DUSP PhD Summer Research with Soyoung Park and Daniel L. Engelberg

Soyoung Park

Abstract: For many immigrant businesses in the United States, working from home has never been an option during the pandemic because they are disproportionately represented in in-person service sectors, such as restaurants and personal care services. Consequently, social distancing restrictions in the nation have put considerable downward pressure on them. Despite the urgency of the issue, little is known about whether ethnic enclaves and their social ties effectively protect immigrant businesses from external shocks like the coronavirus outbreak. By using the case of New York City nail salons, where a majority of workers and owners are immigrant women, this study investigates (1) where ethnic businesses are clustered in a metropolitan setting and (2) which individual and environmental factors affect the resilience of immigrant businesses. Ultimately, this study aims to illuminate the role of ethnic ties in a disrupted economic context. 

Biography: Soyoung Park is a PhD student in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her academic interests lie in global cities, immigration, and labor markets. 

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Daniel L. Engelberg

Abstract: The Green New Deal calls for rapidly decarbonizing of the United States while simultaneously reducing economic inequality. This will require a radical reorganization of the transportation sector – a key source of carbon emissions and a devourer of urban land for vehicle storage. But can auto-centric American cities survive such a dramatic transformation? Green New Deal People or Parking asks whether a car free, transit-oriented Los Angeles would remain an economically viable city. To this end we deploy a spatial equilibrium model that assumes that prospective residents have a fixed outside option and choose to live in the LA region if it provides utility above that outside option. The economic success of transit Los Angeles is measured in its ability to retain, or perhaps attract, residents. This presentation focuses on the development and planned deployment of the spatial equilibrium model. In particular we focus on the utilization of scenario discovery approaches to account for the uncertainties inherent in such a far-reaching proposal. 

Biography: Daniel L. Engelberg is a PhD candidate whose research focuses on how we plan for more just, equitable, and sustainable futures in circumstances of great uncertainty. His research spans urban systems models, statistical analysis, and ethnographic examination of planning processes.