What if the poor were part of city planning? | Smruti Jukur Johari

Summary

The speaker challenges the conventional imagery of cities, highlighting the often overlooked 'city within the city' where the urban poor reside. They discuss the misconceptions about the poor, including the myth of migration as a problem and the paternalistic approach of professionals making choices for them. Through personal experience and examples, they advocate for giving the urban poor a choice in their living conditions, showcasing how communities can effectively plan and improve their own habitats when empowered. The talk concludes with a call to action for governments and professionals to respect and support the choices of the poor in creating inclusive cities.

Takeaways

• 🏙️ Cities often have hidden informal settlements, home to poor people labeled as illegal or informal, though they are simply individuals with limited choices.
• 🔄 Poverty is a vicious cycle, often trapping families for generations, forcing them to live in uninhabitable spaces without basic services like clean water and toilets.
• 👨‍⚕️ The speaker’s personal experience growing up with a father treating patients in Bombay’s slums sparked their desire to address issues faced by the urban poor.
• 🏗️ The speaker realized that traditional architecture primarily serves the rich, and shifted to urban planning to support the needs of the poor.
• 🌍 Migration of poor people into cities is often viewed as a problem, but the reality is that these individuals are essential to keeping cities functioning, working in critical but underpaid roles.
• 💡 A key myth about poverty is the belief that professionals know best. In reality, poor people know their own needs and should be given the opportunity to choose solutions that suit them.
• 🏠 The poor aspire to better living conditions just like others, and when given the choice, they design homes that meet their unique needs, such as loft spaces for work and family.
• 🚽 Standardized solutions, like placing toilets inside homes, often don't align with the needs of the poor. Community-driven solutions, like shared toilets, provide better outcomes in some cases.
• 📊 Informal settlements, like Mukuru in Nairobi, represent vast populations that cities and governments often overlook, but when these communities organize, they can achieve basic services and rights, such as water and sanitation.
• 🤝 Collaborative efforts between governments and poor communities, like the planning done in Mukuru, show that when given choice and agency, poor people can help build more inclusive and functional cities.

Q & A

What is the common misconception about cities that the speaker addresses?

The speaker addresses the misconception that cities are only what is visibly seen, and that there is a 'city within the city' which includes areas often seen as slums or informal settlements.

How does the speaker describe the living conditions of people in slums?

The speaker describes the living conditions as harsh, with people living in spaces without clean water, toilets, or proper housing, often along train tracks, rivers, and swamps.

What personal experience influenced the speaker's decision to become an architect and later an urban planner?

The speaker was influenced by accompanying their father, a doctor, to treat patients in the slums of Bombay from the age of six, which led to a desire to improve the living conditions of the urban poor.

Why did the speaker feel the need to 'unlearn' after years of professional education?

The speaker felt the need to 'unlearn' because their training in architecture, design, and planning failed to address the ground realities of the urban poor and did not align with their needs and aspirations.

What are the two myths about the poor that the speaker wants to dispel?

The two myths are: 1) The perception that migration of poor people into cities is a problem, and 2) The attitude that professionals know better and should make choices for the poor.

How does the speaker challenge the idea that migration of poor people into cities is a problem?

The speaker challenges this idea by questioning whether migration is really a choice and by illustrating the essential roles that the poor play in the functioning of cities.

What was the turning point for the speaker in a workshop designing houses for poor families?

The turning point was when a lady from the slum questioned the presenter about living in shipping containers, highlighting that poverty does not change aspirations, only affordability.

How did the women of Mahila Milan demonstrate their capability to design and construct their own houses?

The women of Mahila Milan used everyday items like floor mats and saris to understand measurements and demonstrate house models, creating options for their fellow residents to choose from.

What is the significance of the Mukuru example in the speaker's narrative?

Mukuru is significant as it shows how a community of slum dwellers, with the support of the government, can develop their own plans and standards for improving living conditions without being displaced.

What is the main message the speaker wants to convey about the role of choice in building inclusive cities?

The main message is that choice is crucial, and instead of imposing choices on the poor, those in power should respect and empower their choices to build better and more inclusive cities.

