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Colin McFarlane

@colinmcfarlane

Professor of Urban Geography, Durham University http://cityfragment.wordpress.com DenCity: http://dencity.webspace.durham.ac.uk Durham: https://www.durham.ac.uk/staff/colin-mcfarlane/

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17.11.2023
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Latest posts by Colin McFarlane @colinmcfarlane

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The UK universities cutting geography have lost their bearings From climate change to geopolitics, the knowledge, skills and insights of geographers have never been more relevant, say five professors

Really importance piece in the Times Higher on cuts to Geography at a time when it matters most www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/uk-u...

17.02.2026 09:39 πŸ‘ 13 πŸ” 8 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Flyer with USF logo for the Urban Urgencies Call for Applications on a picture of a COP26 protest via flickr by Midia NINJA and the text "The Urban Studies Foundation is launching a major new grant to support rapid-response collaborative research on the world’s most pressing urban challenges.
Up to Β£35,000 per project
Open to researchers globally
Requires partnership with at least one non-academic organisation
23 March 2026 at 23:59 UTC +0
Apply online"

Flyer with USF logo for the Urban Urgencies Call for Applications on a picture of a COP26 protest via flickr by Midia NINJA and the text "The Urban Studies Foundation is launching a major new grant to support rapid-response collaborative research on the world’s most pressing urban challenges. Up to Β£35,000 per project Open to researchers globally Requires partnership with at least one non-academic organisation 23 March 2026 at 23:59 UTC +0 Apply online"

Flyer with USF logo for the Urban Urgencies Call for Applications on a picture of a COP26 protest via flickr by Midia NINJA and the text "The Urban Studies Foundation is launching a major new grant to support rapid-response collaborative research on the world’s most pressing urban challenges.
Up to Β£35,000 per project
Open to researchers globally
Requires partnership with at least one non-academic organisation
23 March 2026 at 23:59 UTC +0
Apply online"

Flyer with USF logo for the Urban Urgencies Call for Applications on a picture of a COP26 protest via flickr by Midia NINJA and the text "The Urban Studies Foundation is launching a major new grant to support rapid-response collaborative research on the world’s most pressing urban challenges. Up to Β£35,000 per project Open to researchers globally Requires partnership with at least one non-academic organisation 23 March 2026 at 23:59 UTC +0 Apply online"

⏰ Urban Urgencies call now open!

πŸ—“οΈ Deadline: 23 March 2026 (23:59 UTC)

This new grant supports collaborative research on pressing urban challenges worldwide, addressing issues such as the climate crisis, housing, health, governance, conflict, AI, and more.

πŸ”— Learn more & apply: ow.ly/FUIn50XGtgz

30.01.2026 12:46 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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We are looking forward to welcoming Dr Hashem Abushama (Oxford University) to the Department on February 3rd for an event organised by our Urban Worlds research cluster. Hashem will present on the theme 'Palestine: urban spatial disarticulations, national questions'.

15.01.2026 13:36 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Cover to the Comics Cultural Impact Collective's DCMS Report from April 2025

Cover to the Comics Cultural Impact Collective's DCMS Report from April 2025

Once again sharing this phenomenal report proposing a Β£1.5m UK Comics Fund, on top of also being a bangin' evidenced manifesto for comics in general: www.thecomicsculturalimpactcollective.org/CCIC%20DCMS%...

19.12.2025 10:44 πŸ‘ 20 πŸ” 10 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Fantastic that a long interview with @ajsecor.bsky.social and I is the cover story for the January issue of Byline Times - was a pleasure to talk to Hardeep and Peter about the ideas in the The Politics of Feeling! @bylinetimes.bsky.social
@peterjukes.bsky.social @hardeepmatharu.bsky.social

18.12.2025 17:52 πŸ‘ 46 πŸ” 18 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are nine tiles sharing 6 papers in a Themed Intervention and 3 standard articles, with the names of papers in the issue.

1) Worlding geography, area studies and the study of area
Han Cheng,  Deen Sharp

2) Egypt's geographical tradition: The post-independence moment and shifting regional imaginations
Aya Nassar

3) Constructing and contesting meta-geographies in Russian area studies debates
Vera Smirnova

4) Geography and area studies as critical bedfellows? The view from Singapore
Brenda S. A. Yeoh

5) Global China's spatial ambition and area studies with geography
Han Cheng

6) Beyond the Limpopo: Geography and the worlding of South(ern) Africa
Maano Ramutsindela

7) Unseasonable seasons: Shifting geographies of weather and migration mobilities
Kaya Barry

8) Staged ecologies: Aesthetics, nature and infrastructure in the late-modern metropolis
Zuhri James

