Urban Flourishing: BioSolar Effects on Urban Heat Island and Implications for Equity and Gentrification

Abstract

This project was completed as part of a partnership between the Metropolitan Council and the University of Minnesota’s Resilient Communities Project (http://www.rcp.umn.edu). The goal of this project was to identify Biosolar systems’ impacts on the urban heat island and equity and green gentrification considerations to guide policymakers in the development of these systems. Metropolitan Council project lead Cameran J. Bailey collaborated with students in Professor Greg Lindsey’s course, PA 8081: Planning and Public Affairs Capstone, to conduct key informant interviews, perform spatial analyses on urban heat islands and gentrification within the Metropolitan Council’s jurisdiction, and to conduct an exploratory econometric analysis of gentrification as it relates to BioSolar elements within the Twin Cities area. A final student report, one-page summaries, and presentation are available. A videorecording of the students' final presentation is also available at https://vimeo.com/546094015.