James Berghan

Dr James Berghan (Te Rarawa, Te Aupōuri) is an Adjunct Research Fellow with the Stout Research Centre for New Zealand Studies and Co-Director at Spatial Justice Aotearoa, a kaupapa Māori research and design firm based in Pōneke and Ōtautahi. With a background in urban planning and design, James leads several research projects about how housing, transport and cities can better reflect Māori aspirations and belonging.

James holds a Tāwhia Te Mana Future Leader Fellowship from the Royal Society Te Apārangi. His four-year research programme examines how urban change in Aotearoa is framed and contested, including the role of mis- and disinformation in shaping public debate and spatial justice.

His wider research includes a BRANZ-funded project investigating artificial intelligence in architectural design and its implications for whānau-centred housing, Māori data sovereignty and responsible technology use. He is also co-editing his first book, Toitū He Kāinga: Indigenous Futures for Urban Design, which brings together Indigenous perspectives on housing, whenua, urban life, and the future of Aotearoa towns and cities.

James is an Adjunct Research Fellow with the Stout Research Centre for NZ Studies.