edX Online
Instructor photo

Michael Cohen

Professor and Director of International Affairs at The New School, New York

About me

Michael Cohen (Ph.D, University of Chicago) is an urban and development policy specialist currently serving as Professor of International Affairs at the New School. He teaches courses on smart cities and urban values, the urban century, slums and urban development and urban strategies. He worked at the World Bank from 1972 to 1999 and was responsible for much of the Bank’s urban policy development during that period. From 1994-1998, he served as the Senior Advisor to the Bank & Vice-President for Environmentally Sustainable Development. Prof Cohen has worked in 55 countries and was involved in the World Bank’s work on infrastructure, environment, and sustainable development. He has published several books on urban development, centrally Africa, and the impact of development assistance. Mr Cohen has advised governments, NGOs, and academic institutions around the world. He was a member of the Infrastructure Panel and Urban Dynamics Panel of the US National Academy of Science. He has helped the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) prepare its Global Report on Human Settlements in 2005-2012. He received his PhD in Political Economy from University of Chicago.