Dr. Saar Alon Barkat, of the School of Political Sciences, and colleagues published an article entitled “Leveraging City Officials’ Professional and Social Identities to Facilitate Affordable Housing” in Political Geography. The paper explores the conflict of interest between distinct levels of government in addressing housing affordability. By comparing the policy preferences of elected officials and career bureaucrats in Israeli cities, he finds that bureaucrats are more open to densification and affordable housing. The study highlights the impact of officials’ residence and social identification on urban planning preferences, offering insights for better collaboration.