This seminar orients students to major themes in the planning and design of metropolitan environments in a globalizing age. We examine these practices in an international context, drawing on a wide range of cases. We study the applications of urban planning and design to such elements as housing, property, land use, streets, transportation, utilities, industry, parks, historic preservation, adaptive reuse, leisure and entertainment. In all cases, we place these practices into the broader ambit of urban politics, policy, and social relations. The animating question of the course is this: how do multiple competing and colluding interests shape the planning and design of cities, and how do cities reflect these struggles in their built forms?