7: HOUSING SAFETY, TRANS RIGHTS & THE CITY (+ Bunkers, AI protest & more)

In this month’s episode, we are joined by Jenny Preece to dive into the issue of building safety in the context of the recent anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire (22:33). Next, we consider trans rights in the context of Pride month and the impact of the UK’s recent Supreme Court ruling (38:40).

Also on our radar: 

• Bunkers and new forms of subterranean exclusion
• Urban festivals 
• Touristification and the commodification of cities
• The LA riots and urban stigma
• AI propaganda and AI protest
• Vape fires and the disposable vape ban

Dr. Jenny Preece is a Lecturer in the School of Geography and Planning at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on understanding housing choices and aspirations, particularly in changing contexts and with relevance to issues of constraint and exclusion. I am interested in people's lived experiences of home, and how people experience change, whether in the dwelling itself or the wider neighbourhood.

SJ Cooper-Knock is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations and School of Law at the University of Sheffield. Their work focuses on the politics of urban life in South Africa, including everyday policing and punishment; being and belonging in the city; the politics of crisis; and concepts of urban justice.

Read more:

Artificial Intelligence–Based Aesthetics of Dissent in Turkey

Preece, J. (2025) Inhabiting unsettlement: Living through building safety remediation works in England

Preece, J. and J. Flint. (2024). Unhoming, Trauma and Waiting: The Post-Grenfell Building Safety Crisis in England

Peter Apps (2022) - Show me the Bodies: How we let Grenfell happen.

Stuart Hodkinson (2019) - ‘Safe as houses: Private greed, political negligence and housing policy after Grenfell.’

Hosts:

Tom Goodfellow is Professor of Urban Development in the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester.  His research focuses on the political economy of urban development and change in Africa, particularly the politics of urban land and transportation, conflicts around infrastructure and housing, and urban institutional change. (linkedin.com/in/tom-goodfellow-0b418441) 

Beth Perry is Professor of Urban Epistemics and Director of the Urban Institute at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on the relationships between urban expertise, governance and justice, underpinned by a commitment to co-producing collective intelligence across multiple scales to address complex urban challenges. She has worked in cities in Africa, Europe and the UK. (linkedin.com/in/itsbethperry)

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Thanks to the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester for providing time, resources and equipment to support this podcast.