Urban Studies Lab

The Urban Studies Lab (USL) at the University of Manchester develops actionable knowledge on cities understood as socio-eco-technical systems. Led by Prof Deljana Iossifova, USL investigates urban systems as dynamic socio-eco-technical entanglements using context-sensitive, participatory, and transdisciplinary approaches. 

We examine how contemporary urban transformation produces uneven exposure to environmental, infrastructural, and social harms, and how protection and repair are assembled across governance, expertise, and everyday life. Our work supports public, civic, and private sector decision-makers with insights that shape policy, guide design, and inform investment towards equitable, future-oriented urban change.

We bring spatial thinking  to the study of urban everyday life and to the cultures, natures, infrastructures, and architectures that condition both present and emergent urban worlds. Through critical attention to entrenched inequalities within urbanisation and its material arrangements, we aim to inform interventions that produce meaningful impact across diverse urban contexts.