Urban Safety

Putting local communities at the center of public space making in informal settlements

The Kounkuey Design Initiative (KDI) collaborates with local community groups to transform underutilized risk-prone spaces in Kibera into a resilient and productive network of public spaces. This network of public spaces – comprising toilets, multipurpose halls, micro-enterprises, laundry facilities, play spaces, vegetable gardens, and schools – builds physical, social and economic resilience in informal communities Read more →

Lessons from more than 1000 school streets

FIA Lessons from more than 1000 school streets

ā€˜Nothing seems to change until suddenly it does,’ writes Duncan Green in his book How Change Happens. The exponential growth of school streetsĀ over the past five years powerfully illustrates how urban change can sometimes be non-linear and transformational. What are school streets? School streets are vehicle-free areas outside schools (or vehicles have severely restricted access). Read more →

More than just playgrounds: four ways to improve neighbourhoods for the very young

More than just playgrounds blog cover WRI India

Child-centric urban planning is about more than just building playgrounds. Here, Kunal Kumar, Rushda Majeed and Sree Kumar Kumaraswamy outline four ways to make neighbourhoods better for very young children, from creating dedicated spaces for play to improving early childhood care centres. The 10 winning cities of the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge were announced by the Read more →

How can we make urban mobility more child friendly?

An EU project has operated around different European neighbourhoods in an attempt to improve mobility, specifically for children and those with reduced or different mobility needs. Here,Ā Mobilissimus, in Hungary shares more information about the project, and in particular the changes that have taken place in Budapest. What is the EU-funded SUNRISE (Sustainable Urban Neighbourhoods Research Read more →

Ideas4Action: Six ways to design safer school zones

A good measure of how child-friendly a city is, is how well children can independently play, connect socially, and access schools. After numerous waves of Covid-19, parents across India and the rest of the world,Ā remainĀ concerned about letting their children ride public transport and school buses. This behaviour change can accelerate motor-vehicle dependency for school-related commutes Read more →

Ideas4Action: How Traffic Wrestlers Are Safeguarding a City’s Streets Through Theatre

Gobierno zapopal, mexico - traffic wrestlers

Growing up in a city full of cars can be damaging, and not just physically. It gives the impression that cities with cars are unchangeable, and will always be there. Even among children’s toys, cars are given greater dominance than bikes. Take Lego, for example. Until this year, after a successful campaign started by urban Read more →

Pollution, violence and inadequate infrastructure: competition highlights safety concerns for young people worldwide

Pollution, violence and inadequate infrastructure: competition highlights safety concerns for young people

The results from a recent survey designed to engage young people as primary stakeholders in improving safety in their cities are striking. 82 percent of young people aged 15-24 who took part said they could ā€˜never access safe public transport’, while 69 percent said they ā€˜never felt safe from harassment’ in public spaces. The results Read more →

16 Ways for 16 Days: Ending Gender Based Violence

Plan International

It is women and girls who experience the brunt of gender-based violence, or GBV. These experiences can be more prevalent and intensified in cities. By 2050, 68% of the world’s population will live in cities, while by 2030, 60% of the world’s urban population will be under the age of 18. This presents specific challenges Read more →

ā€œA city without fearā€: Children dream of life in post-pandemic cities

The Covid-19 pandemic brought urban life to a halt and turned children’s lives upside-down overnight. Across the world, children no longer had lessons or physical contact with their friends, and could not play or exercise outdoor. Strict lockdowns and mobility restrictions have shown the importance of more and better public spaces in our cities. Nearly Read more →