Associate Professor
Credentials
PhD Environmental Studies, York University
MES Environmental Studies, York University
BA (Honours) Cultural Studies, Trent University
Research Keywords
Urban Environmental Justice; Habitat Creation & Novel Ecologies; Post-Industrial Urban Space; Political Ecology & Cultural Politics Of Representation; Urban Environmental Aesthetics; Contemporary Arts As Planning Discourse.
Contact Information
4700 Keele Street
Toronto, ON M3J 1P3
416 736 2100
http://jfoster.blog.yorku.ca/ | http://criticalurbanplanning.info.yorku.ca/
Research Interests
I am interested in the ways that ecological systems permeate cities, the ways that human perceptions, beliefs, values and preferences of diverse landscape actors are expressed through ecological decisions, and the effects of cities on non-human urban inhabitants. My research on urban habitat creation and ecological restoration focuses on the interplay between social and biophysical dynamics in deindustrialized spaces. This includes the theory and practice of environmental planning and design, with particular attention to the constitution of post-industrial urban landscapes such as former pits and quarries, dumps, factories and rail lines. Central themes of this work are urban ecology, environmental justice and environmental aesthetics.
My current research focuses on urban landscape form and processes across cities such as Toronto, Paris, New York and Milwaukee. I investigate how industrial legacies are interpreted and expressed ecologically, particularly in terms of how these spaces are imagined, constructed, inhabited and distributed.