Kerry Fang
Hello everyone! My name is Kerry Fang, and I am delighted to join the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at U of I this fall. I look forward to getting to know you all and work together as a team to take this department to the next level!
I study economic development and land use policy. I care deeply about local and regional development and the outcomes it brings to people’s lives. I ask questions like “Why some regions are rich while others are poor?” and “What policy tools can help create jobs and boost innovation?” My work is both interdisciplinary and international. I adopt methods from economics, statistics, geography, sociology, and computer science, and have studied countries including the United States, China, Australia, and Russia.
I care about theory as well as practice. I engage deeply with planning theories and constantly seek to push their forefront. At the same time, I connect with local communities and conduct practical projects to put what we study on the ground. At the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, I look forward to working with you all to explore new knowledge and be a change agent for our communities!
A fun fact about Kerry’s work
I have always been a true crime lover. I wanted to be a detective as a kid and still enjoy detective novels and true crime podcasts, documentaries, and movies. What I do today as a researcher is a detective of some sort, as I gather clues (empirical evidence) to solve a murder (research question), eliminating suspects (alternative explanations), and finding truth. I invite you to launch on this exciting journey with me!
Kerry Fang
Share a picture doing something you enjoy
This is me at Disney Run. I am a runner. It started during the pandemic when I found my gym closed. I started running outside as a last resort solution for keeping myself active, and found myself falling in love with it. I finished my first half Marathon this year and hope to continue to run for decades to come.
Any other things you’d like our community to know about you or your work
I love to hang out and explore new things. I am new to Illinois and the Midwest and would love to go out and do fun things with you all. Please introduce me to spots and events, and count me in when you want to go out and have some fun!
Irene Farah Rivadeneyra
Hello! My name is Irene Farah and I am joining the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at Urbana-Champaign this fall! I am excited to get to know the community at the University of Illinois and to become part of it.
I am from Mexico City, where I completed a B.A. in Political Science. After that, I worked for the Mexican government, developing social development indicators and poverty measures to inform policy makers and the public. I then went to the University of Chicago where I received a M.A in Social Sciences and worked at the Center for Spatial Data Science. After a couple of years, I pursued a PhD in City and Regional Planning at University of California Berkeley where I focused on the use of public space and street vendors both in Mexico and the United States.
I am looking forward to learning anything about Champaign and Urbana, so please feel free to reach out!
A fun fact about Irene’s work
During fieldwork, I decided to start selling in a street market and I ended up paying more than what I earned. I need to improve my business skills.
Irene Farah Rivadeneyra
Share a picture doing something you enjoy
I love swimming and people with a sense of humor. In this picture I’m coming out of Lake Michigan on Halloween, getting ready for a bonfire, and laughing with friends I met at the lake.
Any other things you’d like our community to know about you or your work
I get really passionate when I talk about social inequalities and I am always excited to learn something new from conversations. My path from political science, passing through spatial data science, and then to urban planning has been all but linear. My experience has been defined by the people on my path. I’ve learned that one way to think is by talking to others. So, I am really excited to start a new stage of my life engaging in conversations with the community at the University of Illinois to bridge existing differences in territories, disciplines, and methods.