معرفی
Isabelle Garat is a Teacher-researcher (Maître de Conférences with Habilitation to Direct Research) at Nantes University, affiliated with the ESO research unit (UMR ESO). She is part of Axis 3 of UMR ESO: 'The (re)localization of politics: a process under tension (2022-2027)' and connected to ESO site ch. 10 - FILM. Her work focuses on urban geography with specialization in housing policies, socio-demographic divisions, and urban politics in metropolitan areas.
Garat's research interests center on the (re)localization of politics and implementation methods of public policies related to housing and heritage. She examines housing stakeholders in local urban areas (metropolis, medium-sized towns), focusing on co-existences, representations, gaps, adjustments, and regulations. Her work particularly investigates resident practices and representations of housing, with emphasis on densification, solidarity, neighborhood, or district dynamics in metropolitan contexts.
Her recent publications reveal a strong focus on social housing geography, co-ownership arrangements in reconstructed city centers, and urban resistance movements. The research shows consistent thematic development across three decades, with increasing attention to metropolitan governance, housing inequalities, and the spatial dimensions of social policies. Her work bridges theoretical geographical frameworks with practical urban policy analysis, particularly in the Nantes metropolitan context.
Garat has served as head of the Master's program in Urban Planning and Development since 2017. She supervises doctoral students including Remy Blans (2024 thesis on housing's influence on study trajectories) and Laura Mehtali (2020 thesis on contesting metropolitan projects). She is actively involved in significant research initiatives including the PUCA program (2022-2025) on co-ownerships in reconstructed cities and the Social Atlas of the Nantes metropolitan area (since 2019).
Her research methodology combines quantitative spatial analysis with qualitative fieldwork, particularly evident in her studies of informal solidarity practices among older populations in Nantes and Orvault. She maintains strong institutional connections with urban planning agencies and housing authorities through her jury membership for social housing publications (Union sociale de l'Habitat, Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations).