9) Multispecies slavery–environment nexus in resource extraction and animals' ecological politics: Coercive donkey labour in Indian river sand mining
Yamini Narayanan

A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are nine tiles sharing 6 papers in a Themed Intervention and 3 standard articles, with the names of papers in the issue. 1) Worlding geography, area studies and the study of area Han Cheng, Deen Sharp 2) Egypt's geographical tradition: The post-independence moment and shifting regional imaginations Aya Nassar 3) Constructing and contesting meta-geographies in Russian area studies debates Vera Smirnova 4) Geography and area studies as critical bedfellows? The view from Singapore Brenda S. A. Yeoh 5) Global China's spatial ambition and area studies with geography Han Cheng 6) Beyond the Limpopo: Geography and the worlding of South(ern) Africa Maano Ramutsindela 7) Unseasonable seasons: Shifting geographies of weather and migration mobilities Kaya Barry 8) Staged ecologies: Aesthetics, nature and infrastructure in the late-modern metropolis Zuhri James 9) Multispecies slavery–environment nexus in resource extraction and animals' ecological politics: Coercive donkey labour in Indian river sand mining Yamini Narayanan

A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are nine tiles with standard articles, with the names of papers in the issue.

1) Before it's too late: The extinction script, multi-species reproductive futurism and Extinction Rebellion
Amy Robson

2) Infrastructure as archive: Examining the colonial geographies of rivers
Austin Read

3) Infra-culture and infrastructures: Relational placemaking at the coast
Julian Clark

4) Hotels, refuge, and the rise of carceral hospitality
Jonathan Darling,  Andrew Burridge

5) On the natural border: A bio-geo-political reading
Matteo Proto,  Francesco Buscemi

6) Postimperial melancholia and the English North–South divide: Reading the life stories of Northern women of colour in London
Saskia Papadakis

7) Theorising legal gaps geographically: Exploring the transition from asylum seeker to refugee in the UK
Sarah M. Hughes

8) On the politics of movement: Borderscapes, choreopolicing and choreopolitics
Charlotte Veal

9) High-resolution property: Drone enclosures in digital India
Thomas Cowan

A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are nine tiles with standard articles, with the names of papers in the issue. 1) Before it's too late: The extinction script, multi-species reproductive futurism and Extinction Rebellion Amy Robson 2) Infrastructure as archive: Examining the colonial geographies of rivers Austin Read 3) Infra-culture and infrastructures: Relational placemaking at the coast Julian Clark 4) Hotels, refuge, and the rise of carceral hospitality Jonathan Darling, Andrew Burridge 5) On the natural border: A bio-geo-political reading Matteo Proto, Francesco Buscemi 6) Postimperial melancholia and the English North–South divide: Reading the life stories of Northern women of colour in London Saskia Papadakis 7) Theorising legal gaps geographically: Exploring the transition from asylum seeker to refugee in the UK Sarah M. Hughes 8) On the politics of movement: Borderscapes, choreopolicing and choreopolitics Charlotte Veal 9) High-resolution property: Drone enclosures in digital India Thomas Cowan

A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are six tiles with 4 standard articles, 1 commentary, and a Themed Intervention with the names of papers in the issue.

1) Post-pandemic geographies of working from home: More of the same for spatial inequalities?
David McCollum

2) The place where we live: Children, families, play, neighbourhoods and spaces of care during and after the pandemic
Alison Stenning,  Wendy Russell

3) Living a β€˜shadow life’: The disorientations of losing orientation and agency while waiting through furlough
Victoria J. E. Jones

4) What does it mean to be present at work? Negotiating attention, distraction and presence in working from home
David Bissell,  Elisabetta Crovara,  Andrew Gorman-Murray,  Elizabeth Straughan

5) Subtractive, ambient and bifurcated attention at work and when working from home: Towards a geography of workplace attention

6) Crisis of imagination/(re)imaginations for a (climate) crisis
Ankit Kumar,  Chandni Singh,  Lauren Hermanus,  Lalitha Kamath,  Wangui Kimari,  Mark Pelling,  Harriet Bulkeley

A graphic showing the title page of Transactions on a read background with TIBG in large letters on the right hand page. On the left hand page are six tiles with 4 standard articles, 1 commentary, and a Themed Intervention with the names of papers in the issue. 1) Post-pandemic geographies of working from home: More of the same for spatial inequalities? David McCollum 2) The place where we live: Children, families, play, neighbourhoods and spaces of care during and after the pandemic Alison Stenning, Wendy Russell 3) Living a β€˜shadow life’: The disorientations of losing orientation and agency while waiting through furlough Victoria J. E. Jones 4) What does it mean to be present at work? Negotiating attention, distraction and presence in working from home David Bissell, Elisabetta Crovara, Andrew Gorman-Murray, Elizabeth Straughan 5) Subtractive, ambient and bifurcated attention at work and when working from home: Towards a geography of workplace attention 6) Crisis of imagination/(re)imaginations for a (climate) crisis Ankit Kumar, Chandni Singh, Lauren Hermanus, Lalitha Kamath, Wangui Kimari, Mark Pelling, Harriet Bulkeley

