I am an Associate Professor of Urban Regeneration at Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, Department of Urbanism, section of Urban Studies. I am an urban geographer/sociologist with a focus on design.

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My research interests are inclusive urban regeneration, placemaking in area redevelopment, citizen participation, socio-physical design in (poor) neighbourhoods, and gentrification. I aim to merge scientific knowledge with practitioner experience and experiential learning in the design of neighbourhood redevelopment projects. Other research includes the governance of urban regeneration in China and asset-based community development in spatial design.

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In education, I lead community-engaged learning and transdiscipli-nary collaborations between (urbanism) students, residents, and practitioners from neighbourhood organisations. This is based in a cross-over between my research and education innovation as a designated TU Delft Education Fellowship 2020-2021.

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At the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, Prof. Machiel van Dorst, Prof. Maarten van Ham, and I manage the Urban Studies research group in the Department of Urbanism.

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My educational background is in urban planning, housing and urban geography. I obtained a MSc degree in urban planning from Groningen University. In 2005, I received my PhD degree in urban geography at Delft University of Technology, for my thesis "Social Implications of Urban Restructuring and Residential Relocation".