, and how advantage and disadvantage have been inscribed on the urban landscape. Geographic concepts such as ‘the production of place’ figure prominently, towards engaging the question, ‘how are places produced by economic, social, and political processes?’. The section begins with an overview of US cities from pre-WWorld War II onward, addressing: how national and regional processes of economic change have shaped urban life; the evolution of inner city slums; economic and social processes of geographic deconcentration, capital and white flight from inner cities; how inner cities have changed. We will discuss the documentary film “Rochester, A City of Quality,” which was produced in 1963 as propaganda for investment in the city, reflecting implicitly problems engaged in class such as changing transportation systems in association with deindustrialization and white flight. We will then examine types of gentrification as widespread processes that are social, economic and political, and consider the conditions under which gentrification occurs generally and in specific places, its uneven effects, and the struggles that surround it. The documentary film ‘Flag Wars’ offers a powerful examination of processes of gentrification and displacement in Old Towne East, Columbus. The material up through gentrification prepares students for thinking about the significance of the economic crisis (of 2008, and ongoing) relative to different types of places in cities. The film “House of Cards” offers clarity on the complexities of the crisis while also Are there particular groups of people and particular neighborhoods experiencing foreclosures at especially high rates? Why? Finally, we will end this first section of the course with a discussion of relatively novel ways of reconstituting communities that have experienced economic decline, specifically revitalization