Livable Campuses, Healthy Communities

Spring 2022

CUNY Class Information

Instructor: Kristina Baines

Campus: Guttman Community College

Class Title: Introduction to Urban Community Health

International Class Information

Instructor: Momen El-Husseiny

Partner Institution: American University of Cairo, Egypt

Project Description: This project engaged students from AUC and CUNY to investigate the urban-health challenges facing university students when accessing spaces related to physical and mental health at AUC (Cairo) and Guttman CUNY (NYC). Using online platforms for virtual exchange, students built a comparative analysis of how spatial, social and economic inequalities in campuses are constructed similarly and/or differently in both contexts. The project addressed the United Nations’ SDG10 that emphasizes the importance of reducing inequalities within and among countries. The experiential learning project is twofold. First, it is a cross-cultural experience with group-work and teams created across the Atlantic between the global north (US) and the global south (Egypt). Secondly, students are challenged to explore the inherited social, economic and spatial registers facing university-campuses when dealing with the pandemic and turbulent uncertainties at each respective community