Dr Romola Sanyal is Associate Professor in Urban Geography at LSE. She joined the Department of Geography and Environment in 2013 having held lectureships in Planning at Newcastle University (2010-2012) and University College London at the Development Planning Unit (2012-2013). She has also held the position of inaugural Postdoctoral Fellow at the Chao Centre for Asian Studies at Rice University (2008-2009) and been a Visiting Fellow at the Open University (2009-2010). She has a PhD in Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley, an MSc in Geography from LSE and a B.A in City and Regional Planning from the University of California, Berkeley.

Romola’s research focuses on the relationship between forced migration and urbanisation. In one strand of her research, she looks at how refugees and other forced migrants become ‘city makers’ through building and inhabiting urban spaces. This work had been conducted in India and Lebanon, through the study of Palestinian refugee camps in Beirut and Partition refugee colonies in Calcutta. Here, she explored how the act of building itself was a form of politics and how it challenged efforts by humanitarian organisations and host governments to marginalize and depoliticize refugees. She continues this work by studying how refugees come to inhabit and make homes whilst being displaced and living in legally precarious circumstances.

Biographical details correct as of 24.04.26