Dr Sophie Hadfield-Hill is a Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at the University of Birmingham. Principally a Children’s Geographer, Sophie’s expertise is children and young people’s everyday experiences of urban change in diverse contexts.
Dr Phil Jones is a cultural geographer who focuses on issues related to the city. Dr Phil Jones gave a recent lecture entitled Rethinking nature in cities | Geography Education Online as part of the The Geography Education Online website created by the Geographical Association (GA). This lecture explores two case studies of how working with the natural environment can bring great benefits to those living in cities. The first example examines the role of sustainable drainage in flood mitigation. The second examines the health benefits created by exposure to green spaces.
Professor Peter Kraftl is best known for his research on children’s geographies, and especially for research into the emotions, affects, materialities and practices that make up their everyday lives. He also publishes on geographies of education and architecture.
Prof Dominique Moran's research and teaching is in the sub-discipline of carceral geography, a geographical perspective on incarceration. Her recent paper looks at how "Increased green space in prisons can reduce self-harm and violence"
Doctoral Research
Forest Edge student Polly Jarman is in the final year of study of her PhD which is exploring 'Young people’s experiences of and learning in urban woodlands'.
Forest Edge student Harriet Croome is a PhD student in the International Development Department and is supervised by Dr Brock Bersaglio and Prof. Fiona Nunan. Harriet's draft PhD research title is 'Investigating how changing interactions between humans and elephants affect forest socio-ecological systems in drylands'.
Publications
Christensen, P., Hadfield-Hill, S., Horton, J. and Kraftl, P. (2017) Children Living in Sustainable Built Environments: New Urbanisms, New Citizens. London: Routledge.
Nairn, K. and Kraftl, P. (2016) Space, Place and Environment (volume three of Springer Major Reference Work on Geographies of Children and Young People, Editor-in-Chief Tracey Skelton). Berlin: Springer.
Horton, J. and Kraftl, P. (2017) Three playgrounds: researching the multiple geographies of children’s outdoor play. Online early in Environment and Planning A