News
David Kaufmann appointed Professor of Spatial Development and Urban Policy
At its meeting on 4 and 5 March 2026 and upon application of Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, the ETH Board appointed twelve professors, including Professor David Kaufmann. He was promoted to Associate Professor of Spatial Development and Urban Policy and is based at the Institute for Spatial and Landscape Development in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering.
The interactive tool "systemrelevant!" is online
The online tool allows users to accompany four essential workers in their everyday lives in the city of Zurich during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. In doing so, it amplifies the voices of everyday heroes who are often unheard.
Dr. Li Wan joins SPUR as a Visiting Professor
Dr. Li Wan joins SPUR as a Visiting Professor from January to April 2026, collaborating with Dr. David Kaufmann on a comparative study on Urban Densification and Transport Decarbonization.
New Policy Briefs on Housing Politics: Michael Wicki on Urban Densification
The Progressive Politics Research Network (PPRNet) has published a new collection of policy briefs addressing how progressive actors can overcome political barriers to affordable housing and build broad coalitions across income classes and generations. The briefs bring together leading experts from across Europe and draw on cutting-edge empirical research, including large-scale surveys, experiments, and comparative policy analysis.
New Publication on Rethinking Acceptance of Housing Densification
Malte Wehr, together with Michael Wicki, Stefan Witter, and David Kaufmann, published a new article in the Journal of Public Policy. Called “Beyond NIMBY-ism: rethinking acceptance of housing densification in a direct democratic renters society”, the paper examines how residents perceive and respond to urban housing densification.