Dr Nastaran Peimani

(she/her)

PhD (University of Melbourne)

Publication

• Date
• Type

Research

My current areas of interest include:

• Spatiality of Informal Street Vending
• Politics of Public Space and Urbanity
• Transit-Oriented Urbanism and Urban Morphology
• Urban Design Education and Pedagogy

RESEARCH PROJECTS

Urban Design Education: Designing a Pedagogy for an evolving field

This book project, Urban Design Education: Designing a Pedagogy for an Evolving Field, presents a detailed account of a pedagogy for urban design as an evolving field. As a substantial monograph on the subject area, it addresses a significant gap in existing literature and critically engages with envisioning the future of urban design education. Structured across six chapters, it discusses case studies illustrating the design and delivery of various urban design modules in practice, leveraging the authors' extensive first-hand teaching and learning experiences in one of the largest and most distinctive MA Urban Design programmes of its kind. These case studies include a mix of theory-based and studio-based modules as well as those focusing on research methods and dissertation. Drawing on detailed analyses and discussions of these multiple cases, the book offers invaluable insights and strategies for designing and delivering modules in urban design with a focus on learning and teaching experiences. Targeting urban design enthusiasts and educators alike, this monograph can serve as an indispensable resource for advancing the field of urban design with a primary focus on its education.

In collaboration with Dr Hesam Kamalipour (Lead Author). 

Co-Producing Place Narratives

This Arts and Humanities Research Council Impact Accelerator Account (AHRC IAA) project aims to advance an impact agenda through the collaborative production of knowledge, fostering engaged learning and reflection, cultivating practical skills, raising awareness, and promoting collaboration. Building upon the team's existing research, our scalable initiative empowers communities, particularly young people, to share their place-based narratives through participatory storytelling urban photography.

In collaboration with: Dr Hesam Kamalipour (Co-I), Yaseen Rehman (Project Assistant 1) and Matt Ma (Project Assistant 2). Related Funding: UKRI Harmonised Impact Acceleration Account

Negotiating Livelihoods and Rights in Contested Urban Space

This is a multidisciplinary project which addresses the challenge of informal urbanism with a particular focus on the ways in which forms of street vending work in relation to gender, politics, and types in public space. It engages with the dynamics of street vending and explores the synergies and contradictions among multiple agents in public space.

In collaboration with: Dr Hesam Kamalipour and Dr Debdulal Saha. Related Funding: GCRF Small Projects

Public Space Observatory Research Centre

The Public Space Observatory Research Centre has been co-founded as a knowledge exchange platform in public space research, practice and policy. The mission is to bring together local, national and international academics, practitioners and policymakers engaged with the provision, design, management and use of public space.

In collaboration with: Dr Patricia Aelbrecht and Dr Hesam Kamalipour

Forms of Informality in Public Space

This project engages with the ways in which forms of informality work in relation to streetlife and gender mix in public space with a focus on the spatial and temporal appropriations of space. Drawing on multiple case studies, this project aims to provide a better understanding of how different forms of informality negotiate space and visibility within the public realm.

In collaboration with: Dr Hesam Kamalipour

Urban Life and Public Space Design

This project is part of a post-occupancy evaluation research, which aims to explore public life in changing urban spaces by investigating the ways in which certain public open spaces in Cardiff are being used, appropriated, and managed by different groups of people.

In collaboration with: Dr Hesam Kamalipour, Srivrinda Ladha, and Kimberly Yong. Related Funding: On-campus Internships Scheme

My/Your Cardiff Public Space Campaign

The My/Your Cardiff Public Space Campaign has been co-founded with the aim of raising public awareness on the social, cultural, economic and environmental values and benefits of well-designed, used and managed public spaces.

In collaboration with: Dr Patricia Aelbrecht, Dr Hesam Kamalipour and Dr Wesley Aelbrecht. Contribution to the project until November 2021. Related Funding: ESRC Impact Acceleration Account

Public Space Toolkit for Wales

This project aims to introduce a public space toolkit for Wales to support the work of Local Authorities. The toolkit can become a steppingstone towards innovative practices around placemaking for the public realm in Wales.

In collaboration with: Dr Patricia Aelbrecht, Dr Francesca Sartorio, Dr Wesley Aelbrecht, Dr Richard Gale and Dr Hesam Kamalipour. Contribution to the project until December 2021. Related Funding: Innovation Project Grant

Multi-scalar Mobilities: Metropolitan Transit Nodes and Neighbourhood Morphologies

This project aims to bridge the gap between urban morphological studies and transport research, by focusing on transit nodes as the inter-scalar interfaces between the walkable neighbourhood and the metropolitan rapid transit network. This research advances our understanding of multi-scalar access, by examining the nexus between metropolitan rapid transit networks, station design and neighbourhood morphologies.

