Dr Mengbi Li

Dr Mengbi Li holds a PhD in Built Environment from the University of New South Wales, Sydney. She is a Course Co-Chair in Building Design and FYC Liaison for Built Environment. She joined VU on a permanent basis in 2018.

Mengbi is one of the foundation members of the First Year Model, a pedagogic revolution at Victoria University that obtained multiple awards and has since evolved into The VU Way.

Mengbi was awarded a Research Fellowship by the University to support her endeavours in research. Mengbi’s research interest is in promoting an understanding of the history of architecture, with a particular focus on the pre-modern architecture and settlements in China. She is seeking out new pathways to an intellectual understanding of architecture and finding answers in its own history.

Inquiring into the relationship between people and the built environment, she is now embarking on a critical rethink of a series of dogmas, mind-sets and vigorously imposed goals that prevail in the production of cities and buildings. Her work has been recognised by prestigious journals, such as:

• The Journal of Architecture
• Journal of Urban History
• Asian Architecture and Building Engineering
• The Journal of Architecture and Urbanism
• Studies in Dialectics of Nature.

For multiple times, Mengbi’s papers have been presented in the leading conference of the Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand. Dr Li serves on the editorial board for The Journal of Chinese Architecture and Urbanism. Through recent endeavours, Mengbi engages with a broader audience through The Conversation, SBS, chairing symposiums and a panel discussion.

The transition and retention in the first year of university have been a challenge to tertiary education as well as to the students’ success. She is interested in nurturing the curiosity and enthusiasm of the discipline in her students. Mengbi works as unit coordinator at VU and have teaching experience in multiple top universities in Australia.