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Learner Reviews & Feedback for The City and You: Find Your Best Place by University of Toronto

4.6
stars
150 ratings

About the Course

Welcome to The City and You: Find Your Best Place. I'm excited to have you in the class and look forward to your contributions to the other learners in our community. This free course will provide the knowledge and the tools needed to understand what cities do, why they matter, the forces shaping the greatest wave of urbanization in history, and how to pick the right place for you. The course will also help you develop critical thinking skills. We'll accomplish this by providing evidence of the importance of cities, and why and how they matter to you. Then we’ll ask you to apply what you’ve learned in an exercise which will help you assess your own community and find your best place. This course is accessible and open to anyone who is interested in learning more about cities and the ways they affect our lives. It is organized around five key modules: (1) Why Cities Matter, (2) A World of Cities, (3) The Creative City, (4) The Divided City and the New Urban Crisis, and (5) How to Find the Best Place for You. After completing the course, you will be able to: (1) Identify why cities are the drivers of economic prosperity; (2) Explain the drivers and implications of fast-growing urbanization worldwide; (3) Outline the key characteristics of a creative and innovative city; (4) Describe the social divides and challenges facing cities and the solutions cities are using to address them; and (5) Recognize the trade-offs of staying in your current city versus moving, and identify the best place for you and your family to live. Of course the world has changed a great deal since I developed this course. The Global COVID-19 Pandemic is affecting cities, businesses and people around the world. It is something I have been writing about and working with mayors, city managers, economic developers, urban leaders and communities across the globe. I have put together a new module on Cities and the Coronavirus to help you better understand the ways in which the Covid-19 crisis is impacting cities and how you can best understand and deal with that. I’d like to wish each and every one of you good luck as you get started on this journey. I hope you enjoy the course!...

Top reviews

RS

Nov 1, 2017

Great course for gaining a better understanding on what makes cities successful, what their challenges are, and how to compare them from an objective viewpoint.

EP

Oct 17, 2022

This course really helped me become more sensitive to the conditions in which I live, and was able to determine the best place for me to live.

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1 - 25 of 48 Reviews for The City and You: Find Your Best Place

By Douglas B

Oct 23, 2017

The City and You: Find Your Best Place taught by Professor Richard Florida of the University of Toronto is excellent and outstanding. It is one of the best courses I have ever taken. I learned so very much from Professor Richard Florida. He and the course increased my abilities to think critically on a comparative level about all the cities in the world. This critical thinking skill will definitely help me in all of my future endeavours. The factual information that I have learned about cities from Professor Richard Florida is invaluable. I give this course my highest recommendation. Kudos to Professor Richard Florida for putting The City and You: Find Your Best Place course together. It is an outstanding achievement!!

By Mihnea T

Oct 12, 2017

Great course based on the premise of the central role cities are occupying in today's society and their increasing importance for the future. The course also discusses the problems that today's cities are facing. The coursework invites participants to really get to know their own cities, be analytical of their strong and weak points and finally challenges students into an exercise of choosing the best cities for them.

The course examples seem slightly biased towards North American cities, so this would be a point to be addressed in future iterations. Finally, would be interesting to adapt the Place Finder tool for different demographics, since several steps within are only suitable for adult professionals.

By Marwan M K

Jul 28, 2020

The course raises and enhances the understanding of the interrelation impact of economy and society on urban planning trends and approaches. Also, the forces that make cities successful. The diverse challenges facing growth and prosperity of cities due to progression and changes related to economics and social factors.

By Dianne H

Oct 31, 2017

Excellent course!

Dr. Florida engages you through video introductions and thoughtful readings to consider more fully the role that cities play. It was very eye-opening to realize how spiky the world is and how much our choice of city impacts every aspect of our lives. Highly recommended.

By Trent D

Nov 5, 2017

Thanks Prof. Florida, you really opened my eyes to possibility of relocation as a serious endeavour for my future success and happiness!

By Nlh P

Feb 24, 2019

Good to pay attention to this course: however, I expect more than what the course is giving. :)

Thank you Richard Florida....

