Rate My Professor Miriam Williams

Dr. Miriam Williams is a Senior Lecturer in Geography and Planning in the School of Communication, Society and Culture at Macquarie University, where she also serves as Deputy Director of the Macquarie University Housing and Urban Research Centre. She earned her PhD in Human Geography from the University of Newcastle in 2013 with a thesis titled 'Cities of Possibility: Performing Care-full Urban Justice.' Prior to this, she completed a Bachelor of Development Studies with Honours in 2007 and a Bachelor of Development Studies in 2006, both from the University of Newcastle. Her early career included roles as a Fixed Term Lecturer at the University of Newcastle from 2015 to 2016, Research Assistant from 2012 to 2013, and Casual Academic from 2008 to 2013. Williams is a member of the Community Economies Institute and contributes to editorial roles as Associate Editor for Geographical Research from 2024 to 2026 and a member of the Editorial Board for Geography Compass. She has received the Faculty of Arts Teaching Excellence Award in 2023 and the Vice-Chancellor's Teaching Excellence Award in 2024.

Williams' research explores everyday practices of justice and care in urban contexts, with key areas including care-full justice in the city, a feminist ethics of care, public space and urban commons, food justice and community food initiatives, care in planning and urban governance, and diverse economies. Her influential publications include 'Care‐full justice in the city' (Antipode, 2017, 259 citations), 'Cities of care: A platform for urban geographical care research' (Geography Compass, 2020, 252 citations), 'The possibility of care-full cities' (Cities, 2020, 141 citations), 'Urban commons are more‐than‐property' (Geographical Research, 2018, 123 citations), and 'Justice and care in the city: Uncovering everyday practices through research volunteering' (Area, 2016, 91 citations). She leads and collaborates on significant projects such as the ARC Linkage project 'The Power of Public Spaces to Connect Communities and Places' (2023–2026) with Professors Donna Houston and Kate Lloyd, 'Cities that Care' book project with Associate Professor Emma Power for University of Minnesota Press, and 'Care-Informed Urban Planning: Learnings and Exchange Across Countries and Sectors' with international partners. Williams delivers public lectures, including 'Why Care Matters in Spatial Planning: Examples from Australian Planning Theory and Practice' in 2024, and engages in research on vertical villages, food insecurity, and sustainable public spaces, contributing to urban studies through publications in leading journals like Antipode, Geoforum, Urban Studies, and Area.