About Nik Heynen
Nik Heynen is a Professor in the Department of Geography at the University of Georgia. His research interests include urban political ecology and social movement theory with specific interests in environmental and food politics. His main research foci relate to the analysis of how social power relations, including class, race, and gender, are inscribed in the transformation of nature/space, and how in turn these processes contribute to interrelated connections among nature, space, and vulnerable populations.
Urban spaces are complex as a result of their socionatural relations and histories, which are shaped by both physical and social processes. The complexity necessitates theoretical frameworks that can demonstrate how urban socionatural outcomes result from the combination of social actions and physical surroundings. Henri Lefebvre suggests,