Being in Cambridge means always understanding the powerful presence of colleges and universities. Town-gown tensions may always remain, but many cities are forging new partnerships with higher education institutions, as well as hospitals and medical centers. At the one-day symposium "Eds, Meds and Municipalities" at Holy Cross in Worcester last month, representatives from both sides traded concerns, from working with neighborhood groups to payments in lieu of taxes. Tina Brooks, undersecretary at the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, talked about the importance of such institutions in revitalizing downtowns. All of this is by no means an American story: universities and cities are discovering or building on synergy all around the world. David C. Perry, director of the Great Cities Institute and professor of urban planning and policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago, will be at Lincoln House May 28 to talk about the overseas experience and to celebrate the publication of Global Universities and Urban Development: Case Studies and Analysis, published by M.E. Sharpe and the Lincoln Institute, with Wim Wiewel, the new president of Portland State. The event is a lecture 4 p.m., followed by a book-signing and reception. Register here.