Paan fried fish: Industry meets Environment
We recently travelled from Mumbai to Chiplun and then onward to reach Sawarde, a small village in the Konkan region. While we enjoyed the abundant landscape we also discovered some sobering realities.
Mumbai's Toolhouse features in the Built Environment Journal
Our article on the Toolhouse was published in the Built Environment, a quarterly publication on a diverse range of contemporary issues, the focus of this issue is live-work spaces. We present snippets of the article from the latest issue of the Built Environment - 'Homes that Work', Volume 49 - number 3.
Spirit of the place, are you there?
Urban gardens are multiplying around the world, responding to the impulse of people that want more green and social spaces in their neighborhoods. urbz was invited to host a series of brainstorming sessions at the Jardin des Moraines in Geneva.
John Turner - From Lima to Mumbai
Latin America and India share a common history of experimentation in slum-upgrading and incremental housing strategies. The ideas of John Turner, who was informed by years of work in Lima, in particular have inspired some of the most progressive schemes and projects in Mumbai and other parts of India.
Aqua Civica
A community-led water supply project as a device to upgrade urban citizenship
On urban and ecological memories: What makes a Koliwada?
Navigating down Mithi River's intricacies between landscape and identity in Dharavi Koliwada, where urban and ecological memories contest homogenizing narratives and challenge the city’s accessibility and sustainability.
Revisiting Dharavi.org
NYU AD students explore a user-driven website to establish new communication channels among locals, visitors, entrepreneurs and civic institutions.
The Women of Dharavi
NYUAD students in conversation with the Women of Dharavi
Dharavi Koliwada Pipeline Project
NYU Abu Dhabi students collaborate with the Koli community and the urbz team to address water supply and drainage for Dharavi-Koliwada.
Handstorming in Dharavi Continues
NYU Abu Dhabi students are back in Dharavi, this time for more in-depth interactions with various community members of the neighbourhood.
The Golden Thread
One among the many ways of watching Nishtha Jain’s exquisite documentary, ‘The Golden Thread’ (2022), is by following the imagination of urbanist Patrick Geddes.
Connect And Converse - Gathering Spaces In and Around Koli Jamat Hall
Lying in the heart of Dharavi Koliwada, the Koli Jamat Building offers the opportunity of a community gathering space to the residents in the dense urban grain of Dharavi, that majorly lacks public open spaces.
Inside-Out | The Case of Vithoba Ganpat Chawl
Looking back at one of the redeveloped chawls in Dharavi, we share the experiences of the people living in a space where staying inside gives the experience of being on the outside - thanks to special features such as the building’s location, orientation, ventilation, and natural lighting.
Diverse Aspirations - The Case of Jairam Sheth Chawl
The article reflects on the lifestyles and aspirations of the residents of Jairam Sheth Chawl, in Dharavi Koliwada, Mumbai, and recognizes the contradictions in the type of homes they aspire to inhabit and the experiences and relationships they want to take forward from their current homes.
Documenting Process: The IFRC Project
This article narrates the entire participatory process organized for the IFRC Park Project through a series of videos.
Combined Residential and Commercial Use - The Case of Pasco Patil Chawl
The article unpacks the design of the Pasco Patil chawl to study the gradual shift in levels of privacy, to house both commercial and residential spaces inside one building.
A Conceptual Framework for the Red Cross Park , Geneva.
Through the series of participatory events with the IFRC staff members, and its neighbours, urbz drafted a conceptual framework for the park which reflects the most common sentiments among its users.
Vithal Bhaskar Chawl after Re-development
Revisiting the recently redeveloped Vithal Bhaskar chawl (a traditional residential tenement) in Dharavi Koliwada, Mumbai, to examine the impact of changes on daily life.
Resident-led Projects of Dharavi Koliwada
These projects have been re-developed by the residents in collaboration with local contractors and the urbz team.
