Economic Geography

Our Economic Geography group is dedicated to tackling socio-economic disparities among regions and the people within them. Our understanding of regional development encompasses conventional economic metrics like income and employment, alongside broader concepts such as well-being, happiness, and regional identity. In our research, we analyze the opportunities and constraints presented by different places as manifested in labour market dynamics, mobility, real estate development, and entrepreneurship. Our goal is to advance the scientific understanding of these issues and to engage our students in these important topics through our teaching. Additionally, we actively participate in relevant public discourse and contribute to policy formulation.

Contact via secretary Jeannet Brondsema

Ballas, D. (Dimitris), Prof

Function

Professor of Economic Geography

Expertise

Economic Geography, Spatial Economics, Regional Science, Social and Spatial Inequalities, Happiness and Well-being, Migration, Spatial Microsimulation, Geoinformatics

Brondsema, J.T. (Jeannet)

Function

Management assistant Economic and Cultural Geography

Boisen, M. (Martin), MSc

Function

Lecturer

Expertise

Especially interested in perception, when spaces becomes places and how such processes are influenced by the strategy and governance of the marketing and branding of cities, regions and countries.In addition, interested in every aspect of the historical and contemporary position of cities in the world.

Brouwer, prof. dr. A.E. (Aleid)

Function

Professor by special appointment

Expertise

Economic Geography; Broader Wellfare, (sustainable) entrepreneurship, regional development and resilience, ageing in place, vulnerable groups; quality of life and subjective wellbeing; living environment; digital inclusion, mixed methods.

Cnossen, F.D. (Femke), PhD

Function

Assistant Professor

Expertise

Labour economics, with a focus on technological change and labour markets, work and well-being, regional labour markets, and the transition from (vocational) education to the labour market.

Daams, dr. M.N. (Michiel)

Function

Assistant Professor and Theme Director

Expertise

The geography of real estate investments and land use in cities and regions.

Dijk, prof. dr. J. (Jouke) van

Function

Professor of Regional Labour Market Analysis (Faculty of Spatial Sciences)

O’Driscoll, C. (Conor), Dr

Function

Assistant Professor in Economic Geography

Expertise

Urban and Regional Economics; Economic Geography; Regional Science; Travel Behaviours; Quantitative Research Methods.

Duijn, dr. M. (Mark) van

Function

Assistant Professor Housing Markets & Real Estate

Expertise

Spatial and urban economics: Housing; Location choice of households and commercial real estate; Urban (re)development; Neighbourhood dynamics

Christiaanse, dr. ir. S.

Folmer, prof. dr. H.

Function

Economic Geography (Faculty of Spatial Sciences)

He, J. (Junyao)

Function

Postdoctoral Researcher

Expertise

Agent-based Modeling, Complexity Science, Machine Learning, Digital Planning, Social Network Analysis, Social Media, Platform Urbanism, Urban Governance

Kampen, drs. P.R. (Peter) van

Function

Deputy director UGNWG

Expertise

Regionale PPS-en, campus ontwikkeling en innovatie faciliteiten (infrastructuur en ecosysteem ontwikkelaar)

Koster, prof. dr. S. (Sierdjan)

Function

Professor in Economic Geography and Labour Market Dynamics

Expertise

Regional Economic Development and Entrepreneurship
Regional Labour Markets and Skills
Regional Socio-economic Disparities

Liu, X. (Xiaolong), Dr

Function

Assistant Professor in Real Estate

Expertise

property valuation, real estate finance and investment

Mawhorter, S.L. (Sarah), PhD

Function

Assistant Professor of Housing

Pot, dr. F.J. (Felix)

Function

Assistant Professor

Expertise

Transport & mobility
Regional development
Eurovision Song Contest

Rouwendal, H.J. (Harm-Jan)

Function

Postdoctoral researcher Economic Geography.

Expertise

Economic Geography
Regional labour market and skills

Sarker, M.M.H. (Monzer), PhD

Function

Postdoctoral Researcher

Expertise

Coastal Ecosystems, Ecosystem Services, Social-Ecological Systems, Multi-Criteria Analysis

Sijtsma, dr. F.J. (Frans)

Function

Director Rudolf Agricola School for Sustainable Development / Associate Professor Faculty of Spatial Sciences

Expertise

Value of nature and landscape; Economics and space; Real estate and green; Evaluation ecology versus economy; Cost-Benefit Analysis, Multi-Criteria Analysis.

