I am an associate professor in spatial planning and digitalization at the Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Utrecht University. I have a long-standing interest in conducting interdisciplinary and innovative research to address complex governance problems, conflicts of interest in planning, and challenges to sustainability. My current research focuses on digital planning, urban governance, and planning support science for inclusive and sustainable development. I have explored the impact of new digital technologies (e.g., planning support systems, social media, artificial intelligence, and digital twins) on citizen participation and power dynamics in urban regeneration, water management, nature-based solutions, environmental protection, and infrastructure projects. My work investigates how these technologies reshape urban governance and collaborative planning across diverse institutional and local contexts, identifying the conditions under which they add value or pose risks. This includes comparative research on smart urban governance in both Chinese and Western contexts. I have developed innovative mixed methods approaches, combining qualitative methods (e.g., interviews and discourse analysis) with data mining, social media data analytics, social network analysis, computational modeling, and statistical modeling. My research has been recognized by European Research Council (ERC), which awarded me an ERC Starting Grant (2021-2026) to establish a team focusing on Collaborative Planning in China with the Impact of Social Media and Digital Technologies. I have also participated in an interdisciplinary project funded through the EWUU alliance, focused on developing an AI-driven Digital Twin Platform for Circular Green Infrastructure, involving partners from Eindhoven University of Technology, Wageningen University, and Utrecht University. Additionally, I have conducted intensive research on housing provision, social and economic integration of migrants, accessibility and equity, and the impact of e-commerce and digital platforms on urbanism. I have been involved in a research project funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO) in collaboration with NSFC, examining Urban Housing of Migrants in China and the Netherlands. Beyond research, I contribute to planning practices and education innovation, bridging the gap between research, practice and education on the impact of digitalization and AI on spatial planning.
I have published more than 60 articles in leading international journals, such as Urban Studies, Cities, Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, Telecommunications Policy, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Planning Theory, and Journal of Cleaner Production. I am the lead editor of special issues on "Digital Planning for Sustainable Urban Future" in Computers, Environment and Urban Systems and “Collaborative Planning in the Digital Era” in Planning Practice & Research. I have also edited two books: "Smart Governance and New Forms of Collaborative Planning" (The Commercial Press) and "Village in the City: Asian Variations of Urbanisms of Inclusion" (Park Books). I have been invited to present my research at numerous international conferences and served on the local committee for the 13th International Conference on Computer in Urban Planning and Urban Management (CUPUM), where I also organized the section on “Planning Support Systems: Participation”. I am currently organizing the 2025 International Conference on Collaborative Planning in China and Beyond. Additionally, I serve as an external expert for the Swiss National Science Foundation and a reviewer of more than 40 ISI-indexed journals and Elsevier books. I am a member of the editorial board of Urban Governance and the Big Data and Smart Cities Research Book Series.