Mona Fawaz is Professor in Urban Studies and Planning at the American University of Beirut where she co-founded of the Beirut Urban Lab, a regional research center working toward more inclusive, just, and viable cities. Her research stems from the imperative of making cities more just. Her research addresses urbanization through the lenses of informality and the law, forced displacement, land,housing, property and space. Her findings are published in scholarly venues as well as in the local press where she is a vocal advocate of the right to housing, inclusive public space, and just urban governance. She is currently Honorary Professor of Urban Planning at the Bartlett School, UCL. She has also taught at several European universities. In addition, she serves on the boards of several research organizations, as editor for the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research and board member for Planning Theory and City and Society. She holds a BArch from American University of Beirut and an MA and PhD in city planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.