All time highs in cities of 2017 on December 24, 2017In December every year, individuals and communities tend to review their year and plan for future. Cities are no exception. The outgoing year left some interesting trends on urban landscape of the world with long terms repercussions for developing and rapidly urbanising countries like Pakistan. Some of these trends herald a rosy future while the […]
Time to co-produce ‘right to the city’ on December 16, 2017There is an increasing consensus that neo-liberal economics has failed to produce equal opportunities for all people living in most cities and that the existing urban institutions are part of the problem rather than the solution. The grass root activists and civil society has sharpened their critique on these institutions as representative of the status […]
Navigating the urban wasteland on December 8, 2017Cities everywhere are under fire from all sides. They have to contend with rising crime rates, the burden of ever increasing populations, crumbling infrastructure, congestion as well as poverty. And when they are not dealing with these — there is the not so small matter of housing deficits, stressed services, urban sprawl and environmental degradation. […]
Six aspects of climate change on November 25, 2017Climate change has emerged as a non-linear and abrupt risk factor with major implications for almost every sector of economy especially the irrigation, agriculture, housing, transport, industries and private sectors and education, health, and municipal services. The war on climate change will be won or lost in cities. However, the people in Pakistani cities show […]
In cities, the early birds are angry birds on November 14, 2017After the fall of cocks’ crow into oblivion, the sparrows’ chirp in the morning is the new victim of our urbanisation drive. The cities have muted their vocal cords just as dictators do to political opponents. The spatial design of cities is causing biological suffocation for most animals, especially the birds. Numerous international research studies […]
The cities debate- the smaller may be smarter on November 1, 2017Human population continues to concentrate into cities, which currently occupy less than two percent of planetary land, yet generate seventy percent of the world’s economy. Urban dots on the globe continue to grow, especially in the South, where it is predicted that 45 of the world’s 50 mega cities will appear by the year 2050. […]