Development geographer primarily interested in urban India, the poor, NGOs and policymakers, with specialism in improving access to housing, challenging urban & gender politics and exploring issues surrounding inequality and social justice. Specialising in cities and everyday living, relationships between theory, policy processes and practice. Mainly qualitative research capturing knowledge on lived experiences of the poor.  My research approach is based on understanding how power and structural inequalities (class, gender, race, age) interact to produce disparities.

Key Areas of Research:

• Ageing & Widowhood
• BAME Gig Workers in London (Labour Geographies and the Platform economy)
• Community participation and participatory development
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
• Gender (Feminist and emotional geographies)
• Local Grassroots Non-Governmental Organisation
• Informal housing

Research Funding

British Academy, British Council, Economic and Social Research Council, Department for International Development, Development Studies Association and the Swedish Research Council. 

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

August 2023 - Present  Professor of Development Geography, Dept. of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London.

August 2015 – July 2023   Senior Lecturer (100%), Dept. of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London.

Sept. 2004 – July 2015   Senior Lecturer (part-time 60%) Dept. of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London.

Jan 1996 - Aug 2004* Lecturer, Department of Geography, Royal Holloway, University of London. *(includes two periods of maternity leave).

May 1992 – Dec 1995 Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies (IDS), University of Sussex.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES

English, Hindi, & Marathi

TEACHING

Over twenty-five years of experience of teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. I am a Senior Fellow of Advance HE (SFHEA).

First Year Tutorials:

GG2003: Field Training: Human & Environmental Geography field trip to Malawi, Kenya & Cyprus

GG2071: Perspectives on Development

GG3001 & GG3005: Supervising Undergraduate Dissertation & with placement

GG3083: Cities and Development in the Global South

GG5012:  MSc Global Futures: Justice, Development & Sustainability & MSc Sustainability & Management

Masters Dissertation Supervision

PHD SUPERVISION

I have supervised 12 PhD students to completion, some as collaborative PhDs with NGOs.  I'm always excited to hear from students interested in working at the intersection of geography and other disciplines, especially around themes of my research interest (see above).

EDITOR OF HANDBOOKS

I have edited three widely used textbooks:

• Companion to Development Studies (2002, 2008, 2014, 2024) Routledge.
• Doing Development Research (2006), Sage Publications.
• The Handbook of Displacement (2020), Palgrave Publications.

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION (EDI)

I am passionate about EDI issues and have offered significant EDI leadership within my department (Geography), wider institution (RHUL) and the broader environment of my discipline. I developed and implemented a vision for gender equality as the EDI lead for the Geography Department (2015-23) which is evidenced by successful applications for the UK’s Gender Charter Mark- Athena SWAN Silver Award in Nov 2018 (renewed in May 2023). My contributions to institutional equality strategies include my work (since 2014) on the Gender and Race Equality Charter Mark Working Group which has seen development of  university wide training, mentoring and other initiatives within university. In addition, I am currently chair of the Royal Geographical Society’s (RGS, the UK’s professional body for Geography) Race Culture & Equality Working Group.  I am also project adviser providing on-going guidance and sharing expertise with colleagues at national level on the RGS’s  programme “Geography for All: EDI in school geography.” 

CURRENT EXTERNAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• 2016 - Present    Chair (since 2021) & Founding committee member, Royal Geographical Society’s Race Culture and Equality Working Group.
• 2023 onwards Fellow/Member of the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Talent Peer Review College (PRC). The UKRI Talent PRC supports the Future Leaders Fellowships (FLF), Innovation Scholars and future UKRI collective talent initiatives. 
• 1999 - Present     Member of international advisory editorial board of the journal ‘Progress in Development Studies’.

CURRENT RESPONSIBILITIES AT ROYAL HOLLOWAY

• 2014 - Present   Committee member of Race Equality Charter Mark Working Group. One of the first eight universities to have be awarded a bronze level award in U.K (2015).