PhD in Social and Economic Geography

Current research
In my research I'm dealing with the field of housing segregation. One strategy to combat segregation is social mix. The idea is that different household categories should live close to each other, often at neighbourhood level. This is a common policy in other European countries but how is it for Sweden? In my thesis, Policy and planning for social and housing mix and decreased housing segregation– A goal without means?, I conclude that social mix still is on top of the political agenda but the deregulation of the hosing sector have given drastic effects for the implementation process. There are just a few and rather indirect measures left to implement the policy in planning today. Another conclusion is that although the goal of social mix is formulated by the State, its implementation is almost entirely depending on the ambition of each municipality.

In my ongoing research I will go deeper in to the question of social mix and how it is to be implemented. For example, is it more important to create a social mix in bigger cities compared to smaller ones?

I will also be engaged in a comparative research project where the ethnic segregation in the Nordic countries is studied. Can the common heritage of the Nordic countries be mirrored in the migration patterns shown in each country and is the ethnic segregation pattern alike?