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Dr Thomas Sigler

Associate Professor and Deputy Head

School of the Environment
Faculty of Science
t.sigler@uq.edu.au
+61 7 336 53804

Overview

I am an economic and urban geographer interested in (a) how globalisation shapes cities, and (b) how cities and urban space are shaped by globalisation. The first of these themes focusses on ‘the global economy’ and how various firms, institutions, and industries are distributed across space. This incorporates both existing geographies as well as change over time, as the shifting global economy has dynamic consequences. The second of these focusses more concretely on cities and the dynamics within them. I supervise a broad range of MPhil and Phd projects, and have active collaborations with partners in Australia, North America, Europe, and East Asia.

My specific interests fall into the following three areas:

1. The Sharing Economy, which has been popularised by platforms such as Uber and Airbnb. We currently have projects focusing on e-scooter sharing, short-term rentals, and labour platforms.

2. Land Use Change and Housing, with a focus on the interrelated processes of gentrification, suburbanisation, property investment, migration, and urban renewal. I am particularly interested in changing urban spatial structure with regard to macroeconomic, and specifically post-industrial, shifts that are occurring in cities around the world.

3. Global networks, with a focus on the diverse socio-economic connections between the world’s cities. This research theme combines network science, economic geography, and urban studies.

Research Interests

  • Sharing Economy
  • Economic Geography
  • Urban Geography
  • Housing
  • Daylight Saving
  • Short-Term Rentals

Research Impacts

My work focusses on understanding the nature of contemporary urbanisation. I have published in a wide range of academic journals, including Urban Geography, Environment and Planning A, PLoS One, Urban Studies, Regional Studies, Journal of Geography, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (IJURR), and the Bulletin of Latin American Research. I am on the editorial boards of Urban Geography, Finance & Space, Global Networks and Geographical Research.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Pennsylvania State University
  • Masters (Research) of Science, Pennsylvania State University
  • Bachelor of Arts, University of Southern California

Publications

View all Publications

Grants

View all Grants

Supervision

  • Urban Micromobility and the Sharing Economy

    Doctor Philosophy

  • Two Decades of Change in the Australian Labourscape

    Doctor Philosophy

  • A comparative study of housing affordability issues in China and Australia

    Doctor Philosophy

View all Supervision

Available Projects

  • How does working from home (WFH) impact cities?

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying the spatial implications of the recent shift to large-scale remote work. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

  • The Globalisation of Social Class

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying spatial differentiation in social class from a cross-cultural perspective with regard to recent globalisation-induced shifts. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

  • Airbnb and Cities

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying how short-term rentals impact urban housing markets. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

View all Available Projects

Publications

Featured Publications

Book

  • A Modern Guide to the Urban Sharing Economy

    Thomas Sigler and Jonathan Corcoran eds. (2021). A Modern Guide to the Urban Sharing Economy. Elgar Modern Guides, Northampton, MA, United States: Edward Elgar Publishing. doi: 10.4337/9781789909562

Book Chapter

  • Settlement and migration patterns of immigrants by visa class in Australia

    Laukova, Dagmara, Bernard, Aude and Sigler, Thomas (2022). Settlement and migration patterns of immigrants by visa class in Australia. New frontiers in regional science: Asian perspectives. (pp. 165-191) edited by Masamichi Kawano, Karima Kourtit, Peter Nijkamp and Yoshiro Higano. Singapore, Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore. doi: 10.1007/978-981-16-6695-7_10

  • The role of proximity and distance in inter-urban networks

    Sigler, Thomas, Martinus, Kirsten and Matous, Petr (2021). The role of proximity and distance in inter-urban networks. Handbook of Cities and Networks. (pp. 239-251) edited by Zachary P. Neal and Céline Rozenblat. Northampton, MA, United States: Edward Elgar Publishing. doi: 10.4337/9781788114714.00018

  • Unpacking the weather-transit ridership relationship using big data in Brisbane and beyond

    Wei, Ming, Liu, Yan, Sigler, Thomas and Corcoran, Jonathan (2021). Unpacking the weather-transit ridership relationship using big data in Brisbane and beyond. Big Data Applications in Geography and Planning: An Essential Companion. (pp. 245-255) edited by Mark Birkin, Graham Clarke, Jonathan Corcoran and Robert Stimson. Cheltenham, United Kingdom: Edward Elgar Publishing. doi: 10.4337/9781789909791.00021