In collaboration with: Dr Elek Pafka. Related Funding: ECR Grant

Contested Waterfronts: Informality, Floods and Capital in Southeast Asian Cities

This was a joint research project between Melbourne Social Equity Institute and Melbourne School of Design to address how upgrading, flood control and global projects emerge within the larger political economic framework of the city.

In collaboration with: Professor Kim Dovey. Related Funding: MSEI Seed Funding

Teaching

I have served as the Module Leader / Co-Leader for the following modules in Urban Design:

• Urban Design Research Methods (Postgraduate)
• Research Based Design Project (Postgraduate)
• Autumn Design Studio (Postgraduate)
• Spring Design Studio (Postgraduate)

I have also lectured, taught and/or supervised in the following Undergraduate and Postgraduate modules in Urban Design and Architecture:

• Urban Design Foundation (Postgraduate)
• Urban Design Research Methods (Postgraduate)
• Urban Design Dissertation (Postgraduate)
• Research Methods and Techniques (Postgraduate)
• Research Based Design Project (Postgraduate)
• MArch Dissertation (Undergraduate)

Since 2021, I have served as the Course Co-Director of the MA Urban Design (Postgraduate Taught Programme). The MAUD programme, jointly delivered by the Welsh School of Architecture and the School of Geography and Planning at Cardiff University, is one of the largest postgraduate programmes of its kind, bringing together the collective expertise of both schools. The programme is accredited by both the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Design studio teaching in the porgramme focuses on developing critically informed as well as creative and practical proposals for real sites, addressing important contemporary issues of design and urbanism. More recently, our design studio modules have delved into the realm of Transit Urban Design (TUD) to enable students to experience first-hand how TUD can shape our cities, offering sustainable alternatives and enhancing the quality of urban life. Our MAUD students' studio projects were showcased in the Welsh School of Architecture Exhibition 2023.

Biography

Prior to joining the Welsh School of Architecture, I served as a Research Assistant and Guest Lecturer in Urban Design at the Melbourne School of Design (MSD), University of Melbourne (ranked 13th globally and the top university in Australia according to the 2025 QS World University Rankings). My academic background is in Architecture, and I hold a PhD in Urban Design from the University of Melbourne, along with a Specialist Certificate in University Teaching from the Melbourne Centre for the Study of Higher Education (Melbourne CSHE), an internationally recognised leader in advancing teaching excellence and educational innovation, similar to leading UK organisations such as Advance HE. In 2018, I was honoured with the prestigious Scholar Award from the Common Ground Research Networks, based at the University of Illinois. Recently, I was nominated in multiple categories for the Enriching Student Life Awards at Cardiff University, including Most Impactful and Outstanding Use of Assessment as Learning (2025) and Personal Tutor of the Year (2025). 

Research and Teaching Experiences

• Reader in Urban Design, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Leader of the Urbanism Research Group, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Senior Lecturer in Urban Design, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Co-Director of the MA Urban Design Programme, Cardiff University, UK
• Co-Founding Director of the Public Space Observatory Research Centre, Cardiff University, UK
• Co-Founding Director of the My/Your Cardiff Public Space Campaign, Cardiff, UK
• Lecturer in Urban Design, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Research Assistant in Urban Design, Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne, Australia
• Guest Lecturer in Urban Design, Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne, Australia
• Academic Tutor in Urban Design and Planning, Melbourne School of Design, University of Melbourne, Australia

Professional Memberships

• Member of the Open Research Integrity and Ethics Committee (ORIEC), Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Research Excellence Framework (REF) Panel, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK  
• Member of the Urbanism Research Group, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the PGR Education and Student Experience Committee, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Research Committee, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Equality, Diversity, and Inclusivity Committee, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Urban Design Group
• Member of the Open Research Integrity and Ethics Committee, College of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Academy of Urbanism
• Member of the Public Spaces and Urban Cultures Group, Association of European Schools of Planning
• Member of the Common Ground Research Networks, University of Illinois, USA
• Member of the Environment, Energy and People Research Group, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the Postgraduate Education and Student Experience Committee (ESEC), Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, UK
• Member of the BAME Staff Network, Cardiff University, UK 
• Member of the Welsh School of Architecture Research Ethics Committee, Cardiff University, UK (2019-2021)

Recent Speaking Engagements

• Street Vending and Urban Morphology (2023) Ecocity World Summit 2023, Barbican Centre, London, UK

Supervisions

I am interested in supervising PhD students in the following areas:

• Politics of Public Space and Urbanity
• Spatiality of Street Vending and Informal Economy 
• Transit-Oriented Urban Design and Urban Morphology

Current supervision

Zack Yue Hou

Zikun Huang

Lina Ahmad

Yiran Wang