Feng Xu, University of Victoria

Research

Read how they describe their research on their University of Victoria profile.

Comparative politics gender migration and citizenship Global South (East Asia)

Latest papers

Eldercare and re-purposing the built environment of urban China: Capital switching and bundled commodities in recent trends.
Human geography (Bolton, Mass.) · 2026 · first author
Re-purposing the built environment of urban China: Residential eldercare and David Harvey's capital switching in a new era.
Human geography (Bolton, Mass.) · 2025 · senior author

All 2 publications

Latest funding

Embodying the Mind: A Mixed-Methods Biocultural Approach to Disentangling the Impacts of Childhood Psychosocial Stress on Adult Growth Outcomes
SSHRC · 2023 · Co-investigator
$178,273
Liberating Migrant Labour?: International Mobility Programs in Settler-Colonial Contexts
SSHRC · 2022 · Co-investigator
$435,725
Understanding Precarity in BC (UP-BC)
SSHRC · 2020 · Co-investigator
$912,288

All 5 grants and awards

2 publications.

01

Eldercare and re-purposing the built environment of urban China: Capital switching and bundled commodities in recent trends.

Xu F, Lawson J

Human geography (Bolton, Mass.)2026First author

DOI: 10.1177/19427786251396621 PMID: 42428983

02

Re-purposing the built environment of urban China: Residential eldercare and David Harvey's capital switching in a new era.

Lawson J, Xu F

Human geography (Bolton, Mass.)2025Senior author

DOI: 10.1177/19427786241227235 PMID: 42037736

Embodying the Mind: A Mixed-Methods Biocultural Approach to Disentangling the Impacts of Childhood Psychosocial Stress on Adult Growth Outcomes

Co-investigatorSSHRC2023Canada Graduate Scholarships - Doctoral

Principal investigators: Wiley, Adrianna N.

Keywords: biocultural; childhood growth; embodiment; mental health; psychocosical stress; social determinants of health; wellness

$178,273

Liberating Migrant Labour?: International Mobility Programs in Settler-Colonial Contexts

Co-investigatorSSHRC2022Partnership Grants

Keywords: migrant labour; international mobility programs; precarious employment; tenuous residency status; differential inclusion; dispossession; settler colonialism

$435,725

Understanding Precarity in BC (UP-BC)

Co-investigatorSSHRC2020Partnership Grants

Keywords: precarity; precarious employment; policy; community based research; participatory research; regulation; intersectionality; British Columbia; mixed methods; survey research; knowledge base; data visualization; labour studies; geography; economics

$912,288

Workers in the aging city: eldercare labor markets in Vancouver and Shanghai

Principal investigatorSSHRC2016Insight Grants

Principal investigators: Xu, Feng

Keywords: eldercare labor markets; eldercare policy; aging city; migration; gender; political economy; Vancouver Canada; Shanghai China

$178,062

Migration and late capitalism: critical intersections with the Asia-Pacific and beyond

Principal investigatorSSHRC2014

Principal investigators: Xu, Feng

Keywords: migration flows; border security and surveillance; mobilization; advocacy; indigenous displacement; environmental degradation; policy advocacy

$25,000

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

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Subject: Prospective PhD student: Comparative politics Dear Professor Xu, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Eldercare and re-purposing the built environment of urban China: Capital switching and bundled commodities in recent trends." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]