Across the Global South, families like Asma Banu’s live under eviction threats while powering cities. Her story demands dignity, secure tenure and basic services for all. By Muaz Hussain
Abuja, Nigeria’s fast-growing capital, is home to Garki Village, a prominent slum area. Often dismissed as an eyesore, it challenges conventional ideas of housing interventions. Maryam Abbakyari shows how empathy and co-creation with residents can transform slum upgrading from technical fixes into climate-responsive, culturally rooted solutions.
The global housing crisis is a disaster – and it’s unjust. Ariana Karamallis argues for radical change that shifts power to the majority: the people who are affected.
“A house for all” is a promise made by the South African government, which has not yet been fulfilled. Annette May, of Isandla Institute, highlights this ongoing struggle and advocates for policy reform to address systemic challenges in housing delivery.
Achieving a just energy transition in the urban housing sectors of the Global South demands recognition and engagement with their heterogeneous energy networks and rapidly evolving spatialities. Marie Urfels explores the challenges of achieving a just energy transition in the housing sector of the Global South while emphasising the importance of embracing these complexities to create targeted, context-specific solutions.
India has a long tradition of building climate-friendly houses. But in the case of informal settlements, applying this knowledge presents many difficulties. This leads to intense heat stress for residents. However, there is hope on the horizon, as we highlight an exciting initiative: utilising innovative design solutions for thermal comfort in community buildings in Chennai and Coimbatore - an Urban Living Lab approach.
For years cities have been planned and built for only half the population: Women’s needs are represented sparsely at most. The BMWSB project “Dialogues for Urban Change” implements the approach of international peer learning to create safe public spaces for everyone.
From accessing public services to just being able to survive, the city can be a vastly different place for different genders. Join Paula Meth as she explores gender inequalities in informal urban environments.
Forced evictions and displacements should be stopped, but it is not enough. Muhammad Azka Gulsyan wants us to think about how to rebuild the evicted homes, and restore affected communities and their livelihoods. Vertical Kampung-projects in Jakarta show that rebuilding and restoration are possible.
How can architectural solutions contribute to increase liveability in informal settlements? Alfredo Brillembourg portrays how the process of blocking-out facilitated the empowerment and upgrading in the informal settlement of Khayelitsha.
The Indian state of Odisha has initiated a slum upgrading programme that acknowledges residents as city makers. Preeti Prada Panigrahi presents its advantages and successes.
When thinking about the resilience of urban poor, it is worthwhile to think of resilience as a dynamic process of transition on individual and household level, argue Zakir Hossain and Mostafizur Rahman.
How are rapid urbanisation, urban poverty, and slums' emergence interconnected in Nigeria? And what areas of urban governance should local governments focus on if they are to successfully tackle urban poverty? Bassey Bassey shares some reflections.
Relocations and resettlements are often inevitable. But how can we protect the most vulnerable along the way? By Julian Baskin, Principal Urban Advisor, Cities Alliance
Sam Drabble, Sara Márquez Martín, and Jane Weru explore how water and sanitation can and should be better integrated with wider slum upgrading initiatives.
