Background

I am a postdoctoral research associate at the Newcastle University Population Health Sciences Institute and the Spatial Analytics and Modelling Lab (SAM@Newcastle). My work focuses on cities and urban areas, at the nexus of urban planning and human geography with a strong focus on evidence based decision making support. My primary research interests include the complex interplay between social, spatial and digital inequalities, as well as how cities’ spatial structure can influence mobility and access to opportunities such as green space, jobs, schools and amenities.

I am currently part of the Population Health and Health Inequalities theme, conducting research on the effect of place on health inequalities. Previously, I have worked on the project "Impact of the Environment and Pollution on Cognitive Health" (EPOCH) and I was a Research Associate at the Centre for Urban and Regional Development Studies (CURDS) on the project "Spatial Inequality in the Smart City".

I completed my PhD in Architecture and Built Environment (ABE) at Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne in 2021 and a BSc (Hons) in Architectural Engineering and Environmental Design at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, Cairo, Egypt in 2016.

I am an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) and a member of the Regional Studies Association (RSA)

Research

My main areas of interest are research informed urban policy and planning, spatial modelling and statistical analysis of urban environments, and the complex relationships between right, privilege, and inequality in spatial planning.  

My current research focuses on modelling the built and natural environment around individuals in cohort studies, developing measures of environment and performing statistical analysis to uncover the influence of the environment on cognitive health.  

Previously, I have worked on the development of a decision making support tool for stakeholders to decide on optimised sensor placement in the city. My role involves running interviews and focus groups with stakeholders to find out their priorities for the tool. I also undertake the spatial analysis of the city to embed this within the tool to support decision making.

My PhD research in has primarily focused on studying informal settlement as a mode of production in the global south, using a mixed methods approach, with the aim of creating a classification framework to be used to inform urban policy. I use quantitative spatial analysis, qualitative research methods, and statistical analysis to study the socio-spatial configurations present in informal areas and find implicit spatial and social rules to inform classification.

Teaching

I am an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) and I have taught on a number of varied modules. 

2018 – 2020 -  Module Tutor – Foundation and First Year 

Northumbria University, Department of Architecture and Built Environment (UK)

Modules Taught:  Space and Design Investigations, Architectural Design Projects, Evolution of Built Environment, Technical Drawing and Communication

2014 – 2016- Teaching Assistant 

Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (Cairo, Egypt)

Modules Taught:  Modern Architectural History and Theory, Architectural Design Studio 1 & 2

Publications

• Article

  • Zied E, Vialard A. Re-Integrating Informal Settlements into the Greater Cairo Region in Egypt Through the Regional Highway Network. Regional Studies, Regional Science 2020, 7(1), 333-345.

• Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstracts)

  • Zied Abozied E, Wu Y, Matthews F. The Association Between Street Network Accessibility and Cognitive Impairment. In: Alzheimer's Association International Conference. 2023, Amsterdamn, Netherlands.
  • Zied Abozied E, Vialard A. A Classification of Streets in the Greater Cairo Region: A quantitative approach to classification and urban intervention. In: 13th International Space Syntax Symposium (13SSS). 2022, Bergen, Norway: 13SSS.
  • Zied E, Vialard A, Dalton R. Syntactic Stitching II: Further Developing Urban Interventions in Informal Settlements in Cairo, Egypt. In: 12th International Symposium on Space Syntax. 2019, Beijing, China: Beijing Jiaotong University.
  • Zied E, Vialard A, Dalton R. Exploring Self-Generated Block Consolidation to Accommodate Amenity-Based Functional Interventions. In: 25th International Seminar on Urban Form: Urban Form and Social Context. 2018, Krasnoyarsk, Russian Federation.
  • Zied E, Vialard A. Syntactic Stitching: Towards A Better Integration of Cairo’s Urban Fabric. In: 11th International Space Syntax Symposium (SSS11). 2017, Lisbon, Portugal: CERIS.

• Online Publication

  • Zied Abozied E. Supporting Equitable Smart Cities in the North of England. Brighton: Regional Studies Association, 2022. Available at: https://www.regionalstudies.org/news/blog-supporting-equitable-smart-cities-in-the-north-of-england/.