Cross-Appointments
Fields of Study
- Social & Political Geography
- Urban
Areas of Interest
The geographies of race and racialization, urban infrastructure planning, and the politics of public participation in urban knowledge production and policymaking. He has a particular interest in how members of marginalized communities work to shape and reshape urban spaces, politics, and experiences.
Biography
I joined the Urban Studies Program in 2013 after completing my PhD and MA in geography from the University of Toronto. Prior to that, and after completing my undergraduate degrees in political science and business administration from the University of Washington, I worked for several years at a shelter for homeless and refugee teenagers in Seattle. It was my experience working in the shelter that really piqued my interest in urban issues and urban life. This work also cemented my commitment to imagining and helping realize more liveable and just urban futures. I am cross-appointed in the Department of Geography and Planning.
Publications
St. Louis-McBurnie, K., Pagaling, N. M., & Roberts, D. J. (2021). The work of crisis framing: Claims of social justice obscuring a history and, likely future, of uneven investment in Moss Park, Toronto. Journal of Urban Affairs, 1-18
Roberts, DJ. And JP Catungal (2018) Neoliberalizing social justice in infrastructure revitalization planning: Analyzing Toronto’s More Moss Park project in its early stages. Annals of the Association of American Geographers 108(2): 454-462.
Roberts, D. & M. Siemiatycki (2015) Fostering Meaningful Partnerships in Public-Private Partnerships: Innovations in Partnership Design and Process Management to Create Value Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy, 33(4), 780-793.
Roberts, D. (2010) Durban’s Future?: Re-branding through the production/policing of event-specific places at the 2010 World Cup. Sport in Society 13(10) 1462-1473. Republished in Sport in the City: Cultural Connections (Routledge, 2011) M. Sam and J. Hughson (eds.), pp. 70 – 81.
Roberts, D. and M. Mahtani (2010) Neoliberalizing Race, Racing Neoliberalism; Placing “Race” in Neoliberal Discourses. Antipode 42(2) 248-257.