What happens when a foreign charity introduces a development agenda that aligns with local social entrepreneurial initiatives? Will local entrepreneurs be seen as like-minded stakeholders, or as 'competition'? The story of the development of cycling on the Caribbean island of Nevis shows how agendas can clash despite everyone's good intentions.
The Government of India has launched a grand housing scheme for a 'slum-free India'. But can grand schemes work when planners and policymakers neither understand the reality of the urban poor nor connect to their aspirations?
What do the 'DIY urbanism' movement and homelessness have in common? While DIY urbanism is hailed as a creative force, the homeless are still marginalised in many cities.
There are many celebrated ideas and personalities in urban development, but how many survive the test of time? Two writers reflect on the legacy of John Turner, a quiet hero of global urbanism.
The breakdown of Cape Town's Housing Indaba shows how much such a forum is needed, but also shows how unready the city's stakeholders are for constructive collaboration.
Sharon Zukin's Naked City: the death and life of authentic urban places, reads like a character assassination of New York City, tearing through a few myths of Jane Jacobs' on the way.
A call for planners and advocates to recognise the compatibility of their goals and those of Manila's most forgotten slums communities.
Mike Duff (Twitter: @MrMikeDuff) is a consultant on strategy, planning and sustainability for cities at WSP, based in London.
Sign up here for email updates
The Global Urbanist is an online magazine reviewing urban affairs and urban development issues in cities throughout the developed and developing world.
Its readers are drawn from the urban policy and international development sectors, and include urban planners, officers in local, national or international government agencies, civil society leaders, and researchers.
