Urban Sustainability

Drawing on work in anthropology, architectural history, and science and technology studies, this course will examine the historical and contemporary efforts to render Paris a sustainable city.

• Program Dates: July 21-Aug 8, 2025

• Program Location: Rice Global Paris Center | Paris, France

• Who Can Apply? Any Rice Undergraduate. No prerequisite to take this course. Students who are interested in how urban environments transform amid environmental challenges will enjoy the course. Note for graduating seniors! You are welcome to apply to this course; however, Rice summer aid (i.e. Rice financial aid) is not available to seniors who have obtained enough credits to graduate by the end of the spring semester. Additionally, you will have to postpone your graduation date to the summer in order to participate. You are, however, still eligible to apply for both RICE GLOBAL tuition and travel awards included in the course application.

• Tuition Cost: $1,800 per credit hour (this course is 3 credit hours).

• What's Covered: The program will provide housing for all three weeks, metro card for all three weeks, course-set excursions/tickets, three group meals, and travel insurance.

• Financial Aid: If you already receive financial aid, you are eligible to receive financial aid for up to 9 credit hours a summer for two summer, at 50% of the tuition rate, i.e. if a Paris course is three credit hours and $5,400 total tuition, eligible students would pay $2,700. Rice summer aid (i.e. Rice financial aid) is not available to seniors who have obtained enough credits to graduate by the end of the spring semester.

  After submitting your application, our office is in direct contact with the financial aid office who will let us know if you are financial aid eligible for the summer. If you are accepted, you will immediately know how much financial aid you have available in your acceptance letter.

  To find out if you are eligible before acceptance to a course, contact: fina@rice.edu. To learn more about summer financial aid requirements, please visit: https://financialaid.rice.edu/summer-students.

• Additional Assistance from Rice Global: Students can also apply to receive additional assistance (for both tuition and travel) from Rice Global. Application for assistance is included in the course application.

• Credit Hours: 3 credit hours

• Course Instructor: Dr. Gökçe Günel

• Course Description: How can we design equitable cities that respond to contemporary environmental, financial, and political challenges? What kinds of urban ideals do such projects rely on and reproduce? How do we build and maintain the infrastructures that facilitate the lives of human and nonhuman city residents? Drawing on work in anthropology, architectural history, and science and technology studies, this course will examine the historical and contemporary efforts to render Paris a sustainable city. The class will build on excursions in Paris, such as trips to the Nogent Nuclear Power Plant, the Promenade Plantée Park, and the Paris Sewer Museum. The class will also take a day trip to the Royal Saltworks in eastern France to examine the relationship between urbanism and resources.

• Who is this class for? Any Rice Undergraduate. No prerequisite to take this course. Students who are interested in how urban environments transform amid environmental challenges will enjoy the course.

• Course Zoom Information Session: Take a look at the information session recording to learn more.

• Syllabus: Take a look at a previous syllabus for the course - subject to change for Summer 2025.

• Does this course fulfill a distribution and/or Analyzing diversity requirement? No

For questions, please visit our student program page or email pariscenter@rice.edu. The application deadline is January 31, 2025.