I am a PhD candidate in Economics at the London School of Economics. My research is in urban and spatial economics. I study how the spatial structure of the city impacts workers, and whether place-based policies can shape it. My work combines quantitative spatial equilibrium models with quasi-experimental evidence.

Primary field: Urban Secondary fields: Development, Labour

Advisors: Daniel Sturm, Gharad Bryan, Henry Overman

Job Market Paper

Lopsided Cities: The costs of lopsided jobs distributions, and place-based policy responses

Abstract

Many cities have lopsided employment distributions: the center of business is tied to one side of the city, while residences sprawl out in the other direction. This means average distances to employment are further than they would be in a symmetric city – increasing commute times. In this paper, I investigate the costs of such lopsidedness, its impact on inequality and possible policy responses. Calibrating a quantitative urban model to Sydney, I show that a counterfactual city with a more centralised employment hub has 11% higher output and 2.5% higher worker welfare, with higher gains for graduates. I then investigate the effects of a government policy to try to directly alter the spatial distribution of employment: the 2018-2022 shift of over 10,000 government jobs to a more central location in Sydney. Using a synthetic control method, I find that land values surrounding the new offices increased substantially compared to comparable locations. I also find that local approvals for new private office constructions increased by over 1 billion AUD, consistent with space for 7,000 new private workers, though there is insufficient post period data to test whether they have been realised. Using the model to consider general equilibrium effects of the public sector jobs move, I show these significant local effects are consistent with small effects for the city as a whole: total output falls slightly along with welfare of high skill workers due to decentralisation out of the CBD, but welfare of low skill workers marginally increases.

Works in Progress

Fake Meats and Directed Technical Change

Teaching

  • PP440 Micro and Macro Economics for Public Policy (graduate) Teaching assistant for Luis Garicano and Ethan Ilzetzki · 2024/25, 2025/26
  • EC1A5 Microeconomics I (undergraduate) Teaching assistant for Alan Manning · 2023/24
  • EC1B5 Macroeconomics I (undergraduate) Teaching assistant for Rachel Ngai and Keyu Jin · 2022/23, 2023/24

Awards: LSE Excellence in Education Award (2025); Economics Department teaching bonus award (2023, 2024)