Zijun Zhang is a PhD student in human geography whose work explores multispecies urban life and everyday human-animal relations with interests in lived space and urban experience.

He holds a BA in Geography with Chinese Studies from the University of Nottingham and an MSc in Human Geography and Urban Studies (Distinction) from the London School of Economics and Political Science. His undergraduate research examined the geography of memory and museology through the Shanghai History Museum, while his master’s dissertation investigated everyday living practices in historical buildings in Shanghai.

Research

Thesis title: "Line of Flight: Racing Pigeons, Urban Animal Space, and Interspecies Becoming in Shanghai"

Zijun's research interests sit within cultural and urban geography, focusing on more-than-human urbanism and everyday human-animal relations. He is particularly interested in how urban spaces are produced through multispecies coexistence rather than solely human planning and design.

More broadly, his interests include multispecies ethnography, place-making, intimacy, and the role of everyday practices in challenging anthropocentric understandings of the city. His doctoral project examines pigeon racing communities in Shanghai to explore how intimate spaces of cohabitation are created and maintained under conditions of urban intensification.

PhD supervision

• Principal supervisor: Dr Andrew Brooks
• Secondary supervisor: Dr Johan Andersson

Further details

See Zijun's research profile