Dr. Francesca Savoldi is a human geographer (PhD) whose work lies at the intersection of urban geography and political ecology. Her research has developed along two principal trajectories: 1) Investigating how global infrastructural expansion reshapes urban geographies and socio-environmental relations, with a particular focus on port cities; 2) Examining the reconfiguration of coastal geographies—specifically the territorial regimes, power dynamics, and counter-power relations emerging from climate change adaptation and the accelerated growth of blue economies in coastal contexts.
From 2021 to 2023, she held a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship at TU Delft, where she critically analyzed the evolving relationship between ports and cities, addressing contemporary power imbalances as well as the contested spaces and relationalities they generate. She is also the founder of the online platform Contested Ports.
Dr. Savoldi has lectured and conducted research at several universities, including TU Delft, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Ca’ Foscari University Venice, Glasgow Caledonian University, and Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Her work has appeared in journals such as Urban Geography, Environment and Planning C: Politics and Space, Territory, Politics, Governance, and the International Journal of Urban Planning.
She is a member of PortCityFutures, the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Blue Europe and EnJust network for environmental justice.
