Dr. Tanvi Deshpande (University of Birmingham and London School of Economics and Political Science) has been selected to receive the 2026 Best Book Review in the Journal of Urban Affairs Award. Tanvi is the first recipient of this new annual award.
AWARD COMMITTEE ASSESSMENT
Dr. Tanvi V. Deshpande has been selected to receive the Best Book Review Award in the Journal of Urban Affairs, Vol. 47 (2025) for her review of the book, Environmental Justice and Resiliency in an Age of Uncertainty, by Celeste Murphy-Greene (ed.), JUA January 2025 (47.1). Dr. Deshpande’s review captures the interpretations and analysis of the multiple chapters in the volume in clear voice with a critical eye. Her review combines thoughtful details of environmental justice and resilience building achieved across crises and disasters, combined with a compelling overview of environmental justice in today’s “age of uncertainty,” as she calls our time. Dr. Deshpande successfully writes for readers across urban academic fields and for practitioners and public officials, with highlights from chapters specifically citing the challenges faced by those in the field of emergency management and examples of actionable guidance.
AWARD RECIPIENT BIO
Tanvi is a research and impact fellow with the Birmingham Institute for Sustainability and Climate Action (BISCA), University of Birmingham. She is also a visiting fellow with the LSE-Fudan Global Public Policy Hub in the Department of Social Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Over the last decade, her research has focused on a range of climate adaptation, justice, and governance issues in the global South. She has worked on multi-consortia climate and disaster risk project such as the Collaborative Adaptation Research Initiative in Africa and Asia and Tomorrow’s Cities.
Her doctoral research focused on water politics and government policymaking capacities in small town India. She is working towards contextualising urban governance mechanisms and climate action in South Asia. Her recent work focuses on knowledge exchanges between Indian and UK cities on heatwave governance. Inspired by her research and experiences, she co-developed the Frontiers for Just Cities in South Asia Network, an early career researcher network working on urban governance issues in South Asia.
AWARD PRESENTATION
The formal presentation of this award will be made at the upcoming International Conference on Urban Affairs in Chicago, Illinois. The theme of this year’s conference is No Little Plans: Realizing Urban Futures in Times of Crisis. The conference will convene 1100+ 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 29, 2026; 3:00 – 4:15pm.
AWARD COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Sabina Deitrick, University of Pittsburgh (Chair); Ben Derudder, KU Leuven; Katherine Hankins, Georgia State University; Deirdre Oakley, Georgia State University; Nicholas Phelps, University of Melbourne; Elizabeth Strom, University of South Florida; Rui Wang, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
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.
