The Sustainable City Year Program creates opportunities to hone skills through real projects

Story by Ed Dorsch
Photos by University Communications and courtesy of the Sustainable City Year Program and Allen Hall Advertising

As part of the 2015-16 Sustainable City Year, Oregon Law students worked with Redmond to help the city accommodate new growth sustainably.

The Sustainable City Year Program started with a simple question: How can students’ innovative work be put into practice for the benefit of Oregonians? 

In 2009, that question moved University of Oregon College of Design professors Nico Larco and Marc Schlossberg to launch a program that, over the past 16 years, has employed the ingenuity and hard work of thousands of students on hundreds of projects for communities across Oregon.  

“We were both teaching classes with applied projects,” said Schlossberg, who teaches city and regional planning in the School of Planning, Public Policy and Management. “Our students worked hard all quarter, and there was so much fresh thinking.”  

But when the quarter ended, all those fresh ideas were left behind to gather dust. Larco and Schlossberg wondered: What if there were a way to tap into all that potential to serve Oregon communities? 

Professor Marc Schlossberg, pictured here at Oregon’s Smith Rock State Park, teaches city and regional planning and serves as co-director of the Sustainable City Year Program.

“We were both teaching classes with applied projects. Our students worked hard all quarter, and there was so much fresh thinking.”  
Marc Schlossberg

The pair teamed up with Robert Young, then an assistant professor in the School of Planning, Public Policy and Management, to unite students from different departments, in existing classes, to address the strategic goals of one city.

They knew their idea could work. What they didn’t know was that their program would be the first of its kind, or that their concept would later spread across the country and eventually around the world.

.

.

.

Startup City

In fall 2009, the team approached planning school alumnus and Gresham city manager Erik Kvarsten about working with just five UO classes. 

“He said yes, he’d love to,” Schlossberg recalled. “Then he asked, ‘By the way, does the university have anyone who does this, that and the other thing?’ We didn’t know. The university is a big place. So, we came back to campus and started asking around.” 

In the end, students in 19 classes from all corners of the university would work that year on projects to make Gresham more sustainable and livable. 

Halfway through the year, they needed to ask for administrative support funding. Kvarsten didn’t hesitate, because the program proved so valuable. 

Since then, the Sustainable City Year Program has put more than 5,500 UO students to work on projects in 21 cities throughout Oregon. Megan Banks is director of the program, which is part of the Sustainable Cities Institute. Schlossberg and Larco are co-directors of the institute. 

UO public relations students helped Albany with its historic preservation efforts.
UO architecture students designed four new potential fire stations for the City of Medford.
UO students led a workshop about artificial intelligence for Salem community members.
Students designed and built a wooden structure for a Salem park for a course organized by the UO’s Department of Architecture and the Department of Wood Science and Engineering at Oregon State University.

Benefits for students include networking opportunities, real-world experience and great examples to discuss during job interviews. The benefits for cities in Oregon are as diverse and unique as the cities themselves:

Over the years, UO students have designed a park for Albany, found ways for Salem to save $800,000 per year and helped Redmond improve bicycle transportation.

Public relations and business classes have helped communities like Troutdale, Estacada and Oakridge promote tourism.

Classes have explored ways for Hermiston to fund and construct a multipurpose recreational center.

A 2021 architecture class working on affordable housing for Troutdale took the lead on an 85-unit apartment building slated to open in this month.

The list continues to grow.

Giving Oakridge a leg up 

In fall 2024, the UO launched a two-year partnership with Oakridge, a small town in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains about 40 miles southeast of Eugene.  

“It’s a valuable program for small rural communities that typically have limited staffing and capacity,” said Oakridge Mayor Bryan Cutchen. 

So far, the partnership has included 482 students and 11 faculty members, working on 16 projects for the community. Cutchen said the students brought capacity and skill sets that the city’s staff of 21 can’t provide.  

For example, students from Oregon Consulting Group in the Lundquist College of Business developed a marketing plan to help the city attract businesses to an industrial park. Business students also helped market Oakridge as a destination for tourists and new residents looking for outdoor adventure and community.  

“I love working with a real client and doing what I hope to do after I graduate. This direct experience will help me start my career.”
Anaya Lamy, senior, advertising
UO advertising students visiting Oakridge during a First Friday Art Walk.
UO architecture student Jamaica Atad prepares for a studio review of her designs for workforce housing in Oakridge.

Allen Hall Advertising, a student-run agency in the School of Journalism and Communication,  will help the city promote its First Friday Art Walk. 

“Not enough people know that Oakridge has a thriving arts community,” said UO senior Anaya Lamy. “I love working with a real client and doing what I hope to do after I graduate. This direct experience will help me start my career.” 

Students helped the city develop a plan for upgrading and maintaining its wastewater treatment plant. They also found potential funding sources for the improvements.  

For a course in UO’s Department of Earth Sciences, students used ground-penetrating radar to survey hydrology and slope stability near the site of a proposed rock quarry on TV Butte. 

An architecture studio course taught by assistant professor Christina Bollo focused on affordable housing ideas based on conversations with Oakridge officials and community members.  

“When I first became interested in architecture, I knew I wanted to design housing,” said Jamaica Atad, a junior in architecture. “It was cool to work on ideas for actual sites in Oakridge.” 

UO architecture major Jamaica Atad shares her Oakridge affordable housing ideas with Eugene architect Douglas Murkley during a studio review session where students get feedback from professionals
Lynda Kammerer, an Oakridge resident and board member of the Uptown Business and Revitalization Assocation, gives a tour for a UO architecture class.
During summer 2025, UO students researched hydrology and slope stability near a proposed rock quarry site.

Some of the UO classes working in Oakridge during 2024-26 program

  • Charting a new course 
    Students in a geographic information system course conducted research to help Oakridge officials find and use the best free software for creating maps. 
  • Unearthing data about drinking water and more 
    Using ground-penetrating radar, students researched hydrology and slope stability near a proposed rock quarry site. 
  • Boosting business 
    Focusing on marketing research and new products, students helped four small businesses in Oakridge. 
  • Adventure destination 
    Touting the city’s proximity to forests, mountains and world-class mountain biking trails, marketing students helped Oakridge reach visitors and new residents. 
  • Creating a legal alternative 
    Oakridge plans to implement a student-developed program to address unpaid court fines, offering opportunities for volunteer work in lieu of payment. 
  • Reporting on local news 
    Research conducted by students in the School of Journalism and Communication shed light on local news and civic information with an emphasis on keeping citizens informed and connected. 
  • Building community 
    Students helped Oakridge with ideas to fund and reopen a 29,000-square-foot community center. 

Serving cities across Oregon

Here’s where the Sustainable City Year Program has done projects so far.

To learn more about all the Sustainable City Year Program projects,
visit our past partnerships page.