Kutztown University’s Dr. Albert Fu, professor of anthropology and sociology, will present the Chambliss Faculty Research Award Lecture virtually 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 21. The lecture, Interdisciplinary Views of the City: Memory and Nature, is open to the public on Zoom.
Zoom link: https://kutztown.zoom.us/j/93737052510?pwd=M3h4S00rMDl1cGI3MUwyQ1dqREpUUT09.
This presentation examines the built environment from the standpoint of collective memory and nature to provide a multi-faceted look at the world around us. It will look at how our understanding of cities is shaped by the past. However, our view of the past is socially produced. As such, there are ideological forces that affect how we see architecture and buildings. Similarly, culture, society and politics affect what we see as “natural.” The second part of this presentation will look at how ideas about nature affect city-building. Again, what we see is that socially produced ideas have a profound impact on the places where we live. The presentation will conclude with a discussion of how our surroundings structure everyday life.
Fu is the 2020 winner of the KU Chambliss Faculty Research Award. The Chambliss Award, inaugurated in 2004 through a gift from Dr. Carlson R. Chambliss, professor emeritus, is meant to recognize the very highest achievement in research and scholarship and can be awarded only once in a person’s career.
Fu is a professor of anthropology and sociology and has been with KU for 10 years. His areas of interest include cultural studies, popular culture, environmental sociology, historical sociology and urban studies. He has had 12 published journal articles, the latest in 2020 titled, “Mediterranean Style Gated Communities Around the World: Architecture, Globalization and Transnational Elites.”
He has also written two book chapters and had six published book reviews. Fu earned bachelor’s degrees in history and sociology from the University of California, Irvine, and his Master of Arts and Doctor in Sociology from the State University of New York at Binghamton.