By José R

May 18, 2022

This course has been an eye opener for me. It encourages further research, reading Richard Florida, Ed Glaeser and Jane Jacobs books, but also, as it is my case, search furthe references about the economics of cities, or urban economics. I'm sure the instructor vision can be challenged, but he has a point that deserves a careful attention. Is the creative class real? can you define as a class such mixture of workers (artists, doctores, engineers, ...)?, what is the nature of the new urban crisis the instructor defines?, what can we do to remedy it?, all those are very interesting questions.

The final thought, and the final assigment, constitute challenging work of auto analysis. Why I'm living in the city I live, what other cities I would like to move if I had the oppotunity, why, which are the pros and cons. And, if your work and your mate are your most important decisions in your live, why your city is secondary (I live where the work is, or where my spouse lives) when it absolutelly determines the other two. It's time to think about where I want to live, and why.

By babak f

May 30, 2023

I must say it was an amazing experience. The course is organized around five key modules which are easy to follow and understand. The interactive exercises and the instructor’s teaching style were very engaging and helped me learn a lot about cities and how they affect our lives. I especially enjoyed the module on ‘The Creative City’ which gave me a new perspective on how creativity can drive economic growth in cities. Overall, I would highly recommend this course to anyone who is interested in learning more about cities and how to find the best place for themselves.”

By Giovanna C

Sep 21, 2022

The course was incredibly complete in every aspect, it helped me to understand the mechanisms that influence growth or decrease, even personal, remembering that cities are unions of people: the personal success of the inhabitants often determines the success of the cities. Richard Florida is an exceptional and excellent Professor, in addition to the enormous preparation he is a true enthusiast of the subject and conveys the desire to learn from him. Congratulations Professor!

By Narges E

Sep 17, 2022

This course was very practical for me, because I learn a lot of serious information about cities. The great thing about was it helps me to check all options about the advantages and disadvantages of the cities that I will immigrate there ang live there.

By Filipe S

Apr 2, 2018

Insights, Insights, and Great Insights!

One of the best classes I have taken online, it really gave me a valuable set of tools and insights to make decisions about my next move in life.

Worthy every minute I spent!

By James V

Dec 4, 2020

I really like this course, it is very informative, detailed, analytical and helpful for a person like me when I planning to retire and relocate to other warm city. Also, the videos and notes are excellent !

By 楊勝傑

May 23, 2019

It provides tips to decide the place you want to live,and gives you the knowledge of the new urban revival and new urban crisis.Also leads you collect data and summarize a conclusion.

By R D S

Nov 1, 2017

Great course for gaining a better understanding on what makes cities successful, what their challenges are, and how to compare them from an objective viewpoint.

By Endah P

Oct 18, 2022

This course really helped me become more sensitive to the conditions in which I live, and was able to determine the best place for me to live.

By Ana F

Oct 13, 2022

This course taught me and gave me a lot of knowledge, especially how the city we want for a better life. good for city and you. thank u

By Nehmat S

Feb 17, 2019

The course helped me build a better understanding about which cities in general. There is a lot one can learn from this course.

By John A S

Nov 2, 2017

Thank you for a most enlightening program and helping me confirm that the best place for me is right here at home in Toronto!

By Marcelo R

Feb 5, 2018

Excellent content, cutting edge issues and inspiring! Great added value for thinking and discussions around my work.

By Aulia P S

Aug 21, 2022

The City And You really gave me extensive experience and knowledge about one of them choosing a city to live in.

By Carlos F

Jan 8, 2018

I loved it. Very good to keep track of the current conversation on cities. Thank you guys!

By Alexey P

Dec 3, 2020

For me this course was really very useful. The knowledge gained helped me in my work.

By Silva Y

Oct 22, 2018

Enjoyed the topics.. very engaging presenter.. hope he offers more courses here

By Sun W Y

Nov 5, 2017

I really enjoyed taking this course and thinking about my city.

By Saurabh

Jul 22, 2020

Thank you Richard Florida sir & his team.