Dr. Yu Gao holds a Ph.D. in International Studies from the University of Technology Sydney. Her research, based on approaches in human geography and comparative spatial thoughts, concerns the formation of relational space of urban villages in the Pearl River Delta region and party-state territorial dynamics at local scales of the society.

She has teaching experience in the course Contemporary China, Global Governance, and Capstone Project.

She has been awarded the UTS International Research Scholarship, UTS President Scholarship, and The Geographical Society of New South Wales Annual Awards for Post-Doctoral Scholars in 2019.