Nikeita Saraf - Question of Cities

They woke us up to climate change, and an equitable world

Over the past decades, multilateral agencies and international organisations drew forces together to conduct studies that led to path-breaking reports on environment and development, brought world leaders together to agree on cutting emissions, and laid down the goals and framework…

The spectacular failure of planning cities, as we know it. What next?

The widely-prevalent conventional urban planning framework in India, focused on land use, zoning and building regulations, is out of step with the demands of the time we live in, especially climate change events. Development Plans or Master Plans approach natural…

Redesign: The key to the Gordian knot of Mumbai’s congested and unsafe places

The city’s landscape has been constantly changing but what has remained consistent over the years is the chaotic cluttered mess outside its suburban railway stations used by millions of people every day and unsafe lanes at key locations. Redesigning some…

Watching over the water of our lakes and wetlands

Thane and Navi Mumbai, old and new cities respectively which are often overshadowed by Mumbai, have seen their ecological abundance of rivers, creeks, wetlands, hills and forests threatened by ‘development’ plans and infrastructure projects. Professionals, environmentalists, architects, traditional communities like…

Self-policing for safety: Memoir of a weary woman

This personal essay explores, with anecdotes and examples, how young girls are conditioned into behaving a certain way, within frameworks set in homes and schools, to remain safe at all times. This then influences the way women hold themselves in…