Research and Scholarship
I’m an interdisciplinary researcher who studies urban climate governance and coastal urban climate adaptation. My work draws on methods and perspectives from urban studies, human geography, environmental history, and urban ecology. Below is a selection of recent projects, presentations, and publications.
An Urban Resilience Fix: Resolving Waterfront Development and Flood Risks in Boston’s Seaport District
By Courtney Humphries
Urban Geography, January 2025
Presented at the Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, March 2025
Adapting to climate change is increasingly becoming a policy priority in cities, but the impetus to reduce future climate risks may conflict with existing economic priorities shaping urban development. This study examines how Boston, Massachusetts responded to future sea level rise by adopting a set of policies promoting climate resilience of its waterfront while simultaneously overseeing the ongoing rapid development of the Seaport District, a neighborhood highly vulnerable to flooding.
“Governance, Enabling Policy Environments, and Just Transitions.”
Third Assessment Report on Climate Change and Cities (ARC 3.3)
Coordinating Lead Authors: Angela Colucci, Janelle Knox-Hayes, Oswaldo Lucon
Lead Authors: Laura Quadros Aniche, Nathalie Blanc, Saliva Danielak, Sylvia Dudek-Mańkowska, Valentina Giannini, Miroslaw Grochowski, Courtney Humphries, Garima Jain, Katie Johnson, Mario Mediondo, Anisha Patil Nakagawa, Amaury Parelle, Yahya Shaker, Mahendra Sethi, Joseph Siegel, David Simon, Pedro Henrique Torres, Gregg Walker
The Third Assessment Report on Climate Change and Cities (ARC 3.3) will be produced as a series of Special Reports on urban climate change research by an international network of scholars. This Element addresses governance of climate change in urban environments globally.
Climate Change and the Future of Boston
By Courtney Humphries
Anthem Press, in review for publication in 2025
My upcoming book with Anthem Press, Climate Change and the Future of Boston, is an in-depth analysis of the climate impacts facing Boston and the city’s efforts to mitigate and adapt to a changing climate. Available in print and online in early 2025. This is part of a series on Climate Change and the Future of the North American City.
Avoiding Harmful Path Dependencies in Adaptation to Climate Change: Global Lessons from a Pathways Analysis of Boston’s Seaport District
By Paul Kirshen, Courtney Humphries, and Shailee Desai
In revision for Climatic Change, March 2025
The concept of adaptation pathways has emerged as a guiding planning approach of sequential actions that can be implemented over time as the uncertain climate unfolds. This interdisciplinary research bridges gaps between historical analysis of urban adaptation with contemporary planning by applying a pathways planning framework, Dynamic Adaptive Policy Pathways (DAPP, Haasnoot et al, 2013, Haasnoot et al, 2024), to the recent redevelopment of the Seaport District in Boston, Massachusetts, and its failed management of sea level rise.
“Boston, Massachusetts: Re-centering Equity and Justice in Resilience Planning”
By Courtney Humphries
Third Assessment Report on Climate Change and Cities (ARC 3.3)
This case study contributes a perspective on climate governance for urban heat in Boston, for the Urban Climate Change Research Network (UCCRN) available as part of ARC 3.3 and in its Case Study Docking Station.