Dharavi Koliwada : Where people are pushed to the edge
Celebrated writer Jerry Pinto takes a walk with urbz partner Samidha Patil through the bylanes of Dharavi Koliwada.
User-Choices - Themes for the Red Cross Park, Geneva
The participatory events planned for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Geneva, brought out specific concerns, and focus areas to convert the park into a shared space.
Events and Action: The Red Cross Park, Geneva
Over six months, several events were planned for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Geneva. The process promotes discussion, brainstorming, ideas and aspirations of the IFRC staff members, and their neighbours for the future park.
A Participatory Park for the Red Cross
urbz is leading a participatory landscaping process for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) through a series of workshops, walks, talks and exhibition. The end result will be a publicly accessible IFRC Park in the center of Geneva.
Homes, Models and Materials
Artisans collaborate with contractors, residents and the urbz team, to create models in wood, clay, steel, acrylic and brass to produce model homes in Sangam Gully, Dharavi, Mumbai, as part of the Homegrown Street Project.
Homegrown Street Films
Two short videos present the Homegrown Street Project in Sangam Gully, Dharavi, Mumbai.
The Economics of Transport Choices
As part of the C40 Cities Women4Climate Gendered Mobility in Climate Action research project, this blog post attempts to explore the economic impacts and implications of gendered mobility.
In and around the commuting life in Mumbai
This blog post discusses the the commute and the responisibilities surrounding it from a gendered persepctive as a part of the Gendered Mobility and Climate Action research.
Mumbai's Last Mile Challenge
This blog post highlights key challenges faced by women commuters drawing from the interviews taken as a part of Gendered Mobility and Climate Action research.
From the Commuters of Mumbai
This blog post summarizes the everyday journeys taken in Mumbai and the workshop conducted as a part of Gendered, Mobility and Climate Action research.
What’s in a game?
This post examines game methodology as a potential method for qualitative data collection to understand the subconscious behaviour of a commuter and the various factors influencing it, continuing our explorations of various data collection techniques as part of our research on Gendered Mobility and Climate Action.
urbz Paris: Visual narratives for participatory urbanism
urbz combines ethnographic participation with visual storytelling to accompany, facilitate, or initiate urban planning, heritage, and transformation projects.
Dharavi works
Dharavi works is a series of projects designed in Mumbai by urbz in partnership with local inhabitants and contractors.
ICRC Campus
urbz is working on a comprehensive plan for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) HQ in Geneva. About 1200 people work in Geneva and another 20,000 work in over 100 conflict zones around the world
Homegrown Street
We are taking the Design Comes as We Build project to the next level - the Homegrown Street!
Gendered Mobility and Climate Action
This project is undertaken under the C40 Women For Climate mentorship program, Mumbai in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra. The Mentee, Vidisha Dhar, is supported by Lubaina Rangwala (WRI), urbz
Participatory process Onex-Centre
urbz is working with the Municipality of Onex in Geneva, putting together a participatory process to evaluate and contribute to a master plan aiming at improving the quality of life, providing new housing and
Entekochi Urban Design Competition
Remember the Urban Typhoon workshops in Kochi? These workshops were part of the EnteKochi citylab. We are now back with the Entekochi competition. This is a national level Urban Design Competition, aiming to
Covid-19 in Dharavi
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 urbz has been researching its effect on the people of Dharavi.
Habitat 100: A chawl redevelopment project
We are excited to be working on a new architectural project in Dharavi Koliwada. Our friend, collaborator, and contractor Joseph Koli, approached us to work on his latest project - the redevelopment of a chawl
Project Étoile
urbz has been mandated by the State of Geneva to develop a concept and program that integrates living, working and culture for a 60,000 m2 mixed used development in the city’s new downtown.
Réaménagement des rues Pré-du-Marché et du Clos-de-Bulle
Un projet participatif pour repenser l’avenir du périmètre Pré-du-Marché et Clos-de-Bulle.
