About
Professor Libby Porter is a leading academic and researcher in urban planning and human geography at RMIT University, Australia. As Director of the Centre for Urban Research (CUR) and Professor in the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies (GUSS), her work focuses on critical urban governance, decolonising planning practices, Indigenous rights, and urban displacement. She holds a prestigious position as a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and has contributed extensively to international policy debates through her role as Assistant Editor for Planning Theory and Practice.
Her research examines settler-colonial dynamics in urban development, public housing policy, and the intersection of planning with Indigenous sovereignty. Notable publications include Unlearning the Colonial Cultures of Planning (2010) and Planning in Indigenous Australia (2018). Libby has held academic roles in the UK and Australia and previously worked in urban planning policy for Victorian Government departments.
She supervises students in Honours, Masters, and PhD programs, focusing on topics like Indigenous housing, urban displacement, and environmental policy. Her work has been featured in The Conversation, BBC News, and academic journals. Libby also leads the Critical Urban Governance Research Program and oversees the Bachelor of Urban and Regional Planning at RMIT.
- Awards: Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
- Key Roles: Director, Centre for Urban Research; Co-founder, Planners Network UK; Member, Expert Advisory Panel for Melbourne 2030
- Research Themes: Property rights, urban sustainability, decolonisation, Indigenous planning, gentrification
