Emerging Urban Inequalities Conference 2025

The city has often been identified as the crucible of modern life, a space in which future opportunities may be forged. With more than half of humanity living in cities, our urbanising condition is marked by social, environmental, and economic injustices within urban places and between them. Such harsh realities are deeply intertwined with challenges around urban governance, land financialisation, displacement, gender and sexual inequalities,  and racial discrimination. These are intensified by public health emergencies, global and national political crises and climate change. 

Despite these critical challenges, cities are also sites for innovation and resistance, where new political terrains and alternatives to purely market-driven approaches can be found. Thus, urban centres serve as key loci for both crises and solutions, which span a broad geography: north and south, central and peripheral, across a spectrum of large and smaller urban spaces.

The hybridity and complexity of urban life underscore the need for work across disciplines. By combining robust, theoretically-driven empirical research with socially-relevant questions, scholars can help illuminate emerging urban inequalities. Postgraduate and early career researchers play a critical role in shaping such interdisciplinary debates. Thus, this conference will be a space for cross-fertilisation and productive dialogues that point towards a more equitable urban future

Scope and Themes

We invite submissions from PhD students and Early Career Researchers examining emerging urban inequalities from diverse disciplinary perspectives. While we encourage a broad range of topics related to the theme of urban inequality, we are particularly interested in the following sub-themes:

Housing and Displacement

• Processes of resettlement, gentrification, and eviction

• Informal settlements and precarious housing

• Housing policies, governance, and activism

Spatial Inequality and Everyday Urban Spaces

• Public space, access, and exclusion

• Emplacement, attachment, and integration

• Social identification, cohesion, and place

Children, Youth, and Urban Play

• Child-friendly city initiatives

• Forced displacement and spaces for play

• Marginalised groups and informality

Finance, Financialisation, and Property

• Real estate markets, debt, speculation, and housing financialisation

• Real estate dynamics in times of crises and conflict 

Q: What is the format of the presentation? How long does each presenter have?

The conference is organised around four broad themes. Each theme includes multiple panel sessions (or “panel blocks”), and each panel session typically features around five presenters. Each presenter will have approximately 10 minutes (with a maximum of 12 minutes) to present their work.

Q: Is there a poster session?

No, there will not be a poster session. However, we plan to host informal social activities to encourage networking and conversation.

Q: Is it possible to participate online?

The main conference is in-person only. However, we will host a separate online session in early July for those unable to attend in person. This session will be open to the public, and registration will be available.

Q: Can the University provide accommodation for presenters?

We are only able to offer a modest contribution toward travel and accommodation costs. 

We recommend that presenters stay close to the venue (Mappin Hall). There are several hotels in Sheffield city centre that are a 15-minute walk away.

The Visit Sheffield website has a lot of information about hotels and food, as well as local attractions.

Q. How do I get reimbursed for my travel?

We can only reimburse participants who have already requested a contribution for their travel. We can offer approximately £30 per person as a small financial contribution. We are sorry that we cannot offer more.

Please fill out the expense claim form we will be providing. You will need to show proof of travel (e.g. a train ticket) as well as receipts. You can then submit the form.

Q: Can I bring a guest to the conference?

Due to limited space, guests are generally not permitted unless they are also registered. Please contact us if you have a specific request.

Q: Will I receive a certificate of attendance or participation?

Yes, certificates will be available upon request after the conference.

Q: Will meals or refreshments be provided during the conference?

We will provide tea, coffee, light refreshments, and lunch. Dinner is not included, but we will share a list of nearby food options.

New Frontiers Of Urban Inequality:  Power, Technology, and the Politics Of Everyday Life

Keynote speaker: Saffron Woodcraft, Principal Research Fellow and Director of Social Policy, UCL Institute for Global Prosperity

Chair: Professor Rowland Atkinson, Research Chair in Inclusive Societies, University of Sheffield

Location: Room A

Spatial Inequality and Everyday Urban Spaces 1 (Room A: Mappin Hall)

Muslim Minorities in a Non-Muslim Context: Exploring Socio-Spatial Inequalities on the Streets of Berlin (Hale Nur Pinar, University of Sheffield)

Intersecting Inequalities: Spatial Justice and Everyday Urban Spaces of Street Vendors (Noleen Chikowore, University of Leeds)

Public Spaces Protection Orders, Spatial Inequality, and the Exclusion of Vulnerability from Urban Spaces (Benjamin Archer, Sheffield Hallam University)

Situated Pluralism: Rethinking Diverse Streets as Catalysts of Urban Difference (Sangram Shirke, Umeå School Of Architecture) 

Introducing Sketchbooking as a Research Method (Charly Eden, University of Sheffield) 

Housing & Displacement 1 (Room B: Heartspace South Boardroom - Floor F)

How Far is Community-Led Housing for Marginalized Groups? Insights From an International Housing Comparison (Yueh-Sung Weng, University of Manchester)

Hospitality in the 21st Century's ‘Refugee City’: A Case Study Investigation of Inclusive Urbanism in Amsterdam in the Netherlands (Monisha Peter, Cardiff University)

Scrutinising Housing Inequality and Policy Framing in Sheffield (Enes Aydin, University of Sheffield)

Settlements of Contestation: A Comparative Exploration of Grassroots Environmental Contentions and Mobilizations in Flood-Prone Cities Along the Gulf of Guinea (Joel Ansah, Sciences Po Paris)

