Transnational Suburbanism

In 2022, I became part of a transnational team of scholars collectively studying suburbia and urban peripherpies, across disciplines and national borders. This initiative is funded by the EU Erasmus+ Programme, and our team includes scholars from the Czech Republic, France, Germany, and the U.S. - Andy Wiese and I are representing the U.S. We meet in person periodically to share our work and insights about the processes and experiences of suburbanization, in Europe and the U.S.

It has been mind opening. Some of our European colleagues study American suburbs, through literary analysis and cultural studies. Our colleague Florian Frietag from University of Duisberg Essen, Germany, studies theme parks globally and their ties to suburban tropes. Our Czech colleagues use geoinfomatics to map out social patterns in metro areas in Czechia, tracking social and cultural patterns, and introducing us to diverse methologies in their field. Our French colleagues have educated us on the history of urban peripheries in France, and their distinctive periodizations and patterns - fascinating to compare to U.S. patterns.

Andy and I hosted the group in San Diego/Los Angeles in September 2023. We held two days of panels at SDSU and the Huntington Library — and Andy and I led a fantastic, sprawling van tour of Southern California suburbia from San Diego to Los Angeles. We’re planning to repeat for the upcoming Urban History Association conference in October 2025 (at least the LA leg of the tour).

On May 13-14, 2024, our entire group will host our capstone event — a “Transdisciplinary Conference on Suburban Studies” at Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic. There will be panels, photo exhibitions, story maps, and tours, and we’re excited to report that several of our U.S. colleagues will be participating, including Eric Avila, June Williamson, Brad Martin, Rachel Heiman, Julia Brown-Bernstein, and Peter Chesney. I’ll be giving a paper there on the emerging multiracial suburban ideal in LA. This conference is open to the public, all are warmly invited to attend. Hope to see you in Olomouc!