The proliferation of new services and sensors gives rise to unprecedented volumes of data that increasingly shape our perception of the urban surroundings. Apps and maps influence the ways we move and meet in the city. This course is devoted to the analysis of urban data and communication of urban issues. On the one hand, the aim is to engage in critical reflections about the role that data and algorithms can and already do play in the everyday experience of cities. On the other hand, the course provides a good opportunity to deepen your experience with data and visualization.

Lectures review fundamentals of information visualization, such as visual encoding, interaction techniques, and data structures. Selected readings will encourage exchanges about the latest research on urban data visualization. Students will prepare brief method inputs on tools and theories that are relevant for their projects. The underlying question of the course is: How can seeing the city in new light encourage changes in individual decision-making and collective action? After a few warm-up assignments, students of interface design and urban futures will form interdisciplinary teams to pursue projects at the intersection of data visualization and urban transformation. The course runs in collaboration with multiple data/issue partners sharing both datasets and insights from their work in various domains including administration, academia, and advocacy.

Please note: The class will be taught in English. All communication during the seminars as well as literature and auxiliary materials will be in English.