Research Interests

When I was in high school in Hamilton, Ontario I read Peter Hall's "World Cities" and Jane Jacobs' "The Death and Life of Great American Cities." I think from that point on 'the urban' became a leitmotif in my life. I hold a Bachelor of Architecture (University of Toronto), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Planning Studies (Architectural Association, London England) and a Ph.D. in Environmental Studies (York University). I have worked at different times in my life as an architect, an urban planner and a developer of non-profit housing co-operatives. My current research focuses on how people live in the 21st century with the legacies of 20th century modernist and socialist urbanisms. I have conducted research on that topic in Berlin, Hanoi and Stockholm. Other areas of research interest include the in-between city of post-suburbia, and very generally urban planning and development. I am at the present time a co-investigator on a project investigating climate change, urban resilience, poverty and vulnerability in southeast Asia. I find that the most personally rewarding research projects are ones in which I actively engage with and support community-based and directed initiatives.

Degrees

Bachelor of Architecture, University of Toronto
Post-graduate Diploma Planning Studies, Architectural Association, London U.K.
PhD Environmental Studies, York University

Research Interests