Slums
Meeting Slum Sanitation Needs Sustainably
With a collective population of more than 10 million, Kenya's slums face major sanitation issues. A new project offers a sustainable solution.
India Tries to Hide its Poor As Games Begin
As the Commonwealth Games get underway in New Delhi, India, locals are upset that officials have made efforts to hide slum areas from the view of visitors.
India's Slum Population Nears 100 Million
The population of India's slums is expected to rise close to 100 million in 2011.
An Urban Framework Based on the Slum
Many people have argued that global cities can take lessons from informal communities like Dharavi and the favelas of Brazil. Designers Pavlina Ilieva and Kuo Pao Lian have created a new framework for city development based on these informal cities.
Hopeful Progress in Brazil's Slums
Redeveloping the slums of Rio de Janeiro has been on the city's agenda for decades. Despite the many challenges, some new efforts seem to be paying off.
A Toolkit to Improve the Slums of Brazil
Brazilian slums represent huge segments of the country's urban population, especially in Sao Paulo. Upgrading them into economically sustainable segments of the city is a challenge, but a new toolkit offers a path to success.
The Design Challenge of Cities
With increasing urbanization spreading throughout global cities, Justin McGuirk argues that city design is the biggest challenge acing designers.
'Unexpectedly Green' Slums
This article from The Prospect looks at slums and squatter cities. Author Stewart Brand, editor of the Whole Earth Catalog, calls them "unexpectedly green".
Baghdad Plans Slum Redevelopment
The city of Baghdad is looking to revitalize its Sadr City slum through a $10 billion, 10-year redevelopment plan.
Density Gone Bad
The Walled City of Kowloon, Hong Kong was demolished in 1993, but remains a symbol of what happens when a city evolves anarchically. It was known as 'Hak Nam', or 'City of Darkness.'
World Bank's Urban Strategy Misses Mark
The World Bank recently released its 10-year strategy for addressing urban issues, focusing specifically on slum areas. Next American City's Josh Leon takes a look at the plan and finds much to be desired.
Morocco Seeks to Supplant Slums
In an effort to replace slums with low-cost housing, Morocco is paying developers to create thousands of new apartments. Some slum residents see it as a boon, others say they couldn't afford the rent, even if it were subsidized.
Caracas, The City that Built Itself
Utopian modernism turned on its head in Caracas, where residents have made fifty-year-old superblock housing projects into the locus of sprawling improvised settlements.
The Slumdog's City in a City
Watching Slumdog Millionaire, the Oscar winning film of 2008 that is being released on DVD today, can be a bracing experience for those accustomed to the conveniences of Western living. The destitute living is accurately and graphically depicted and is all too real for those that have seen it. Yet, the real danger is letting the poverty obscure a larger, perhaps more important lesson about urban places: Many of these urban slums are functioning, productive cities in their own right, and represent an intergenerational path toward economic improvement.
Taking a Closer Look at the Slum
Slums have garnered some positive attention lately, from academics (Teddy Cruz) to royalty (Prince Charles). This article looks at just what it is we can learn from them, as well as the challenges that face legitimizing the world's shantytowns.
Slum Tourism Debated
This piece ponders whether slum tourism in places like Dharavi and the favelas of Brazil is a valid form of cultural exchange or merely voyeuristic exploitation?
'The Ultimate User-Generated City'
A look inside the real slum featured in the movie "Slumdog Millionaire". The film won 8 Oscars including Best Picture.
Much Investment But Little Progress in Vancouver Slum
More than $1 billion has been invested in a Vancouver slum area, but little improvement can be seen, according to this investigation from The Globe and Mail.
The Model Slum
According to Prince Charles, Dharavi, the slum featured in 'Slumdog Millionaire,' should be considered a model for the rest of the developing world.
Rio's "Eco Barrier" Draws Fire
Plans to erect a concrete "eco barrier" around Rio's slum areas being heavily criticized by human rights activists and environmentalists.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Albany
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
