Informal Settlements

Ask an Expert: David Satterthwaite – ā€œI’d invite politicians and aid agency staff to walk with SDI affiliates through slumsā€

In the latest from our Ask an Expert series, we sit down with David Satterthwaite to hear more about his vast years of experience in the urban and environment space. David’s impressive research and writing has been cited more than 32,000 times.Ā Ā  We would love to hear about your journey into urban planning and poverty Read more →

Urban upgrading supports early childhood care spaces in informal settlements

Urban upgrading supports early childhood care spaces in informal settlements cover

Emthonjenis are open-air learning spaces located around communal water taps in informal settlements in Cape Town, South Africa. They offer a safe space for children to access out-of-centre Early Childhood Development (ECD) services. We interviewed Phethang Mabeba, the ECD lead from Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU), to learn more about their model for combining Read more →

Are hunger and child malnutrition increasingly becoming ‘urban problems?’

After decades of decline, global hunger and malnutrition are increasing. While on average urban children tend to fare better than rural children, one in three stunted children lives in the city. While obesity – the ā€˜other face’ of malnutrition – affects mostly adult urban residents, it also impacts urban children. The second Sustainable Development Goal Read more →

Space to play: how outside common spaces in informal settlements boost children’s development

Space to play: how outside common spaces in informal settlements boost children’s development

We often look at what’s wrong in slums and informal settlements. Here, I draw attention instead to one of their assets: the common space outside people’s homes. I explore its importance for children’s play and development, while unpacking the fluidity and changing nature of these spaces. And as increasing competition for their use leaves less Read more →