Kimberly is an urban researcher interested in the lived experience of informality in the global south, particularly Ghana and India. Through innovative research methods, she focuses on the production and use of space to create and perpetuate the intersectional urban identities and inequalities of informality, poverty, and gender. Her work spans the disciplines of urban planning, geography, sociology, and political economy.

Kimberly has worked extensively in India on various urban issues, including urbanisation policy, poverty, livelihoods, education, and water and sanitation. In more than 15 years in the development sector, she has worked with governments, NGOs, implementing agencies and research institutes to formulate policy, coordinate programs, and conduct research. 

Kimberly has an MPhil in African Studies from the University of Delhi, an MSc in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and a BA in Anthropology and Sociology from St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai. She is a doctoral candidate in the City and Regional Planning Department at the Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania.

She is a member of the steering committee on the Penn IUR Forum on Informality.

Committee members:

Eugenie L. Birch, Nussdorf Professor of Urban Research and Education, Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania (Chair)

Lisa Mitchell, Chair and Professor of Anthropology and History, South Asia Studies, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania

Francesca Ammon, Associate Professor, City and Regional Planning and Historic Preservation, Weitzman School of Design, University of Pennsylvania