Tillema, prof. dr. ir. T. (Taede)

Function

Professor by special appointment in Transport Geography

Expertise

Within my professorship, I focus on research into the (perceived) accessibility and mobility patterns of residents of rural areas. More specifically, there are three lines of research within transport geography group: 1) perception of accessibility; 2) interaction mobility/accessibility between cities - rural areas; 3) smart mobility solutions for rural areas.

Venhorst, dr. V.A. (Viktor)

Function

Associate Professor

Expertise

Demography, Migration, Transition from Education to the Labour Market, Labour market dynamics

Vlist, prof. dr. ir. A.J. (Arno) van der

Function

Full professor

Expertise

Real Estate & Urban Economics, Public Economics, Land Economics, Real Estate Development, Affordable Housing, Housing Finance

Zhang, J. (Jianhua), Dr

Function

Postdoc

Ziogas, A. (Thanasis)

Function

Postdoctoral researcher Economic Geography

Expertise

Happiness and Wellbeing
Applied Econometrics

PhDs

Arsani, A.M., MA

Barachino, H. (Helena), MA MSc

Expertise

Graduate Employability, Labor Market Entry, Academinc Practice

Bay, F. (Franziska), MSc

Function

Postdoctoral researcher

Expertise

Labor Markets & Career trajectories,
Regional inequalities,
Organizational Psychology & Behavior,
Work design, Well-being

Biabani Moghaddam, H. (Hamidreza (Judah)), M

H. (Hamidreza (Judah)) Biabani Moghaddam, M

Function

PhD student

Expertise

I am working on contextualizing the "Green Transition" within the framework of Evolutionary Economic Geography (EEG). To achieve this, I initially focused on the role of green social capital in facilitating the transition. Currently, my research explores the impact of bonding and bridging social capital on the emergence and survival of green startups. In the next phase, I will incorporate an institutional perspective to deepen the analysis. Ultimately, my study will examine the geography of the Green Transition, emphasizing the intersection between local contexts and spatial interactions across regions, particularly in relation to regional disparities.

Chen, H., MSc

Function

PhD student

Expertise

Real estate economics and housing economics

Dahl, S.T., MSc

Danandjojo, Y.N.E. (Yescha), MSc

Function

PhD student

Expertise

urban infrastructure, value capture

Haring, E.F. (Emma) van der

Function

PhD student

Kema, I.P.S. (Steven), MSc

Function

PhD student

Expertise

Economic Geography, Regional labour markets, Data Science, Natural language processing (NLP), Machine learning

Konstantinis, A., MSc

Kooistra, M.L.T. (Marije), MSc

Kruijf, B.J. (Björn) de, MSc

Function

PhD student

Expertise

lifelong development; regional labour markets

Li, T. (Tiankun), MSc

Function

PhD student

Mansournia, S. (Soran), MSc

Function

Research Fellow and lecturer at Spatial Sciences, Urban Studies, and Spatial Politics

Expertise

I am an Urban Researcher & Human Rights advocate whose work connects spatial research with field-based activism. I focus on digitizing citizens’ experiences and narratives on maps, integrating expert spatial analysis with digital tools. I design geospatial platforms and participatory methods to co-produce spatial knowledge with communities. My master’s thesis Child in the City (Art University of Tehran, 2016), which mapped children’s urban experiences, received the Best Dissertation of the Year award. During my cotutelle PhD at the University of Groningen & Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka (University of Otago), I led 85 digital-mapping workshops with more than 3,000 children across New Zealand, Kurdistan, Poland, & the Netherlands—work that earned the 2025 Promising Geographer Award of New Zealand.

My core research areas include Public Spaces, Advanced Spatial Analysis , Public Participation GIS (PPGIS), Participatory Design, Urban Digitalisation, Political Geography, Informal/Spontaneous Settlements, & Spatial Politics.

Mei, Y., MSc