Biography
Google ScholarSimona Azzali is an Associate Professor at the Department of Architecture. She is an interdisciplinary researcher with a background in urban planning and design. Her research crosses a wide spectrum including urban spaces in the Middle East and tropical Asia; liveability and social sustainability of public spaces; place-making as well as mega sporting events and their impact on the built environment. Simona Azzali is passionate about cities and strongly advocates a people-oriented and participatory design approach to building better cities by design. Before commencing her appointment at CUD, she contributed to education at various levels for several renowned academic institutions such as the National University of Singapore, James Cook University, Prince Sultan University, UCL London, Politecnico di Milano, and Qatar University.
Academic Publications
-
Azzali, S. (2025). The Gulf city, rapid urban transformations and globalization: A critical analysis of Al Garhoud, Dubai. Ormran For Social Sciences, 51(13), 67-86. https://omran.dohainstitute.org/en/051/pages/issuehome.aspx
-
Azzali, S. (2024). Building a lasting legacy: Beyond qatar 2022. In The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar: Global and Local Perspectives. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003453246-8
-
Argent, R., Azzali, S., Law, L., & Seow, M. (2024). Does tourism chase the living culture? Singapore’s Kampong Glam and Geylang Serai. Town Planning Review, 94(6), 117 - 125. https://doi.org/10.3828/tpr.2023.27
-
Azzali, S. (2025, May). Oasi marziana nel deserto: Un laboratorio tra la Terra e Marte. YouBuild, (36), 60–69. https://www.youbuildweb.it/oasi-marziana-nel-deserto-laboratorio-avveniristico-fra-la-terra-e-marte/
-
Azzali, S. (2025, July). Un laboratorio di sostenibilità, la città del futuro a emissioni zero. YouBUILD, 37, 69‑80. https://www.youbuildweb.it/the‑sustainable‑city‑laboratorio‑urbano‑per‑la‑sostenibilita‑ambientale‑sociale‑ed‑economica/
-
Azzali, S. (2026). Shading the street: Micro public spaces as climate tools in hot-arid neighborhood streets: Lessons from a Satwa design studio. Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/17549175.2026.2665785
-
Naboni, E., Azzali, S., & Imparato, M. (2025). Testing a digital sustainable regenerative teaching framework in an architectural undergraduate design studio. Sustainability, 17(11), 5004. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17115004