Charlotte Allen lived in Mozambique for almost 30 years, working as a practitioner in the areas of urban and rural development, participatory planning, and governance. With an initial degree in architecture, she also holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Town Planning and an MSc in Environmental Management. With regard to academic research, in 2012-13 she was field coordinator and facilitator for the action-research project Participatory Planning for Climate Compatible Development in Maputo, Mozambique which focused on the informal neighbourhood of Chamanculo.