Michael Dear has been a significant force in human geography and urban analysis for close to four decades. A provocative and prolific writer, Dear has authored or edited 19 books and more than 100 scholarly articles, covering topics, including the mentally ill, homelessness, the state, social theory, postmodernism, and, most recently, comparative urbanism.

Born in Treorchy, in the Rhondda Valley of South Wales, Dear obtained a BA in geography from the University of Birmingham (1966), an MPhil in town planning from the University of London (1966), and MA (1972) and PhD (1974) degrees in regional science from the University of Pennsylvania. He taught at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He was a professor of geography and urban planning at University of Southern California for many ...