Outlines

00:00

🏙️ The Hidden Reality of Urban Poverty

The speaker begins by challenging the common imagery of cities, suggesting that what we see is only half the picture. They introduce the concept of a 'city within a city,' where the overlooked part is often labeled as slums and its inhabitants are stigmatized with various negative terms. The reality, however, is that these are impoverished individuals with limited choices, trapped in a cycle of poverty that can span generations. The speaker shares personal experiences, having grown up accompanying their father, a doctor, in the slums of Bombay. This early exposure led the speaker to pursue a career in architecture and urban planning, aiming to improve living conditions for the urban poor. However, they soon realized that their professional training was inadequate for addressing the complex realities on the ground. The speaker debunks two prevalent myths: the notion that the migration of the poor to cities is a problem, and the professional arrogance that experts know what is best for the poor. Instead, they advocate for understanding and respecting the choices and aspirations of the urban poor.

05:02

🌐 Empowering the Urban Poor with Choices

The speaker argues for broadening the choices available to the urban poor rather than imposing solutions from above. They share the story of women in Mumbai who, facing constant evictions, organized themselves into a network called Mahila Milan. These women not only resisted eviction but also pooled resources to purchase land and参与设计并建造了自己的房屋. Despite being illiterate, they ingeniously used everyday items like floor mats and saris to understand measurements and create house models, offering multiple design options for their community. The speaker contrasts this empowering approach with the typical top-down urban planning that results in substandard housing for the poor. They highlight the global scale of urban poverty, with nearly one billion people living in slums and informal settlements. The speaker criticizes the common practice of demolishing these communities to make way for new infrastructure, which displaces the poor and ignores their contributions to the city. Instead, they propose a more inclusive approach that acknowledges and integrates the urban poor, providing them with basic services and the opportunity to develop their communities from within.

10:03

🏡 Co-Creating Cities with the Urban Poor

The speaker delves into a case study of Mukuru, a large informal settlement in Nairobi, to illustrate how involving the urban poor in city planning can lead to more effective and humane outcomes. Mukuru, home to 300,000 people, faced severe living conditions, including a lack of water infrastructure and the constant threat of eviction. However, a local federation called Muungano took the initiative to organize residents to collect data and map their community. They presented a simple plan to the government, requesting clean water, toilets, decent roads, and security from eviction. In a historic move, the government of Nairobi agreed to recognize Mukuru as a special planning area, allowing residents to set their own norms and standards. The speaker describes how this approach led to innovative solutions tailored to the community's needs, such as narrower roads that avoided displacement and community toilets with separate areas for children. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of choice and the power dynamics that influence it, calling for a shift in mindset among policymakers, professionals, and society at large to respect and empower the choices of the urban poor.

Keywords

💡Informal Settlements

Informal settlements refer to urban areas where housing is constructed without meeting the standards of the local authority, often lacking basic services like water, sanitation, and infrastructure. In the video, these are depicted as slums or squatter areas, where people live in challenging conditions due to poverty and lack of legal recognition. The speaker discusses the misconceptions surrounding these areas and the need to acknowledge the people living in them as integral parts of the city.

💡Urban Planning

Urban planning is the process of designing and shaping the physical and social aspects of urban areas, focusing on land use, transportation, infrastructure, and housing. The speaker's journey into urban planning was driven by a desire to improve the living conditions of the urban poor. However, they later realized that traditional urban planning often fails to address the ground realities and needs of the poor, leading to a reevaluation of their approach.

💡Poverty Cycle

The poverty cycle is a term used to describe the persistent state of poverty that can span multiple generations. The video script mentions that escaping poverty can take three or more generations, highlighting the deep-rooted challenges faced by those born into impoverished conditions. The speaker uses this concept to emphasize the systemic nature of poverty and the need for long-term, sustainable solutions.

💡Choice

Choice, in the context of the video, refers to the empowerment of individuals, particularly the poor, to make decisions about their own lives and living conditions. The speaker argues against the paternalistic approach of professionals making choices for the poor and instead advocates for broadening the choices available to them. This is exemplified by the women of Mahila Milan who chose to design and construct their own houses, demonstrating the power of choice in shaping better living conditions.

