Jerry Kolo is a Professor of Urban and Regional Planning in the School of Architecture and Design at the American University of Sharjah (AUS), Sharjah, UAE. Prior to joining AUS in 2008/2009, he was a Professor at Florida Atlantic University, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA, where he also founded and directed an applied research centre, the Centre for Urban Redevelopment and Empowerment (CURE). His areas of teaching and research specialization are urban economic development, environmental planning and sustainable community planning. Jerry has an extensive consulting track record in the areas of municipal economic development, university-community partnerships, and community empowerment. He earned a PhD. in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada in 1986. For his community and public service, Jerry has earned several awards, including the State of Florida Governor’s Public Service Award in 1994, and the Florida African-American Achiever’s Award in 1999.