Huda Javaid is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Development Studies at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan. With an MPhil in Environmental Science and Policy from the Lahore School of Economics and a PhD in Human Geography from Heidelberg University, Germany—as a DAAD scholar—Javaid’s research is rooted in long-term ethnographic work in peri-urban Lahore. This work explores how land commodification and urban expansion, while introducing a cash influx that fuels speculative real estate, can have diverse impacts on local communities. Rather than focusing solely on the physical manifestations of change, the research aims to unpack the balance of losses and gains, questioning what constitutes progress or development, and for whom. It highlights the role of intangible assets in shaping quality of life and examines how these processes transform ecologies, livelihoods, and social structures. Javaid’s academic interests center on the state–society–environment relationship and on amplifying the voices of communities navigating the often overlooked costs of development.