Hugo Sarmiento is an Assistant Professor in the Urban Planning Program at Columbia GSAPP, and faculty affiliate at the Climate School’s Center for Resilient Cities and Landscapes. His research critically examines the relationship between urban climate adaptation and spatial injustices such as racial segregation and unequal housing markets. His current research is focused on climate displacement and urban development in Latin America.

He draws on urban critical theory, political economy and comparative research to interrogate dominant paradigms in resilience theory and emerging adaptation and disaster recovery strategies. Central to his research agenda is centering the grassroots resistance, social movements and insurgent planning efforts which shape these strategies, and more broadly the social-ecological transition cities are undergoing in response to the climate crisis.

He has a special interest in US and Latin American urban geographies, having completed projects in Brazil, Colombia and Puerto Rico. His most recent research has focused on the relocation, and displacement, of communities vulnerable to flooding in Colombian cities. Hugo received his PhD at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the Department of Urban Planning.