How are Informal Housing Constructed? Examining Resident’s Experiences of Housing Construction and Modification Through Assemblage Thinking (Hanae Soma, University of Michigan)

Spatial Inequality and Everyday Urban Spaces 2 (Room A: Mappin Hall)

Ethu Engale Kadal: (Radical) Practices of Resistance by the Women of the Coastal Community in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (Stany Babu, Sheffield Hallam University)

Creative (dis)placements: Public Art and Urban Public Spaces in Delhi (Nian Paul, University College London)

Street Art as Urban Resistance: Challenging Inequalities through Informal Practices in Bristol (Yongdong Ma, Cardiff University)

Community-led Temporary Intervention of Vacant Spaces: Practices from Bandung, Indonesia (Dwi Hatmojo Danurdoro, University of Leeds)

Decolonial Reflections on Methodology and Positionality - For Inclusive Market Redevelopment Projects in the UK (Disha Bansal, University of Leeds)

Housing & Displacement 2 (Room B: Heartspace South Boardroom - Floor F)

Gentrification, Displacement, and Impacts of Resettlement on Marginalised Communities: A Study of Mumbai’s Resettlement Colony (Priyanka Mokale, University of Birmingham)

Framing Displacement and Arrival in the Swiss Housing Crisis (Nouri Abdelgadir,  University of Zurich)

Navigating Displacement Pressure – Understanding the Role of Affects and Emotions in Shaping Displacements (Judith Schnelzer, Austrian Academy of Sciences)

The Long-Term Social Impacts of Shanghai Expo 2009 (Mengran Xu, King's College London)

Spatial Inequality and Everyday Urban Spaces 3 (Room A: Mappin Hall)

A Holistic Understanding of Walkability in Hot Arid Climates: A Qualitative Approach Using Observation and Behavioural Mapping (Mohammad QutbAldeen, University of Leeds)

Neurodivergent Experiences of Public Transport and the Built Environment: A Participatory Study in the North East of England (Robin Edge, Newcastle University) 

The Exploration of the Impact of Urban Green Space on Residents in the Context of Environmental Justice in the UK (Huanyu Wang, Newcastle University) 

Public Perception on Unequal Access to Urban Green Spaces: A Case Study of Dhaka City (Musarrat Zaman, University of Liverpool)

Reclaiming Public Rights: Reimagining Public Landscapes through Food, Justice, and Resilience (MD Tanvir Hasan, University of Sheffield)

Beyond Tokenism: Pathways to Transformative Community Engagement in Urban Development (Azul Castaneda Prado, Open University)

Free time (Room B: Heartspace South Boardroom - Floor F)

Location: Room A

This workshop will be a platform for sharing knowledge and capturing trends in urban inequalities research. It also aims at creating a sense of community amongst participants of the conference. The workshop will be organised in a world cafe format, with various tables addressing different topics related to urban inequalities, where participants engage in small group discussions. 

TOPIC A: Making sense of urban inequalities
TOPIC B: Researching urban inequalities
TOPIC C: Acting on urban inequalities
TOPIC D: Foreseeing urban inequalities 

Children, Youth, and Urban Play 1 (Room A: Mappin Hall)

Small Feet, Big Feelings: Exploring Children’s Favourite Spaces and the Making of Place Attachment in Urban China (Rong Zheng, University of Sheffield)

Vanishing Playgrounds: Forced Displacement and the Loss of Leisure Spaces for Children in Pattinampakkam, Chennai (Oviya Thangaraju, SOAS, University of London & Priya Dharshini, IFMR, India)

Criminalising Young People and Places: Who Belongs in the 'Public' Realm? (Ben Sereda, University of Birmingham)

Standardised Playgrounds, Standardised Children? Exploring the Relations between the Architectural Production of Playgrounds and Children (Dominik Laute, Goethe University Frankfurt)

The realities of Equitable Play for Adolescents and Youth in New Cairo, Egypt (Merham Keleg, Ain Shams University)

Finance, Financialisation, and Property 1 (Room B: Heartspace South Boardroom - Floor F)

Conflict (Resolution) And Making Sense of Responsibility-Making in Swiss Urban Real Estate (Frances Brill, University of Zurich)

Resisting or Embracing? Hegemonic Property-owning Ideologies and Property Inequity in Financialised Hong Kong since the 2000s (Ka Chi Yip, London School of Economics and Political Science)

In the Shadows of the Digital: Emerging Land and Property Inequalities in a Peripheral City (Keya Kunte, University College London)

Urban Glory for the Few: Real Estate Frontiers and Housing Justice in Kinshasa (DRC) (Paula Sevilla Nunez, International Institute for Environment and Development)

Revisiting the Child-Friendly City Framework: Reflections on Conceptualisation in the Global North and SouthChildren, Youth, and Urban Play 2 (Room A)

Transformative Lines (Hosn Houssami, London Metropolitan University)

Augmented Reality (AR) Digital Placemaking and Participatory Urban Design in Bandung, Indonesia (Meriky Lo, University of Auckland) 

Revisiting the Child-Friendly City Framework: Reflections on Conceptualisation in the Global North and South (Saja Zeadeh, University of Leeds)

An Analysis of Child Pedestrian Casualties Resulting from Vehicular Kerbside Activities in Great Britain (Fatin Abu Al Bandura, University College London)

Emerging Urban Inequalities: the Experiences of Voluntary Action Sheffield

Speaker: Helen Sims, Chief Executive Officer of Voluntary Action Sheffield

Location: Room A