Nikolai Roskamm

Nikolai Roskamm is a Professor of Planning Theory, Urban History and Sustainable Urban Development at Erfurt University of Applied Sciences (FH Erfurt), where he holds a professorship in the Department of Urban and Spatial Planning within the School of Architecture and Urban Planning. He also serves as the International Officer at the university. Previously, he was a Visiting Professor for Urban Peace and National Welfare at TU Wien (Vienna University of Technology) from 2015-2016.

Dr. Roskamm completed his PhD (Promotion) at Bauhausuniversität Weimar in 2010 with a dissertation titled "Dichte. Eine transdisziplinäre Dekonstruktion" (Density. A Transdisciplinary Deconstruction). Prior to his current position, he worked as a Research Assistant at the Institute for Urban and Regional Planning (ISR) at TU Berlin from 2005-2011. His academic journey began with studies in urban planning and city construction in Berlin and Venice.

Roskamm's research focuses on critical urban theory, post-foundational approaches to urban studies, urban conflict, public space, and sustainable urban development. His work engages deeply with political theory (particularly Laclau and Mouffe), spatial philosophy (including Lefebvre), and the theoretical foundations of urban density and mixture. He has developed a distinctive approach that examines urban spaces through lenses of contestation, unsettledness, and the tensions between settling and unsettling forces in contemporary cities. His research often bridges theoretical frameworks with empirical urban analysis across European and global contexts.

Over the past decade, Roskamm's publications have consistently explored themes of urban contestation, political conflict in planning, the production of urban space, and critical approaches to sustainability. His recent work shows an increasing focus on post-foundational urban geographies, the politics of urban peace, and the theoretical underpinnings of urban density. The pattern across his publications reveals a sustained intellectual commitment to questioning foundational assumptions in urban theory while developing alternative frameworks for understanding urban complexity, conflict, and transformation.

As an active academic leader, Roskamm has served as editor and editorial board member of sub\urban, Journal for Critical Urban Research since 2012. He has also been involved with the AESOP Thematic Group on Public Spaces and Urban Culture since 2010. His collaborative research projects include the DFG-funded project "Die unbesetzte Stadt – Postfundamentalistisches Denken und das urbanistische Feld" (2012-2014) and coordination of the cooperation between ISR TU Berlin and Politechnika Warschau from 2005-2010. His current work continues to shape critical urban studies through editorial leadership, theoretical innovation, and international scholarly collaboration.

Roskamm maintains professional standing as an urban planner on the Berlin Chamber of Architects list since 2007 and has practical experience from his time with the independent planning group Berlin (1997-2005). His work bridges academic theory with practical urban planning concerns, particularly through his focus on how theoretical frameworks can inform real-world urban challenges related to conflict, sustainability, and spatial justice.