by Fritz Wagner, Professor
Above, Fritz Wagner, Landscape Architecture (center), with students and faculty from the NEXOPOLIS research seminar in Québec City in May 2008. NEXOPOLIS is a consortium of six universities from Canada, the US, and Mexico. Students spend one quarter or semester abroad studying urban issues and problems from an urban planning perspective.
Fritz Wagner visited Montréal and Québec City this spring to discuss with faculty his Summer 2009 class to Québec. Because Canada’s national and provincial urban and regional planning laws differ considerably from those in the US, it is important for US students to understand these differences and how they have created different living environments for Canadians. Moreover, the urban and rural forms developed from the various Canadian laws have, in many instances, created more sustainable and livable communities from the perspective of many urban critics. Students of urbanism need to understand these differences in planning US cities and how the Canadian regulations could possibly be used in the US context.
The field trip allowed Fritz to discuss details of the class with faculty members of the University of Laval and the University of Montréal. The discussions firmed up the course content on the comparative aspects of urban planning and design. This course adds yet another vehicle for curricular content enhancement at the Canadian Studies Center. While at the University of Laval, Fritz also gave a lecture on the cultural context of urban planning and design. It was well received.
Fritz Wagner is Research Professor and Chair of the Department of Landscape Architecture and manages the Northwest Center for Livable Communities in the College of Built Environments. He has a long-standing interest in French-speaking Canada.
This research trip was funded, in part, by funding from the Center’s Title VI grant, US Department of Education, Office of International Education and Graduate Program Services.