Isabelle Nilsson

Isabelle Nilsson

Associate Professor
Geography and Earth Sciences
704-687-5954
McEniry 425

Assistant Professor, Department of Geography and Earth Sciences
Assistant Professor, Public Policy Doctoral Program

Faculty Website

Research Interests: Transportation policy, Urban development, Location of firms and households, Residential mobility

Dr. Nilsson’s research interests are focused on firm location, transportation, and housing. In particular, she is interested in the effects of public policy and public investments on firm and household location behavior.

Some of her recent research projects include explorations into the effects of rail transit investments on neighborhood change and residential mobility among low-income individuals; effects of zoning on retail firm location behavior; location behaviors in the craft beer industry (see CityLab articleby Richard Florida citing our work); the changing industrial organization of US megaregions; effects of neighborhood foreclosure rates on mortgage lending denial rates; and estimating migration rates associated with economic development projects. My research is quantitative with theoretical grounding in economics as well as geography.

Recent Publications:

  • Lehnert, M., Nilsson, I., & Reid, N. (2020). Navigating the Regulatory Environment. New developments in the brewing industry: The role of institutions and ownership, 47.
  • Nilsson, I., Reid, N., & Campbell, H. (2020). The Changing Industrial Organization of American Megaregions. In Urban empires (pp. 275-296). Routledge.
  • Nilsson, I., Wartell, J., & Reid, N. (2020). Craft breweries and neighborhood crime: Are they related?. Papers in Applied Geography, 6(3), 256-271.
  • Nilsson, I., Schuch, J. C., Delmelle, E. C., & Canales, K. L. (2020). Should I stay or should I go? A survey analysis of neighborhood change and residential mobility concerns around new light rail stations in Charlotte, NC. Journal of Transport Geography, 86, 102790.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2020). On the link between rail transit and spatial income segregation. Applied Geography, 125, 102364.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2020). Impact of new rail transit stations on neighborhood destination choices and income segregation. Cities, 102, 102737.
  • Delmelle, E., & Nilsson, I. (2020). New rail transit stations and the out-migration of low-income residents. Urban Studies, 57(1), 134-151.
  • Delmelle, E., Nilsson, I., & Adu, P. (2021). Poverty suburbanization, job accessibility, and employment outcomes. Social Inclusion, 9(2), 166-178.
  • Delmelle, E. C., Nilsson, I., & Bryant, A. (2021). Investigating transit-induced displacement using eviction data. Housing Policy Debate, 31(2), 326-341.
  • Delmelle, E. C., & Nilsson, I. (2021). The language of neighborhoods: A predictive-analytical framework based on property advertisement text and mortgage lending data. Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, 88, 101658.
  • Tornabene, S., & Nilsson, I. (2021). Rail transit investments and economic development: Challenges for small businesses. Journal of Transport Geography, 94, 103087.
  • Khabazi, M., & Nilsson, I. (2021). Connecting people with jobs: Light rail’s impact on commuting patterns. Travel Behaviour and Society, 24, 132-142.
  • Claire Schuch, J., & Nilsson, I. (2022). Rail Transit, for Who? perceptions and factors influencing light rail ridership in Charlotte, NC. Travel Behaviour and Society, 27, 38-46.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2022). Understanding residential sorting through property listings: a case study of neighborhood change in Charlotte, NC 1993–2018. In Economies, Institutions and Territories (pp. 215-237). Routledge.
  • Schuch, J. C., & Nilsson, I. (2022). Rail Transit, for Who? perceptions and factors influencing light rail ridership in Charlotte, NC. Travel Behaviour and Society, 27, 38-46.
  • Apardian, R. E., Nilsson, I., Reid, N., & Wartell, J. (2022). The role of neighborhood characteristics for firm performance in the experience economy: A case study of production volumes in California’s brewpub industry. Journal of Urban Management, 11(2), 214-225.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2023). Smart growth as a luxury amenity? Exploring the relationship between the marketing of smart growth characteristics and neighborhood racial and income change. Journal of Transport Geography, 106, 103522.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2023). An embedding-based text classification approach for understanding micro-geographic housing dynamics. International Journal of Geographical Information Science, 37(12), 2487-2513.
  • Reid, N., & Nilsson, I. (2023). From Mill District to Brewery District. Beer places: The microgeographies of craft beer (food and foodways), 71-92.
  • Delmelle, E. C., Nilsson, I., & Adu, P. (2023). Neighborhood and housing choices of out-of-town versus local movers: The case of Charlotte, North Carolina. Journal of Urban Affairs, 1-20.
  • Nilsson, I. (2023). Transportation geography specialty group report 2023. Journal of Transport Geography, 110, 103628.
  • Nilsson, I., & Delmelle, E. C. (2024). How the marketing of real estate properties explains mortgage applicants by race and income. Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, 23998083241287956.
  • Duma, N., & Nilsson, I. (2024). Local factors driving the adoption of municipal voluntary environmental programs: the case of Sweden’s eco-municipalities. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 67(8), 1678-1701.
  • Lee, Y. J. A., & Nilsson, I. (2025). An examination of the effect of external factors on zero-emission vehicle adoption in the United States. Travel Behaviour and Society, 38, 100904.
  • Nilsson, I., & Reid, N. (2025). Craft breweries as a neighborhood amenity: evidence from residential real estate listings. Urban Geography, 46(1), 64-86.
  • Nilsson, I., Delmelle, E. C., & James, M. P. (2025). When the Train Never Comes: Property Value Impacts from the Announcement and Cancellation of a Light Rail Project. The Professional Geographer, 1-13.Anderson, N., Nilsson, I., Cousins, G., Farrow, T., Fox, C., Hall, R., Hammelman, C., … & White, B. (2025). Building Impactful Community-University Partnerships Through a Shared Power Approach. Journal of Community Engagement and Scholarship, 18(1).