Prof. Lauren Graham is a Professor of Sociology and the DSI/NRF Interim Research Chair in Welfare and Social Development. She has a Doctorate in Sociology from UJ. Her research interests are in the application and testing of social and development theories in practice with a focus on excluded groups such as young people, precarious workers, people with disabilities, and children growing up in adverse circumstances. She is an NRF C-rated scholar and a previous Newton Advanced Fellow.