💡Migration

Migration, as discussed in the video, is the movement of people from rural areas to cities in search of better opportunities. The speaker challenges the common perception that this migration is a problem, suggesting instead that it is often a necessity for survival and a reflection of the lack of opportunities in rural areas. The video uses the example of the Mumbai International Airport and the surrounding informal settlements to illustrate the role of migrants in urban economies.

💡Professionals' Attitude

The professionals' attitude towards the poor is critiqued in the video as one that assumes expertise and the right to make decisions for those less fortunate. The speaker shares an experience where professionals chose shipping containers as housing for the poor without considering the residents' preferences, highlighting the need for professionals to listen to and respect the choices of the communities they aim to serve.

💡Aspirations

Aspirations in the video refer to the desires and ambitions of individuals, particularly the poor, for a better life. The speaker emphasizes that poverty may limit affordability but does not diminish aspirations. This is illustrated by the residents of a slum who, when given the opportunity, chose housing designs that met their needs and preferences, rather than accepting the temporary and substandard options often forced upon them.

💡Mahila Milan

Mahila Milan is a women's network mentioned in the video that was formed in response to constant evictions faced by women living on pavements in Mumbai. This network not only fought against evictions but also saved money to buy land and participated in designing and constructing their own houses. Mahila Milan serves as an example of community empowerment and the importance of giving people a voice in shaping their own living conditions.

💡Mukuru

Mukuru is a large informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya, that is home to 300,000 people. The video discusses how the residents of Mukuru, through a local federation called Muungano, organized to collect data, map their structures, and negotiate with the government for basic services and protection from eviction. Mukuru exemplifies the potential for informal settlements to be integrated into the formal city planning process when given the opportunity.

💡Formalization

Formalization in the context of the video refers to the process of integrating informal settlements and their residents into the formal systems of the city, such as providing legal recognition, infrastructure, and services. The speaker argues that formalization should be a journey that respects the choices and realities of the poor, rather than a forced transition that displaces them or imposes inappropriate standards.

💡Inclusive Cities

Inclusive cities are those that accommodate and integrate all residents, including the poor and marginalized, by providing them with opportunities, services, and a voice in decision-making processes. The video concludes with a call for building inclusive cities through the recognition and empowerment of the choices of all citizens, thus completing the imagery of cities as places built by and for their own people.

Highlights

The imagery of cities often omits the existence of slums and the urban poor, presenting only half a picture of urban reality.

People living in slums are labeled with stigmatizing terms like 'illegal' and 'criminals', despite being victims of poverty with limited choices.

Escaping poverty can take multiple generations, with many forced into a cycle of living in unlivable spaces without basic amenities.

The speaker's personal experience of accompanying a doctor father in Bombay's slums inspired a career in architecture and urban planning.

Architecture's beauty is often exclusive to the rich, prompting the speaker to shift focus to urban planning and work with NGOs.

Professional education in architecture and planning failed to address ground realities, leading to a period of 'unlearning' for the speaker.

Two myths about the poor were debunked: the perception of migration as a problem and the assumption that professionals know better than the poor.

The speaker questions whether we want to stop poor people from migrating to cities, suggesting it's not a choice but a necessity.

Informal settlements like those around Mumbai International Airport are home to workers essential for city functioning.

Professionals often make choices for the poor without considering their aspirations, as illustrated by a shipping container housing idea.

The poor's aspirations are not diminished by poverty; they too desire better living conditions, not just affordability.

Women from Mumbai's pavements organized and built their own houses, demonstrating the power of choice and community organization.

Inclusive urban planning should consider the poor's choices and involve them in the development of their communities.

Mukuru, a large informal settlement in Nairobi, is an example of where residents collaborated with the government for better living conditions.

The Nairobi government's decision to declare Mukuru a special planning area empowers residents to create their own development plans.

Involving the poor in the design and planning process leads to more effective and suitable solutions for their needs.

Choice is a fundamental aspect of development; empowering the poor with choices leads to better and more inclusive cities.

The speaker calls for a collective effort from politicians, leaders, governments, and professionals to respect and empower the choices of the poor.

Transcripts

What is our imagery of cities?

When we imagine cities,

we often imagine it to be something like this.

