A Mangrove experience
In this article we discuss ways of making an immersive mangrove experience available to people. We propose varying degrees of engagement, from a full blown Koli experience to Mangrove Machans.
In this article we discuss ways of making an immersive mangrove experience available to people. We propose varying degrees of engagement, from a full blown Koli experience to Mangrove Machans.
The mangroves of Mumbai are a metaphor for Dharavi - both have managed to survive and thrive in areas where others cannot, are tolerant of difficult conditions, are extremely productive, have far-reaching influence and provide the foundations for larger ecosystems.
Over the last few months, we at urbz have been talking about interventions to engage with the ecological and economic aspects of the mangroves. So we went on an expedition to explore the mangroves near Dharavi.
Antonio Moreno, young Petareño, known by everyone in "El Encantado", South Petare as the son of Micheal Jackson, was offered the seed investment, the necessary machinery and a place in the shopping mall “Centro Comercial Terrazas del Avila” to start his very own bakery, the opportunity of a lifetime but he asked himself - why would he open his bakery in a shopping mall, if his own street didn’t have one?
The “Urban Actions and Emergent Architecture:Community Architecture 2019” first Encounter was held in the city of Bogotá, Colombia on the 25th and 26th of October of 2019. This was the first event to ever bring together community leaders, architecture colectivos, professors and students to discuss around the topic of community development initiatives.
This series of articles seeks to shed light on the origin of the unplanned settlements that are home to more than half of Caracas’s population, but whose stories have never been told. Multiple inhabitants were interviewed and shared their stories of struggles, overcoming hardships, constant improvement and self governance that are the origin of unplanned settlements in Venezuela.
"I was fortunate enough to be a part of the urbz network through my internship with them in Mumbai. I then travelled to Bogotá, Colombia as part of their network. Having lived in Mumbai, combined with my experience of life in Bogotá, naturally led me to compare the two cities; their multiple similarities and not so many differences".
This series of articles seeks to shed light on the origin of the unplanned settlements that are home to more than half of Caracas’s population, but whose stories have never been told. Multiple inhabitants were interviewed and shared their stories of struggles, overcoming hardships, constant improvement and self governance that are the origin of unplanned settlements in Venezuela.
Dharavi has been an interesting setting for many Mumbai based films. This article discusses a few films from the past decades that feature Dharavi as a place central to their narratives.
urbz is working on the design of a house for a joint family of 38 people, on a plot of 330 Sq.mts (3500 Sq.ft) in the dense urban settlement of Dharavi Koliwada, Mumbai.
Cities around the world are acknowledging that local expertise, knowledge and skills are an effective mechanism to generate ideas, plans and strategies that can be implemented by themselves or by civic authorities and planning agencies. Earlier this year, urbz was part of such an endeavour where we conducted Urban Typhoon workshops in Kochi, India.
urbz is leading a participatory process for a major transport infrastructure along the United Nations quarters, which connects local, regional and global issues linked to environment, growth and lifestyle.
Opportunity study for a major cultural center in the new central business district of Geneva. Sorry it is in French. It has nice illustrations though! :)
Local knowledge may be the best response to natural disaster and bureaucratic inefficiency (The Hindu 17.08.2019)
This is the first of a series of articles shedding light on the origin of the unplanned settlements in Caracas, which are home to more than half of the population. These stories have rarely been told. Multiple inhabitants were interviewed and shared their stories of struggles, talked about how they overcome hardships, and organize for improvement and self governance.
How a second generation tamil migrant made Mumbai his second home
Connecting humans to each other and the environment is the 21st century’s biggest challenge. (The Hindu 25.05.2019)
India’s most loved profession needs a reality check (The Hindu 27.04.2019)
We discuss whether the alternatives to the centralised food supply system in Mumbai lead to an ecologically and economically fair development.
What looks like a city of aesthetic or economic contrasts may actually be a marker of the relation between urban space and individual agency.
An Insight into Dharavi and the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP)
Since many years, the inhabitants of the San German neighborhood (located in Usme, in the metropolitan area of Bogota) have been developing many different projects on public space improvement and infrastructure
A Swiss city re-imagines public space and experiments with direct democracy in the process (The Hindu 16.03.2019)
Why Fort Kochi is a lesson that urban planners can integrate into a larger vision for India (The Hindu 02.03.2019)
Program of the Riponne-Tunnel Workshop/Forum taking place on March 8-9-10 in Lausanne (in French - sorry - but non-French speakers welcome to all events)
This essay looks at the theoretical and practical implications of a much used and abused notion in urban planning and development circles, that of ‘informal settlements’.
What the world’s largest city can teach us about local development (The Hindu 16.02.2019)
Continuing our study of the Mumbai Metro and its impact on homegrown settlements
Dharavi has creativity and diversity deeply embedded into its landscape. It houses schools, hospitals, mosques, temples, pottery studios, craftsmen, leather industries, textile workshops, food production units
Dharavi works is a series of projects designed in Mumbai by urbz in partnership with local inhabitants and contractors.
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
We are taking the Design Comes as We Build project to the next level - the Homegrown Street!
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
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
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 urbz has been researching its effect on the people of Dharavi.
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
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
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
The exhibition Koliwada Charcha is an attempt at understanding the essence of Dharavi Koliwada's architectural and visual language.
Public consultation for a densification project in Geneva / Démarche de concertation pour un projet de densification au Petit-Saconnex, Genève.
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).
This series of interviews portrays the economic life of Dharavi in Mumbai through the activities of its inhabitants.
Collaborative process between communities led by Proyecto Escape and supported by different local and international organisations
Building a Community center by understanding social dynamics and participatory planning in a homegrown neighborhood in Bogota
urbz invited local builders from Dharavi to design the best possible house they could imagine. These designs were translated into physical models by artisans.
We produced everyday-life objects based on the specific needs of residents and the skills available in the Shivaji Nagar area in Mumbai.
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.
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!
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
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.
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
Studies, workshops, street exhibition and plans towards making a small square in Dharavi children friendly
A 5 day long workshop in Geneva which produced strategies for gradual urban densification.
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.