Lecturer in Human Geography (Teaching Specialist, Academic)
College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
I am an urban sociologist and lecturer in Urban and Regional Planning at Flinders University. From a PhD in urban sociology, I moved into planning. My primary research interests revolve around the sociology of planning, housing, gentrification, urban resettlement, and place-based interventions.
Before joining Flinders, I was a lecturer at the University of Tasmania, where I focused on contemporary urban issues, including housing financialisation and social inequality. My research approach is shaped by critical urban scholars like David Harvey, and I examine how urban development and housing policies impact communities, particularly the most vulnerable. My goal is to understand and challenge these issues through research and urban planning that prioritises fairness and inclusivity.
I am a full member of the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA), which reflects my professional commitment to advancing planning practice and policy that supports socially just and inclusive cities. Through this membership, I engage actively with planning professionals and contribute to shaping the future of urban planning in Australia.
I have published in leading domestic and international journals. I also serve as a referee for academic journals and am on the editorial board of the Journal of Social Service Research.
PhD in Urban Sociology, University of Tasmania (2023)
Graduate Certificate in Research, University of Tasmania (2022)
Masters in Sociology and Anthropology, University of Malaya (2019)
Ben is an experienced educator, including experience teaching first and second year undergraduate units as well as developing core units in urban and regional planning. He has also taught postgraduate units in the Master of Planning at the University of Tasmania. He is passionate about teaching in planning and urban sociology and aims to introduce students to the theories of cities and planning on macro and micro levels in an accessible and engaging ways.
Units taught at the University of Tasmania include:
HGA202 – Perspectives on the Social World
HGA341 – City Lives
HGA223– Social Problems and Social Policy
HEJ208– Media Cultures and Society
KGA521– Urban Planning
KGA521- Urban Design
HGA343 – Globalisation and Society: Power, Inequality and Conflict
HGA101– Sociology: Understanding the Social World
HGA102– Sociology: Experiencing Social Life