Hans Koster (1987) is an associate professor at the Department of Spatial Economics, VU University Amsterdam. Hans obtained his bachelor’s degree in Economics at the Erasmus University Rotterdam and his master’s degree (cum laude) in Spatial Economics at the VU University Amsterdam. He defended his Ph.D. thesis in 2013. Hans is also affiliated as Research Fellow with the Tinbergen Institute and as Research Associate with the Spatial Economics Research Centre at the London School of Economics.
Hans’s research concerns the economic analysis of cities, regions and the environment. In an ever-changing urban world, there are several important questions that require answers. For example, how do we cope with the challenges of a steadily increasing urban population? How do people and firms compete for space? What are the costs and benefits of land use regulations? Should we invest public money in deprived neighbourhoods to reduce spatial disparities? These and other questions Hans is trying to answer using big data and advanced econometric techniques.