πŸ“’December Issue of TIBGπŸ“’

Our latest issue gathers papers around 3 broad themes: the more-than-human, borders, and working from home. It also features the third collection in our 'Geography in the World' series.

23/24 papers are #OpenAccess ⬇️
rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/14755661...

19.12.2025 12:21 πŸ‘ 15 πŸ” 8 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1

Please share widely - new editor opportunity at The GJ ⬇️

25.11.2025 18:06 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
Agoriad: A Journal of Spatial Theory

A special issue here of the journal Agoriad entitled 'Thinking with fragments: The allure of the broken, discarded, and disjointed in urban space'.

Exploring what the 'fragment' might offer as a way of thinking about and writing the urban.

agoriad.cardiffuniversitypress.org

05.11.2025 12:21 πŸ‘ 11 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Harvey at 90: A Verso Series Last year, we celebrated Fredric Jameson's ninetieth birthday with a month long series commemorating his impact on literary criticism, critical theory and philosophy.Β  This month, in honour of David H...

Nice collection of essays on David Harvey at 90, on the Verso site www.versobooks.com/en-gb/blogs/...

23.10.2025 12:10 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

New: Dialogues in Urban Research exploring what it means to think about crisis as urban & how locating crisis in the urban reconfigures relations between eventful & everyday crisis politics, materiality, discourse & movement. Part of a great set of interventions.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

10.10.2025 13:34 πŸ‘ 30 πŸ” 10 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 2

Thanks Christian

10.10.2025 12:56 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Crisis and the urban imagination - Colin McFarlane, 2025 What are ideas like β€˜polycrisis’ doing to how we think and research the urban? How might we ensure that discourses and conditions of polycrises do not erode our...

Some thoughts on what what crisis is doing to the urban imagination - short piece as part of a collection in Dialogues in Urban Research: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

10.10.2025 12:21 πŸ‘ 15 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

That’s a wrap on our first panel in Ljubljana 🌍

A clear message from today: Europe’s green transition won’t succeed without strong public infrastructure, long-term investment, and public control of public services.

Public services are the backbone of a fair, sustainable future. πŸ’§βš‘οΈπŸ—‘οΈ

08.10.2025 13:49 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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A heartfelt thank you to the wonderful people at Metropolis, World Association of the Major Metropolises for this award! I was so honoured that 'Waste and the City' won this prize. I am huge... A heartfelt thank you to the wonderful people at Metropolis, World Association of the Major Metropolises for this award! I was so honoured that 'Waste and the City' won this prize. I am hugely grate...

A huge thank you to the wonderful people at Metropolis for this award! I was so honoured & grateful opportunity in Seoul to focus attention on the global urban sanitation crisis. Thank you to @versobooks.bsky.social for nominating the book, & to Pattis.

www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

30.09.2025 12:37 πŸ‘ 7 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 2
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The Waste Commons TRAILER This is "The Waste Commons TRAILER" by Rosalind Fredericks on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

Congrats to Rozy Fredericks and collaborators on this great film on waste in Dakar - trailer available here for 'The Waste Commons'.

vimeo.com/1006661903?s...

19.09.2025 08:51 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Safe sanitation targets β€˜out of reach’: New global report examines progress and challenges The first thing most of us do when we wake up in the morning is head for the bathroom. While the humble toilet is taken for granted, almost one in five people globally lack even basic sanitation wh…

Last month the latest global data on sanitation was published. I wrote a short blog on it below. Spoiler: for all that there has been very welcome improvements, 1 in 5 people still lack even basic sanitation.

cityfragment.wordpress.com/2025/09/18/s... #sanitation

18.09.2025 10:47 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers | RGS Journal | Wiley Online Library Click on the title to browse this issue

This is a great little collection in Transactions on 'worlding geography' and area studies... rgs-ibg.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1... @rgs-ibghe.bsky.social

12.09.2025 08:37 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

My review, "An introduction to a non-fascist geography", of Chris Philo, Adorno and the Anti-Fascist Geographical Imagination (Edinburgh University Press, 2025) is now published online first in @dialogueshg.bsky.social Dialogues in Human Geography.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/... (1/3)

10.09.2025 07:08 πŸ‘ 22 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Thanks @lifehouse.bsky.social. Yes, this is one of the questions we came back to while writing the piece, and partly our hope is that the piece provokes some reflection on that.