But what if what you're looking at is just half a picture,

but there is a city within the city.

This part of the city is often seen as slums,

squatters, informal,

and people living here are called illegal, informal,

criminals, beneficiaries, supplicants, etc.

But in reality,

these are poor people with no choices.

Poverty is a vicious cycle.

If born poor, it can take three or more generations

to escape one.

Many are forced in this cycle without choices,

to live on pavements,

along train tracks,

in dumping grounds,

along rivers,

swamps and many such unlivable spaces,

without clean water, toilets or housing.

But these places are not unfamiliar to me,

because since the age of six, I accompanied my father, a doctor,

who treated patients in the slums of Bombay.

Growing up, I would help him carry his bag of medicines

after school lessons --

I loved doing that.

Wanting to do something about these habitats,

I decided to become an architect.

But quite early on, I realized

that the beauty of architecture was only for the rich.

So I decided to do urban planning

and joined an NGO in India that works with the urban poor

who organize themselves to access basic services,

such as water, sanitation and housing, for the poor living in cities.

Now I spent 10 years of my life in professional education, in learning,

and then five years in unlearning it.

Because I realized

that all my training in architecture, design and planning

failed ground realities.

And this is where I learned the power of choice.

I unlearned many things,

but there are two myths about the poor

that I would like to share that we live with.

The first myth is a perception

that migration of poor people into cities is a problem.

Is migration really a choice?

My mentor Sheela Patel

asked to those who think of this as a problem,

"Go ask your grandfather where he came from," she says.

So what do poor people do when they migrate in cities?

Let me share an example.

This is the Mumbai International Airport.

All that you see in blue are large informal settlements around it.

Close to 75,000 people live here.

So who are these people that work silently in hotels, restaurants,

as laborers, babysitters, house helps

and countless other jobs

that we need for cities to function without a glitch?

And where do they live?

In most cities, they live in slums.

So let us think again.

Do we want poor people to stop migrating in our cities?

What if they had a choice of not to?

The second myth is my personal experience.

It's this attitude that we professionals know better.

We professionals love to make choices for others,

especially for the poor.

Let me share an experience.

In a workshop that looked at designing 250 new houses for poor families

from a slum nearby,

there were different building materials that were presented,

ranging from papier-mâché, cardboard, honeycomb, etc.,

simply because they were affordable.

But there was this one idea that was of shipping containers.

Now we immediately approved of it,

because we thought it was sustainable, scalable, affordable.

But during this presentation,

a lady from the slum humbly spoke up.

And she asked the presenter,

"Would you choose to live in it?"

(Laughter)

"If not, then why did you think we would?"

Now this was a personal unlearning moment for me,

where I realized that poverty only changes affordability --

it does not change aspirations.

Now poor people have lived in temporary structures all their life.

They go from wall to wall,

moving from bricks to tin.

They move from building from bamboo,

tarpaulin sheets, plastic, to cardboard, to tin,

to bricks and cement,

just like the way we do.

So somewhere here, we were forcing our choices on them.

So should we force our choices on them,

or should we broaden their choices?

Now what if the opportunity to choose was given to people?

These are women who lived on the pavements of a neighborhood in Mumbai.

Now they faced constant evictions, and in response to it,

they organized a women's network called Mahila Milan.

Not only did they fight against evictions with those in power,

saved money and bought land,

but they also designed and helped construct their own houses.

Well, these were illiterate women, so how did they do that?

They used floor mats and saris to understand measurements.

A sari is four meters in length and 1.5 meters in width.

They used these simple day-to-day items to demonstrate house models.

And even they made three options to choose from

and invited all their fellow residents to come and have a look.

(Laughter)

And everybody loved this option that had a loft in it,

simply because it did two things.

One is that it accommodated larger families to sleep in.

And two, it allowed home-based work,

such as bangle-making, jewelry-designing,

embroidery-stitching, packaging items, etc.

Now they also decided to not have a toilet inside,

but instead have it outside in the corridors,

simply because it gave them more space and it was cheaper.

Now, professionals could have never thought

of something like that.

A formal design would have necessitated to have a toilet inside.

