Stefan Chavez-Norgaard

Stefan Chavez-Norgaard is a Teaching Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the University of Denver’s Douglas and Mary Scrivner Institute of Public Policy, part of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies. His work bridges procedural justice, urban development, and equity, with a focus on South Africa and the United States.

• Education: PhD in Urban Planning (Columbia, 2024), MPP from Harvard Kennedy School (2019), BA in Public Policy and Urban Studies from Stanford (2015).

His research examines urban planning history and theory, local-government law, and mixed-methods analysis of planning practice in late-liberal contexts. He explores how residents contest and repurpose formal urban plans, particularly in post-apartheid South Africa and U.S. cities like Denver. His 2024 articles address racial modernism in urban planning and place renaming in South Africa, while recent book chapters focus on digital infrastructure and housing policy in African cities.

Recent work includes public-facing commentaries on transportation history, urban design, and national urban policy. He has received travel/research awards from AAG (2022, 2023) and the NYC Urban Fellows Program (2017). Collaborations span Harvard’s Bloomberg Center for Cities, Ash Center for Democratic Governance, and Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.