Research Rooted in Policy and Place
The Developing Regions Lab is the home for researchers and graduate research led by Dr. Tamara Krawchenko, Associate Professor in Public Administration at the University of Victoria. Our work is united by a commitment to reducing territorial inequalities and supporting communities — particularly rural, remote, and Indigenous — in navigating complex transitions.
We bring together scholars, policymakers, and community partners to co-produce evidence that matters. Drawing on comparative policy analysis, place-based fieldwork, and interdisciplinary methods, we develop insights that bridge academic scholarship and real-world governance challenges.
Our students are at the heart of the lab. Each pursues original research contributing to one of the lab’s core themes, and together we form a collaborative community across disciplines and geographies.
What We Study
The Developing Regions Lab advances research on the governance of place — how communities, regions, and governments manage transitions, build capacity, address inequality and meet their development goals. Our work spans energy transitions and climate policy, regional and rural development, Indigenous governance and finance, urban and community planning and social policy. Students bring their own questions to the lab, and together we develop scholarship that connects public administration , public policy and political economy theories to the lived realities of communities and regions in Canada, and beyond.
Current Graduate Students & Researchers
Current and recently completed graduate students and researchers supervised by Dr. Krawchenko, working across public administration and community development.
Claire Bourgeois
Masters of Community Development
An examination of how memory politics influence community industrial transition, framed through a case study of the Crowsnest Pass
Sarah Korn
Masters in Public Administration
Community energy planning in British Columbia’s unincorporated areas: governance gaps and challenges
Elvia Wilyono
PhD in Public Administration
Using Visual Approaches to Support Collaborative Land-Use Planning and Community Engagement
Marta Dvuliat
Master of Public Administration
Delivering car-free housing in Greater Victoria: navigating barriers and challenges
Masoud Eisazadeh Otaghsara
Master of Public Administration
Measuring Access to Daily Needs: An Indicator-Based Assessment of Neighborhood Completeness in Saanich
Graduated Students
Mohadaddese Ghadiri (2024). Fostering sustainable food systems: A case study of Comox Valley, British Columbia.
Emma Hamill (2026). Empowering Victoria Community to Care for Animals: Addressing the Gaps in Services for Pet Guardians Experiencing Poverty and Homelessness
Matt McBride (2026). Extractive Roots, Branching Futures: How British Columbia Government Speeches and Strategies Imagine the Provincial Economy, 1960–2024 (Co-supervision with Dr. Chris Kennedy)
Leif Douglas (2026). The Political Economy of British Columbia’s Fiscal Transition under Decarbonization: Public Revenue, Staples, and Institutional Path Dependency (Co-supervision with Dr. Chris Kennedy)
Kiersten McDonald. Shared Streets: A Case Study of Bear Street in Banff, Alberta
Kayla Byrne. Enhancing Public Participation in the Town of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.
Sophie Kiernan (2024). A just transition for oil and gas regions? A comparative analysis of just transition policies in Denmark, New Zealand and Scotland.
Zainab Coovadia (2024). Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing trends in Canada (*Co-supervision with Dr. Basma Majerbi)
Micah Leonida (2024). Front-liners on the Sidelines: The credential recognition experiences of Filipino internationally-educated nurses (IENs) in Victoria, British Columbia (BC)
Charlotte Masemann (2023). Getting the Job Done: Understanding Barriers and Enablers to Municipal Climate Action in Greater Victoria.
Amanda Leclerc (2023). ‘All hands on deck’: Agricultural labour in British Columbia and Nova Scotia.
Jeffrey Shemilt (2022). Prospects for Endogenous Development:
Understanding Community Capacity in the Keremeos Area of British Columbia.
Juraj Kobzik (2021). “What do we want and how do we get there” – A comparative review of First Nations Comprehensive Community Plans in British Columbia
Matthew Creswick. Measuring Committee Influence in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.
Diogo Oliviera(2020). Understanding Community Conditions to Improve Place-Based Rural Development Policies and Programs .
Barrie Nicholls (2020).The Public Input Process for Development Approvals: A Comparative Policy Review of Leading Practices in British Columbia’s Local Governments