What Does the Right to the City Look Like in Camden?
How can residents claim a “right to the city” in places long defined by distress and persistent poverty? This research examined community well-being in Camden, New Jersey, using a mixed-method framework to explore how objective, subjective, and behavioral indicators shape quality of life in a city navigating decades of economic hardship.
Presented at the Graduate Poster Exhibition during the 2025 SPARK! (Showcase of Projects, Art, Research, and Knowledge), this project was awarded the 2025 Poster Prize in the Humanities. Developed within the Ph.D. program in Public Affairs/Community Development at Rutgers University–Camden, the work was completed by Nelson Zhong. The abstract below introduces his mixed-method exploration of community well-being and the realization of the right to the city in distressed contexts.
Abstract: Unearthing Perspectives: A Mixed-Method Exploration of Forging the Right to a City in Distress
Persistent-poverty and distressed communities are in many ways the epitome of left-behind places. Seemingly detached from the nation’s broader economic growth, the question becomes: how can residents establish or gain a “right to the city” in distress?
Using a community-engaged framework, this study explores this phenomenon by investigating community well-being and quality of life in Camden, New Jersey — a city that has been insolvent since 1985. Using quality-of-urban-life indicators, the research asks: “How do objective, subjective, and behavioral quality-of-life indicators influence community well-being in a distressed city?”
To achieve this, a mixed-method approach was applied, merging GIS with both objective and subjective spatial data, comparative economic well-being data, and residents’ assessments gathered from focus groups and surveys to pinpoint areas of growth, strength, and potential improvement.
The findings suggest that community well-being and key quality-of-life indicators are necessary to realize the “right to the city,” as they encompass the multidimensional aspects of residents’ lives that make a city livable, equitable, and democratic. The study concludes by offering strategies for community building and policy interventions that make the right to the city possible even in deeply distressed contexts.
Graduate Poster Exhibition at SPARK!
The Graduate Poster Exhibition celebrates the research and creative work of the graduate community, showcasing everything from prose and code to original research and artistic expression. As part of SPARK! (Showcase of Projects, Art, Research, and Knowledge), a reimagining of Research Week, the exhibition highlights the depth, range, and impact of graduate scholarship and invites the campus community to engage with ideas taking shape across disciplines.
Transform Communities with Rutgers–Camden’s Public Affairs Graduate Programs
Rutgers University–Camden offers M.S. and Ph.D. programs in Public Affairs/Community Development, focusing on public policy, urban affairs, and political economy. The curriculum addresses community power, urban sustainability, and social justice, providing advanced research skills through courses like Statistical Inquiry and Geospatial Analysis. Students can engage in practical experiences via research centers such as the Senator Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs and the Center for Urban Research and Education. The program offers flexible pathways, including a 30-credit M.S. degree suitable for part-time students, a 2+3 model combining M.S. and Ph.D. studies, and a 66-credit Ph.D. program. Notably, Rutgers–Camden’s Public Affairs program is recognized among the top public affairs schools by U.S. News & World Report.
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