The "Future of the American City" initiative led by Harvard Graduate University School of Design will begin in Miami with $1 million in support from the Knight Foundation. The project will engage Miami residents in creating new approaches to address pressing urban issues including affordable housing, transportation, and sea level rise. 

With this funding Harvard GSD will send urban researchers to Miami and Miami Beach to understand the city's strengths and challenges as part of a 3-year study towards building solutions. The initiative aims to help cities tackle sustainability and resiliency challenges beginning this spring. 

Building on the school’s multi-disciplinary model, the effort will use architecture, landscape architecture, and urban planning and design to come up with efficient solutions that take into account community needs. This research can also be shared with cities across the nation facing similar challenges. 

Harvard GSD’s upcoming Miami research will be phase one in the "Future of the American City" project, which will also examine the cities of Los Angeles, Detroit, and Boston. The school plans to host a summit to convene experts from each city to create a national discourse on the future of cities and urban life in the US.