05.09.2025 08:27 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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INFRASTRUCTURAL EXTENSIONS: Rethinking Infrastructure in Urban Studies This essay explores how contemporary urban infrastructure is being conceptually and operationally extended into new domains. Across five key arenasβ€”elemental, care, more-than-human, cyber-physical an...

New piece with Simon Marvin & Jon Rutherford on 'infrastructural extensions'. We examine how infrastructure is being stretched into new domains (the elemental, care, more-than-human, cyber-physical, & neurotechnical). Open access in @ijurresearch.bsky.social

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

05.09.2025 07:28 πŸ‘ 17 πŸ” 8 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Roger Keil @rkeil.bsky.social and I are proud to announce the release of an @urbanaffairsreview.bsky.social collection celebrating the life and work of the late political theorist and scholar of cities Warren Magnusson, who passed away earlier this year. www.urbanaffairsreview.com/walter-magnu...

21.08.2025 10:29 πŸ‘ 16 πŸ” 9 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 2
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Coming soon. The Citizen and the Vagabond. A Politics of Mobility.

19.08.2025 15:26 πŸ‘ 65 πŸ” 16 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 1
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Governing infectious disease in the urban periphery: marginality, informality and vulnerability This paper works toward building a theoretical framework to understand the role that extended urbanisation and peripherality played in the COVID-19 pandemic, with a specific focus on conceptualisin...

New article by S. Harris Ali, Creighton Connolly & myself on the relationship of infectious disease and urban peripheries Governing infectious disease in the urban periphery: marginality, informality and vulnerability: City: Vol 0, No 0 - Get Access www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

18.08.2025 16:04 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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Meet the Finalists of the 2025 Global Cities Book Award | Metropolis

Chuffed that my book 'Waste and the City' has gone from the longest to the shortlist with two excellent books here, alongside @shakirahh.bsky.social and Stephanie Wakefield... Many thanks to Metropolis...Β 
www.metropolis.org/news/meet-fi...

15.08.2025 12:31 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Meet the Finalists of the 2025 Global Cities Book Award | Metropolis

Very honored that 'Master Plans and Minor Acts' is one of three finalists for the 2025 Pattis Family Foundation Global Cities Book Award (Metropolis).
Congratulations to @colinmcfarlane.bsky.social and Stephanie Wakefield and many thanks to the judging panel!
www.metropolis.org/news/meet-fi...

04.08.2025 14:09 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Global health research projects halted by latest UK aid cuts - Research Professional News Exclusive: Applications for HIV research among those impacted by suspension of NIHR schemes

Exclusive: Global health research projects halted by latest UK aid cuts.

Winners of UK government grants for global health research have had their funding suspended after ministers decided to cut spending on international development, we can reveal.

www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-p...

23.07.2025 10:58 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
The book cover for The Feminist Art of Walking by Morag Rose. The text is in large sans serif font and is in the middle of the page. It is in white over an image of the sky with a cloudy sunset. On the left edge, vertical, is a cityscape, on the right some gorse bushes

The book cover for The Feminist Art of Walking by Morag Rose. The text is in large sans serif font and is in the middle of the page. It is in white over an image of the sky with a cloudy sunset. On the left edge, vertical, is a cityscape, on the right some gorse bushes

So... here's why I havent posted much. Been writing a book! Thrilled to share The Feminist Art of Walking is out on Pluto October 20th www.plutobooks.com/978074535100... Thanks so much to everyone who has helped make this happen, I am excited and a bit scared for you to read it

22.07.2025 07:55 πŸ‘ 39 πŸ” 18 πŸ’¬ 6 πŸ“Œ 2
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πŸ“£ Call for Papers:
Debt Urbanism and the Housing Question

ℹ️ I'm putting together a symposium proposal to The International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (IJURR) with co-editors @sklosterkamp.bsky.social & Mel Nowicki

πŸ—“οΈ Deadline for abstracts 22 August 2025

🏹 Please spread the word!

21.07.2025 08:54 πŸ‘ 20 πŸ” 15 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 3
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Our GlobalCORRIDOR paper is out in the latest edition of Urban Studies journal

"The unending corridor: Critical approaches to the politics, logics and socio-technics of urban corridorisation"

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

18.07.2025 09:35 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Special forum in honour of pioneer development, feminist and participatory methods geographer, Janet Townsend, late of Durham University, for Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography.

15.07.2025 16:24 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0