Dr. Jenna Davis (University of California, Berkeley) and Joseph Huennekens (Columbia University) have been selected to receive the 2025 Best Article in the Journal of Urban Affairs Award for their paper “YIMBY Divided: A Qualitative Content Analysis of YIMBY.”
This annual award gives recognition to a paper published in the Journal of Urban Affairs (during the previous year) that is considered particularly outstanding as a scholarly contribution to the field of urban affairs.
AWARD COMMITTEE ASSESSMENT
The article “YIMBY Divided: A Qualitative Content Analysis of YIMBY” sheds new light on the YIMBY movement and the ways YIMBY constituents have responded to NIMBYism. The article also makes innovative use of data (subreddit data in combination with blog posts and newspaper articles). Its focus on YIMBY logic is timely as communities increasingly engage in upzoning and the debate around housing shortages and density in cities around the country. The combination of data sources enables the authors to triangulate their findings, and the paper reveals a range of YIMBY responses to NIMBYism, including their varied sentiments and related policy issues.
AWARD RECIPIENT BIOS
Jenna Davis is a Postdoctoral Scholar at the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research investigates how zoning regulations shape residential stability, neighborhood change, and access to opportunity, as well as public perceptions surrounding land use change. She previously was a Senior Policy Analyst at the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness in New York City, where she conducted research on the educational outcomes of unhoused students in the New York City public school system. Jenna also worked at the Citizens Budget Commission, performing research on property tax reform and worked in marketing and operations at a real estate technology startup. She holds a PhD in urban planning from Columbia University, a masters in regional planning from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and a BA in urban studies from Barnard College.
Joseph Weil Huennekens is a PhD candidate in urban planning at Columbia University. His research interests include changing suburbs, land use conflict, exclusionary zoning, and planning practice. His dissertation research looks at how groups compete within the land use regulatory system to shape the suburban built environment. Other work considers the implications of development-related litigation on land use governance and the political attitudes of pro-growth activists; among other topics. Joe previously worked as a borough planner for the NYC Department of City Planning and a program manager at the Design Trust for Public Space. He holds a B.S. in Architecture from the University of Virginia and a Masters in City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania.
AWARD PRESENTATION
The formal presentation of this award will be made at the upcoming International Conference on Urban Affairs in Vancouver, BC, Canada, at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre. The theme of this year’s conference is Urban Concentration: Challenges to Equity, Mobility, and Sustainability. The conference will convene over 900 participants from 55+ countries and representing 20+ fields of study. All award recipients will be formally recognized for their achievements during the Awards and Recognition Program on April 16, 2025; 3:00–4:15pm.
AWARD COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Christian King, University of Central Florida (Chair); Sylvie Guezeon, University of Minnesota; Jae Hong Kim, University of California, Irvine; Xuefei Ren, Michigan State University; Lydia Wileden, University of Connecticut
ABOUT THE URBAN AFFAIRS ASSOCIATION
The Urban Affairs Association (UAA) is an international professional organization for 1000+ urban scholars, researchers, policy analysts, & public service providers. UAA is dedicated to creating interdisciplinary spaces for engaging in intellectual and practical discussions about urban life. Through theoretical, empirical, and action-oriented research, UAA fosters diverse activities to understand and shape a more just and equitable urban world.
In addition to hosting an annual conference, UAA sponsors ongoing professional development opportunities; Upsilon Sigma: The Urban Studies Honor Society; and two peer-reviewed journals, the Journal of Urban Affairs and the Journal of Race, Ethnicity and the City. You can find UAA on the web, LinkedIn, Bluesky, Facebook, and X.
