As part of his doctoral research at LSE, Billy examines the aspirations, the governance, and the project implementation of housing cooperatives in Kigali, Rwanda. The research focuses on the temporalities of housing and urban development and draws attention to the socio-spatial networks built through cooperative organisations. Through his doctoral project, Billy aims to add to the repertoire of alternative conceptions of affordable housing provision, local economic development, and social inclusion in Kigali and in African urban settings more broadly.
Billy received a Master in City Planning and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology prior to joining LSE. His academic background and professional experience in design and research firms in Rwanda solidified his interests in affordable housing, urbanisation, and inclusive economic development. His long-term professional interests are oriented towards public and private institutions working on development in Africa.
Research interests: Affordable housing, Cooperative development, Social inclusion, Urban design
Skills: GIS, CAD, Java, Matlab, Adobe Suite
Supervisors
Prof Claire Mercer
Dr Romola Sanyal