How does the trash get delivered? How do I open a barbershop? How do speed bumps get installed? This course examines how everyday services function in urban environments. Students trace the delivery of services through the people who provide them and the constraints they navigate.
The first half of the semester introduces service fundamentals through case studies and discussion, with attention to the gap between designed systems and lived experience. In the second half, students conduct independent research on a local service using observation, interviews, and systems thinking to uncover the mechanics that sustain urban life. Students develop a working vocabulary and an expanded understanding of the verbs that animate cities.
