Articles Archives

Risk, Vulnerability, Social Justice and the Anti-Politics Machinery in Brazil: A Brief Discussion about the Mariana Dam Disaster

Posted on 01/02/202101/02/2021| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

On November 5, 2015, Brazilians experienced the disaster that generated the greatest environmental impact in their history, well-known as the Mariana dam disaster. During the following 17 days, mining tailings affected riverside communities and created ghost towns along the Rio Doce basin until they … Continue readingRisk, Vulnerability, Social Justice and the Anti-Politics Machinery in Brazil: A Brief Discussion about the Mariana Dam Disaster

Exploring the Vulnerabilities and Resilience of the Sunderbans and its Communities

Posted on 06/01/202101/02/2021| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

Mangroves are dense ecosystems connecting natural freshwater and saline habitats. Sunderbans, the largest mangrove forest on the planet spans 10,000 sq km across India and Bangladesh. Situated at the Delta of three rivers — Ganga, Brahmaputra and Meghna, the Sunderbans is extraordinarily abundant … Continue readingExploring the Vulnerabilities and Resilience of the Sunderbans and its Communities

The City: A Political Manifestation

Posted on 21/12/202006/01/2021| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

From Gauis Caligula (the ‘mad’ emperor of Rome) to Draco (the harsh Athenian lawgiver), from Ivan IV (the ‘terrible’ Tzar) to Aurangzeb, the world has seen some of the harshest and tyrannical monarchs. The emperors claimed divinity and used godhood as a political device to strengthen their claim on the throne … Continue readingThe City: A Political Manifestation

Urban Density and the Pandemic

Posted on 25/11/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

As we continue to tackle the spread of the coronavirus, it is worth wondering what “change” would endure beyond the pandemic. In parallel, the discourse on urban densities has resurfaced, questioning the need for cities to be concentrated. Urban density simply gives us a measurement of the number of people in … Continue readingUrban Density and the Pandemic

Pocket Garden | 020: A pilot project of Tactical Urbanism within the informal fabrics of Tirana

Posted on 30/09/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

Tirana is the capital of Albania. Similar to many capital cities in the region emerging after the fall of the socialist regime, it is still undergoing significant transformation—a deep transition process with the main aim of “modernisation” with the city built in the image of an ideal European model. An official strategic … Continue readingPocket Garden | 020: A pilot project of Tactical Urbanism within the informal fabrics of Tirana

Cognition: A Psychological Scenario in Urban Spaces

Posted on 23/09/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

Before physical form was created, spaces represented a vernacular process, communicating the cultural aspects. Later, ancient cities like Athens recognised the public zone as a space for the exchange of goods, ideas and information. With the rise of complex urban spaces, humans began to create chaotic spatial … Continue readingCognition: A Psychological Scenario in Urban Spaces

All Work, No PLAY?: The Adda Experiment

Posted on 16/09/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

India is the home of 364 million impoverished people. It also has the largest population of children in the world, accounting for 472 million of India’s total population (Census India, 2011). The majority of this population resides in unplanned settlements and has to learn to make the most of the spaces they … Continue readingAll Work, No PLAY?: The Adda Experiment

Reclaiming Place in Neoliberal Urbanity

Posted on 16/04/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

In 1971, Bahrain, a British Colonial protectorate since the late nineteenth century, claimed independence. In the five decades since then, this tiny island has faced a drastic transformation from being a subsistence-based economy of fisheries, pearling and farming to an oil-based economy. The oil boom of … Continue readingReclaiming Place in Neoliberal Urbanity

World Myth: the Dilemma of Formality and Informality

Posted on 15/04/202021/12/2020| By Pritika Akhil Kumar

Cities today are paradoxes. Rapid urban growth witnessed in the 21st century continues to affect urban development, while city identities are being compromised. The implemented political and economic policies have affected urban transformations, creating singular, extreme and polarised urban … Continue readingWorld Myth: the Dilemma of Formality and Informality