  • Scale as a lens to understand resource economies in the global periphery

    Martinus, Kirsten, Loginova, Julia and Sigler, Thomas (2021). Scale as a lens to understand resource economies in the global periphery. Resource peripheries in the global economy: networks, scales, and places of extraction. (pp. 87-108) edited by Felipe Irarrázaval and Martín Arias-Loyola. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-84606-0_5

  • Economic Cities

    Sigler, Thomas, Searle, Glen and Martinus, Kirsten (2020). Economic Cities. Understanding Urbanism. (pp. 27-45) edited by Dallas Rogers, Adrienne Keane, Tooran Alizadeh and Jacqueline Nelson. Singapore: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1007/978-981-15-4386-9_3

  • Boomtown globalising: Perth as an international connected resource hub

    Martinus, Kirsten and Sigler, Thomas (2016). Boomtown globalising: Perth as an international connected resource hub. Planning boomtown and beyond. (pp. 27-42) edited by Sharon Biermann, Doina Olaru and Valerià Paül. Perth, WA, Australia: UWA Publishing.

  • Cities of middle America and the Caribbean

    Albandoz, Roberto, Brothers, Tim, Dixon, Seth, Escamilla, Irma, Scarpaci, Joseph L. and Sigler, Thomas (2016). Cities of middle America and the Caribbean. Cities of the world: regional patterns and urban environments. (pp. 97-135) edited by Stanley D. Brunn, Jessica K. Graybill, Maureen Hays-Mitchell and Donald J. Zeigler. Lanham, MD, United States: Rowman & Littlefield.

  • Hong Kong as an offshore trading hub

    Sigler, Thomas J. and Zhao, Simon X. B. (2016). Hong Kong as an offshore trading hub. The local impact of globalization in South and Southeast Asia: offshore business processes in services. (pp. 94-109) edited by Bart Lambregts, Niels Beerepoot and Robert C. Kloosterman. Abingdon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781315772776-16

  • Spatial mobility patterns of overseas graduates in Australia

    Tang, Angelina Zhi Rou, Rowe, Francisco, Corcoran, Jonathan and Sigler, Thomas (2016). Spatial mobility patterns of overseas graduates in Australia. Demography for planning and policy: Australian case studies. (pp. 175-195) edited by Tom Wilson, Elin Charles-Edwards and Martin Bell. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-22135-9_10

Journal Article

Conference Publication

Edited Outputs

  • The global position of Guangzhou: an analysis of stock market data

    Kirsten Martinus, Thomas Sigler and Julia Loginova eds. (2018). The global position of Guangzhou: an analysis of stock market data. International Forum on Cantonology and Global City Development, Guangzhou, China, 10-11 November 2018. Guangzhou, China: Guangzhou University.

Other Outputs

Grants (Administered at UQ)

PhD and MPhil Supervision

Current Supervision

  • Urban Micromobility and the Sharing Economy

    Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Two Decades of Change in the Australian Labourscape

    Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • A comparative study of housing affordability issues in China and Australia

    Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Urban Consolidation through Densification: the Constraints of Existing Property Boundaries

    Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Optimizing the Distribution of Dockless Sharing Stations Using Geospatial Machine Learning

    Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Integrating internal and international migration in Australia

    Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Affordable Housing Policies in Indonesia: Evaluations Analysis of National Programs (BSPS, FLPP and SSB)

    Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

    Other advisors:

Completed Supervision

Possible Research Projects

Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.

  • How does working from home (WFH) impact cities?

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying the spatial implications of the recent shift to large-scale remote work. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

  • The Globalisation of Social Class

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying spatial differentiation in social class from a cross-cultural perspective with regard to recent globalisation-induced shifts. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

  • Airbnb and Cities

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying how short-term rentals impact urban housing markets. This may be carried out in the Australian context, or in any other global context. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

  • Globalisation and Networks

    Students are invited to express their interest in studying how global firms are connected through financial networks. Funding is contingent upon successful scholarship award.

This staff member is a UQ Expert for media in the following fields:

Population Growth, Sharing Economy, Urban Planning, Economic Geography, Urban Geography, Daylight Saving, Daylight Saving Time, Airbnb, Land Use Planning, Housing, Cities

They are happy to lend their expertise to your articles or broadcasts and share their research discoveries and insights with the community via media channels.

For additional assistance with story ideas, general advice and information or help with seeking further experts, please email the UQ Media Team or telephone (07) 3365 1120.

Links

ResearcherID: P-5324-2015

ORCID: 0000-0002-7789-0916

Scopus ID: 55645748600

Google Scholar ID: uuX7EmUAAAAJ

Personal Profile: Link

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