What is the character of our cities? What are the attributes of inequalities and social exclusions in towns, metropolises and mega cities? How do urban structures and forms characteristic of pre capitalist cities of India reorganize itself as capitalist relations enter into these cities? What...

The cities of tomorrow are in poor countries, where the largest proportion of the population is below 25 years old and where young women are becoming particularly vulnerable. It is youth who will inherit not only the riches of the city but its problems as well, unless something is done to...

The reality of urban development is that commerce and industry are two of its core drivers. Without the full participation of the private sector in efforts towards sustainable human settlements, the present and looming crisis of rapid urbanization, particularly in the South, will not be...

Do we aspire to be a ‘global’ city like Shanghai, with all the spit and polish to attract foreign investors by the drove? Or can we aim to be a city with a sustainable plan for its development – one that marries ecology with economy? Is it more important for us to forge links...

The argument in this paper is in four parts: First, the author suggests that we can no longer treat cities apart from the regions surrounding them with which they are intensively entwined. Second, the paper critically examines the current policy consensus that a city’s future rests...

A central challenge facing us here – how do we ensure that the issue of the urban poor, in particular, is given as much attention by the international community, beyond speaking about it?

In convening the third session of the World Urban Forum in Vancouver, the United Nations Human Settlements Program has asked us to focus our attention on the Sustainable City and consider critical challenges across three sub-themes: • Urban Growth And Environment• Partnership And...

The quest for innovative ideas and practical solutions – rare for a meeting convened by the United Nations – was underscored in the six Dialogues, 13 Roundtables and more than 160 Networking Events. Ministers, mayors, academics, community-based organizations, federations of...