Yining Tan

Yining Tan is an Assistant Professor of Practice in the School of Geography, Development & Environment at the University of Arizona. 

Yining's research expertise is in urban geography, human mobility, international migration and transnational connections. Awarded the AAG Dissertation Grant, her dissertation develops a capital-mobility framework and employs intersectionality theory to examine the impacts of skilled migrants’ capital and intentionality on their spatial, occupational, and social mobility. She also works on research that addresses the challenge of how to make cities more equitable in economic development, urban built environment, and socio-cultural integration. Her current work, funded by the Faculty Small Grants through the Social & Behavioral Sciences Research Institute at the University of Arizona, examines how the “zero generation”, parents of first-generation immigrants, navigate multi-scalar mobilities and engage in intergenerational care practices with implications on accessing to housing and healthcare in Arizona. Her work has been accepted for publication in journals including The Professional Geographer, Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Cities, Asian Geographer, International Migration, and International Development Policy, among others.

Yining obtained her bachelor’s degree from Sun Yat-sen University in China, a Master of Planning degree from University of Southern California, and a doctoral degree in geography from Arizona State University.