Handstorm in Dharavi
Our annual Handstorm workshops in Dharavi with the "Engineers for Social Impact" from NYU Abu Dhabi generate incremental innovations that improve the quality of life in this massive settlement
Urban Typhoon Kochi, June 4-9, 2019
June 4-9, 2019
The Urban Typhoon workshop in Kochi is open to all citizens and visitors interested in working in urban areas and are willing to engage with communities participation. Together we will explore
Riponne-Tunnel
urbz is carrying a 18 month long participatory process to redefine the two largest public squares in Lausanne (Switzerland). / urbz conduit une démarche participative de 18 mois visant à réimaginer les deux
Koliwada Charcha
The exhibition Koliwada Charcha is an attempt at understanding the essence of Dharavi Koliwada's architectural and visual language.
Point-du-Jour
Public consultation for a densification project in Geneva / Démarche de concertation pour un projet de densification au Petit-Saconnex, Genève.
Circulatory Urbanism
For the past 5 years, urbz has been following families who's lives are spread between Mumbai and their ancestral villages in the Konkan (Western India).
Make in Dharavi
This series of interviews portrays the economic life of Dharavi in Mumbai through the activities of its inhabitants.
Proyecto Escape - Cazuca
Collaborative process between communities led by Proyecto Escape and supported by different local and international organisations
Proyecto Manila
Building a Community center by understanding social dynamics and participatory planning in a homegrown neighborhood in Bogota
Ecoparc Meyrin
Concertation pour faire émerger un nouveau concept d’EcoParc pour la zone industrielle de Meyrin.
The Design Comes as We Build
urbz invited local builders from Dharavi to design the best possible house they could imagine. These designs were translated into physical models by artisans.
Homegrown Things
We produced everyday-life objects based on the specific needs of residents and the skills available in the Shivaji Nagar area in Mumbai.
Khotachiwadi
urbz has been involved with the heritage precinct of Khotachiwadi for nearly a decade. We have organized many events workshops there and produced a strategic plan for the area among other things.
Mashup workshops
The mashup workshops take many different forms and happen in all kinds of places. They take specific neighbourhoods as sources of inspiration and unleash a maximum of creativity onto them!
Homegrown cities
This experiment in affordable housing led to the co-designing and construction of a small house in Shivaji Nagar, in Govandi. A neighbourhood in Mumbai that is struggling against all odds to keep growing and
Cultura Fertilis
Étude d’opportunité pour un équipement culture d'importance majeur à future place de l'Étoie (PAV).
Opportunity study for a major cultural center in the planned neighbourhood of PAV in Geneva.
Place, Work, Folk
Place, Work, Folk is a fortnightly column in The Hindu Sunday Magazine by Matias Echanove and Rahul Srivastava, which is inspired by Patrick Geddes and analyzes current urban issues in India and beyond.
No Future
As part of the Future Architecture Platform, urbz was part of a series of exhibitions and lectures at the MAXXI in Rome, the House of Architecture in Graz, Oris House of Architecture in Zagreb and the Future of
Bareilly Street
Studies, workshops, street exhibition and plans towards making a small square in Dharavi children friendly
36h Workshop plage Eaux-Vives
urbz a invité les citoyens invité à imaginer la Plage des Eaux Vives. Les idées ont été présentées sur 100 cartes postales.
Breaking Ground
A 5 day long workshop in Geneva which produced strategies for gradual urban densification.
Vers des chantier furtifs
Enquête de terrain pour améliorer l’expérience des usagers durant les travaux de construction en ville, avec COLAS SA et le laboratoire de sociologie urbaine (LaSUR), EPFL.
Field research on how to improve the
Breaking Ground
Stratégies pour la densification participatives et graduelle des zones villas à Genève.
Strategies for the incremental and participatory densification of residential suburbs in Geneva.
Urban Typhoon
Urban Typhoon is a 5 days long workshop taking place working with local associations to generate programmes and plans for the improvement or preservation of neighbourhoods.