Detroit residents are reclaiming and repurposing underused spaces for neighborhood use. Theyve removed tires and trash from alleyways, organized meetings to discuss community space needs, helped install rain barrels in alley-facing garage downspouts and more. And 蹤獲扦-Dearborn professors Paul Draus, Chris Pannier and Jacob Napieralski have worked right alongside them.
Closer to Hamtramck in Detroits Campau/Banglatown neighborhood 蹤獲扦-Flint Associate Professor of Design Benjamin Gaydos utilizes equity-based design practices to help communities make a positive impact in their neighborhoods.. With his design firm , Gaydos works with Detroit-based organizations and community organizations as they work to transform their neighborhoods into model examples of urban sustainability.
These U-M professors have worked in the city for years doing similarly focused work, only miles apart. But they didnt combine their research superpowers until the 蹤獲扦-Dearborn 蹤獲扦-Flint Collaborative Research Funding Program brought them together with RescueMINature Now, a grassroots community organization based in Northwest Detroit, and Korey Batey from DAVIS (Detroit Aint Violent Its Safe), a local leader in the alley activation movement.
Created by 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Chancellor Domenico Grasso and 蹤獲扦-Flint Chancellor Debasish Dutta, the jointly sponsored 蹤獲扦-Dearborn 蹤獲扦-Flint Collaborative Research Funding Program funded up to $160,000 for four collaborative research projects.
In its first cycle, four projects were funded, representing a wide range of disciplines and topic areas.
We are pleased to announce that four interdisciplinary research projects have been selected to receive the inaugural 蹤獲扦-Dearborn - 蹤獲扦-Flint research collaboration seed funding awards, Grasso said. These interdisciplinary collaborative projects bring together Dearborn and Flint faculty, students and researchers to work together on new research ideas with the shared goals of improving cross-campus collaboration and securing external funding for their future research.
Funded projects are:
- The e-bike boom: Examining key safety factors on e-bike potential to promote sustainability and equity in Detroit
Research Team: 蹤獲扦-Flint Associate Professor of Geography Greg Rybarczyk, 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Assistant Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering Fred Feng, 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Associate Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering Shan Bao and 蹤獲扦-Flint Assistant Professor of Information Technology and Informatics Thiago Ferreira
External Collaborators: 蹤獲扦-Ann Arbor Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Planning Anthony Vanky, California State Polytechnic University-Pomona Lecturer of Geography Lorne Platt and University of Florida Research Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Xiang Jacob Yan
- "Inclusive Design in Shared Autonomous Vehicles for People with Parkinson's Disease"
Research Team: 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Associate Professor of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering Shan Bao, 蹤獲扦-Flint Assistant Professor of Psychology Nathaniel Miller, 蹤獲扦-Flint Associate Professor of Computer Science Charlotte Tang
- Effectiveness of an ACL Injury Prevention Program on Kinematic Performance in Amateur Youth Soccer Players using Inertial Measurement Units
Research Team: 蹤獲扦-Flint Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy Tzu-Chieh Liao, 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Bioengineering Associate Professor Amanda Esquivel and 蹤獲扦-Flint Clinical Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy William Suits
- Alley Activation as a Community Resilience Strategy for Post-Industrial Cities: An Urban Acupuncture Proof-of-Concept Approach
Research Team: 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Professor of Sociology Paul Draus, 蹤獲扦-Flint Associate Professor of Design Benjamin Gaydos, 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Professor of Geology Jacob Napieralski, and 蹤獲扦-Dearborn Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering Christopher Pannier
Community Partners: Detroit Aint Violent Its Safe/Korey Batey and Rescue MI Nature Now/Zenaida Flores, Janai Frazier, Tharmond Ligon, Jr., Brodrick Wilks
This announcement has been a year in the making. The chancellors shared the initiative with the campus communities in 2021, and began implementing collaborative research events in early 2022. To bring the two campuses together, nearly 200 faculty, researchers and staff members from 蹤獲扦-Dearborn and 蹤獲扦-Flint participated in research talks and networking workshops to share ideas and explore new partnerships.
As a result, several interdisciplinary faculty teams were formed and cross-campus proposals were submitted for funding.
Draus said their group is grateful for the new grant program. He said the lack of access to green space and natural areas is a major health and quality of life issue in post-industrial cities like Detroit and especially for communities of color. He said collaborative initiatives, backed by funding, help develop partnerships and plans to create beneficial functions for underutilized urban spaces, like alleyways.
Some ideas for reclaimed alleys include neighborhood gardens, designated walk and bikeways, pop-up shop business corridors, educational areas to learn about native plants or water retention methods, and more.
Gaydos said the collaborative research grant is a tremendous opportunity to deepen the impact of the work currently done and expand existing research networks. He said its important to promote urban revitalization at a local level and support urban acupuncture design, which is where public space doesn't need to be ample and expensive to have a transformative impact.
Gaydos and Draus said this 蹤獲扦-Dearborn - 蹤獲扦-Flint collaboration will take the work they were doing separately to the next level.
Building off previous projects with a set of research nodes that can extend to many other fields the project promises to benefit both the Dearborn and Flint campuses, as well as the city of Detroit, through advancing urban research, enabling innovation, and providing opportunities for students to engage in project-based learning and research, Gaydos said.
The next cycle of the 蹤獲扦-Dearborn 蹤獲扦-Flint Collaborative Research Funding Program will take place in early 2023.
Article by Sarah Tuxbury.
