J. Vernon Henderson joined the LSE in 2013 as School Professor of Economic Geography. He was formerly Eastman Professor of Political Economy at Brown University. His research focuses on urbanization in developing countries. He has on-going research on the effect of geography and persistence on the distribution of economic activity worldwide and over time. His recent focus concerns urbanization in Sub-Saharan Africa, examining the evolution of the urban system across and within countries and evolution of the built environment within cities, as related to evolving institutional structures and economic growth. He also has on-going work in China, covering topics to do with urbanization, land and capital markets, and infrastructure investment. Vernon is a Fellow of the British Academy. He has been co-editor of the Journal of Urban Economics and the Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, and serves on a number of editorial boards. He was a founder and President for 8 years of the Urban Economics Association. Recent research has been funded by the European Union, IGC, and the World Bank.