Professor Ozawa researches and teaches about the ways in which
information is integrated into public decision making in the areas of
environmental policy and resource management. She directs the Toulan
School of Urban Studies and Planning and co-directs the PSU-China
Innovations in Urbanization Program.
Dr. Ozawa thinks of PSU as a “university without walls,” and is proud of the
Toulan School faculty’s engagement in local planning issues with global
relevance. As former co-director of the China program, she coordinated
opportunities for scholars and students to share planning and place-based
knowledge across language and geographic boundaries.
In the classroom, Dr. Ozawa teaches environmental policy and management,
planning theory and practice, and negotiation and dispute resolution. Dr.
Ozawa helps students hone skills in mediation and collaborative decision
making through dynamic multiparty negotiation exercises. The optimism of
students and their insatiable appetite for challenging old ways of doing
things drives her enjoyment of teaching.
Dr. Ozawa edited the Portland Edge: Challenges and Successes in Growing
Communities (2004), co-edited Planning the Pacific Northwest (2015), and
authored Recasting Science: Consensus-Based Procedures in Public Policy
Making (1991). Her more recent book chapters and journal articles examine
the relationship between process and relationships in community resilience
and collaborative governance.
Integrating theory and practice, Dr. Ozawa has led negotiation training
workshops with practitioners at the Portland Development Commission and
the Housing Authority of Portland. And she served as a bargaining team
member for the American Association of University Professors during three
rounds of contract negotiations. Prior to arriving at PSU in 1994, she taught as
adjunct faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was an
associate at the Program on Negotiation at the Harvard Law School. She has
participated in and led several accreditation reviews for the Planning
Accreditation Board (and served on the Board as a member, co-chair and
chair) 2014-2020.
RESEARCH AREAS:
Collaborative decision making, decision making, negotiation, environmental
protection and resource management
What Professor Ozawa has to say...
BEST PARTS OF JOB: Being surrounded by creative, energetic, and smart
people who are genuinely concerned about the quality of life for all people in
cities. It is the ideas and actions of these people that invigorate me and feed
my optimism.
UNIQUENESS OF THE TOULAN SCHOOL: The Toulan School attracts non-
conventional and innovative thinkers who want to put their ideas into action,
not just get paid big bucks. Finding such individuals among each class is a
rewarding venture.
THOUGHTS ON TEACHING IN PORTLAND: Access to decision makers, movers
and shakers; the openness of this region’s people, lack of arrogance, and the
lack of rigid institutional/organizational structures.
VISION FOR THE TOULAN SCHOOL: To become one of the five top resources
in the world for those who are committed to creating strong communities
from the bottom up.
HOW I SUPPORT THAT VISION: I’m an observer and a supporter. My interest is
in helping to make the case for inclusionary decision making processes
because that is the formula for building a technically wise and politically just
future.
OVERARCHING INTERESTS IN THE FIELD: Understanding how to integrate
different types of information and knowledge in ways that build strong
working relationships among the actors involved. Our understanding of any
given system is incomplete. We all have parts of the whole picture. We need
to work together to create a shared understanding of the world. More to the
point, even our best knowledge is insufficient for predicting the future and
how we might best respond to future conditions. Therefore, building strong
relationships among individuals, organizations and institutions is a critical
element in strengthening our ability to play an active role in creating our
future.
APPROACH TO TEACHING: Participatory, experiential, intuitive
WHAT STUDENTS SHOULD TAKE AWAY: The realization that opportunities to
gain information and knowledge that will help solve the particular problem
they are struggling with are all around them. Our challenge is to see the
connections between different problems, the common themes that help to
illuminate effective pathways for analysis, and co-create solutions.
WHAT I APPRECIATE ABOUT STUDENTS: Their energy and optimism and
their belief that they can help make things better.
ADVICE FOR PROSPECTIVE STUDENTS: Identify faculty with whom you want
to work.
FAVORITE URBAN PLACES: London - Boston – Paris – Portland! A beautiful
natural setting with water views and standout architecture (less so in
Portland…). Busy streetlife. Range of urban scapes – one can walk from one
neighborhood to another vastly different. Good food!
FAVORITE NON-URBAN PLACES: Any place with swimmable waters and
white, sandy beaches. The ocean’s a reminder about the vastness of our
planet and how inconsequential we are individually, but what devastation we
can cause with careless actions and behaviors. The beauty and mental
relaxation coastlines provide is unsurpassed.
DREAM FOR URBAN AREAS: Peace among a myriad of cultures.
INFLUENTIAL BOOKS:
The Tao of Physics, by Fritjof Capra
The Closing Circle, by Barry Commoner
The Hidden Dimension, by Edward Hall
The Evolution of Cooperation, by Robert Axelrod
DREAM VACATION: Lively urban neighborhoods, spectacular and tranquil
visiting with family and friends.