Now these are smaller examples --

let me share some larger context:

881,000,000 people --

that's about one sixth of this world, as we talk here --

are living in slums and informal settlements.

Almost every city in the global south has large slums in the size of townships.

Kibera, in Nairobi,

Dharavi, in Mumbai,

Khayelitsha in South Africa, just a few.

Now initially, they were all on waste and abandoned lands

that cities were never interested in.

As cities grew,

poor people started building on these lands

and brought value to this over time.

And today, these lands have become real estate hot spots

that everybody wants a piece of.

So how do cities and those in power choose to deal with them?

They demolish them and evict them

and move them away from their cities and economies

in order to build a new infrastructure.

They move them into vertical housing,

which in reality looks like this.

Now when built in high densities,

they lack natural light and ventilation,

and it often leads to unhealthy conditions.

Now, on one hand,

poor people are not involved in the participation of design,

and there is poor quality of construction.

And on the other hand,

they do not understand how to do maintenance,

you know, keeping bills, keeping records, forming societies --

this is always difficult for them.

And being forced to move into this formal society,

they end up looking like this in a few years.

Because formalization is not a product,

it's a process.

Moving from informal to formal for poor people is a journey.

It takes time to accept and adapt.

And when that choice is not given,

it becomes like this,

which I'm afraid, in future, these would become the slums.

Now instead of doing this,

what if we accommodated poor people

and gave them a choice to be a part of our cities

and develop them where they are,

giving them basic services, like in this picture?

Now what happens if cities and governments could work together,

if governments acknowledge poor people,

and they could build it together?

This is Mukuru.

It's a large informal settlement in Nairobi.

It's one of the largest settlements in Africa.

It's home to 300,000 people

living over 650 acres of land.

To help us understand that scale,

it's like squeezing the population of Pittsburgh

into the New York Central Park.

That's Mukuru.

So to give us a glimpse,

this is the condition of housing.

And this is what it is in between them.

So what is life in Mukuru like, just talking briefly?

Five hundred and fifty people use one single water tap

and pay nine times more

than what anybody else in the city could pay,

simply because there is no water infrastructure

and water is sold.

Many come back from work to find out that their houses do not exist,

because they have either been bulldozed,

or they have been burned down.

So, tired of this situation,

a local slum dwellers' federation called Muungano

decided to do something about it.

In four years,

they organized 20,000 residents to collect data,

map structures and put it together.

And the plan was very simple --

they only needed four things.

They wanted clean water,

toilets, decent roads

and, most importantly, not to be evicted.

So they presented this with the government of Nairobi.

And for the first time in history ever,

a city has agreed to do it.

The city of Nairobi, the government of Kenya,

declared Mukuru to be a special planning area,

which means that people could come up with their own plan.

People could decide to come up with their own norms and standards,

because the standards that work for the formal citizens

do not work in informal settings.

So what does that mean, to give us an instance?

If these are roads in Mukuru,

you can see that there are houses along both sides of the road.

Now in order to bring in a city bus,

as per the standards,

planners would have gone for a luxurious 25-meter-wide road.

Now that would mean displacing [25] percent of the structures --

that's a lot of people.

So instead of doing that, we came up with a 12-meter-wide road,

which had the structures intact and brought the city bus

without compromising on much services.

In another instance, let's talk about community toilets.

You know, in high-density areas,

where there is no scope for individual toilets,

like the public toilets that we have here.

So we would go for a male section and a female section.

But imagine this situation.

In the morning rush hours to the toilet,

when everybody is in intense pressure to relieve themselves,

and if you're standing in a queue of 50 people,

and there is a child standing behind an adult,

who wins?

Children end up squatting outside.

And that's why women decided

to come up with a separate squatting area for children.

Now, who could have thought of something like that?

The idea here is that when poor people choose,

they choose better.

They choose what works for them.

So choice is everything.

And power decides choice.

And we need those in power --

politicians, leaders, governments,

architects, planners, institutions, researchers --

and all of us in our everyday lives to respect choices.

Instead of choosing what is right for people, for the poor,

let's acknowledge and empower their choices.

And that is how we can build

better and inclusive cities for tomorrow,

completing the imagery of cities

built by the choices of its own people.

Thank you.

(Applause)