The research of Professor Wendy Pullan, Dr Felipe Hernàndez and Professor Ash Amin (Department of Geography) may be diverse in approach but finds common ground in how the informality of slums and shanty towns and the diversity of migrant populations can be better integrated into a city by studying the way spaces are utilised in informal settlements and improving basic conditions and facilities. As Dr Hernàndez says, to date many attempts at improving conditions in informal settlements "have failed to take peoples lived experiences into account".
Professor Pullan believes that migration is a positive for cities as they "demand diversity" which makes them "robust and flexible places that can thrive and prosper". Professor Pullan, like Dr Hernàndez is researching ways in which a city can support social cohesion without compromising the inherent diversity of it's population.
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