UC Davis Summer Abroad is once again sending a group of undergraduates from UC Davis and other universities to complete the month-long Sustainable Cities of Northern Europe course (SCONES as we are lovingly called). I created this course and look forward to a sixth summer abroad conducting applied research on eco-districts in cities around the world. This course combines lectures and research papers, with walking and biking tours, field work, urban design projects, and tours and discussions with local officials and experts, to understand various aspects of urban sustainability as applied in Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. Beginning July 15, we will visit 10 cities and villages in four countries, exploring urban form and urban design, multi-modal transportation systems (transit of many forms, walking and biking), renewable energy projects, sustainable approaches to land use and neighborhood development, water conservation and water quality enhancement, and greening aspects of cities of all sizes.
Our journey begins in Sweden, with stops in Stockholm and Malmo, before continuing on to Copenhagen, Denmark, with side trips to the small university community of Trekonner. We will also visit Freiburg, often called Germany’s “eco-city,” and tour the Black Forest, visiting a series of small villages that use only renewable energy sources and that are net energy exporters. Our final destination is Lucerne, Switzerland.
This eight-unit, upper-division course draws students from fields as widespread as architecture, environmental policy, civil engineering, journalism, landscape architecture, economics and urban planning. Our 26 students will create blog entries as they travel, documenting unique aspects of urban sustainability with photos and writing.
-Jeff Loux
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