Derek Diamond

Derek Robin Diamond (1933–2015) was an applied geographer and academic. He was professor of geography at the London School of Economics between 1982 and 1995, and was a specialist in urban and regional planning.

Early life and education Diamond was born on 18 May 1933, the son of the Labour Party politician Jack Diamond, Baron Diamond, and his wife Sadie. He studied geography at Pembroke College, Oxford,

Career In 1957, he began teaching at the University of Glasgow as a lecturer in geography; in 1965, he was appointed to a lectureship in town and regional planning.

Diamond was also Chairman of the Regional Studies Association between 1974 and 1976, President of the Institute of British Geographers for the year 1994–95, and a vice-president of the Town and Country Planning Association. He was editor of the journals Town and Country Planning (1972 to 1981), Progress in Planning (from 1973 to 2003) and Geoforum (between 1974 and 1993). He retired from the LSE in 1995, but was appointed to an emeritus professorship there, and was made an honorary fellow in 2006. Diamond died on 6 May 2015; he was survived by his wife, Esme, and their two children.