Research Proposal_Self-Made Cities

Honours Programme Masters Architecture and the Built Environment

RESEARCH PROPOSAL Submitted by Kritika Sha Student no. 4505581

E-mail: k.sha@student.tudelft.nl ; 1989.kritika@gmail.com MSc Urbanism, TU Delft June 2016

Supervised by Maurice Harteveld, Dr.Ir. M.G.A.D., TU-Delft

Preface This research is a part of a larger body of work on several aspects of selfmade cities, by Louise Kragh Hjerrild, Giulia Spagnolo and Cheuk Ming Cheung (MSc Urbanism & Architecture students, TU Delft). It is conducted under the supervision of Maurice Harteveld, Dr.Ir. M.G.A.D. (TU-Delft), for the partial completion of the Honours programme of MSc Urbanism, 2015-2017.

Self - Made Cities

Exploring the socio-economic and political aspects and its manifestation in their public sphere

Submitted by Kritika Sha Student no. 4505581 MSc Urbanism, TU-Delft E-mail: k.sha@student.tudelft.nl ; 1989.kritika@gmail.com

Abstract The theoretical model of self-made cities has been present in western literature, where they are often equated with informal settlements. However, there have been calls to take into account the cities from global south as part of urban studies, as they have a lot to offer to the current body of work. In this paper, I raise the possibility of reconfiguring this existing theoretical base derived from these cities. To do so, I question the how socio-economic and political elements of self-made cities in the global south are represented in research and popular writings; and to explore to what extent they hold their ground in a selected case study – Dharavi, India. I use a method of deriving several “propositions� from existing theoretical base and testing them on Dharavi.

Key words: Self-made cities, informal settlement, Dharavi, subaltern urbanism

Introduction: One of most prolific documents on self-made cities (often equated informal settlements), is a United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), titled Self-made cities: In search of sustainable solutions for informal settlements, 2009. This was the first study of self-made cities and informal settlements in the European Union. This interest was not new, as over the years,there have been several calls to for urban studies to take this into account, as scholars believe that formal settlements have much to learn from the informal. On the other hand, cities perceived as self-made in nature are present in western literature, where they are perceived as large complex artefacts which cannot be controlled in a pre-determined manner by designers (Casakin, H. & Portugali, J.). They are defined as the collective outcome of a synergetic and self-organising process under which thousands of individuals act locally in a relative independent manner.

But, what happens in a situation where there has been no involvement from any design authority or expert; where organisation of the city is executed purely as per the needs and requirements of its residents? Can it still be labelled as informal and self-made in nature?

Or is there a distinction between self-made cities and informal settlements? In search of this, I turn to the present examples, which lead me to the southern turn1 in urban literature.

The global south and its relevance in urbanism has become increasingly important and talked about.

Several authors have cited that cities like Rio De Janeiro, Kinshasa, Dhaka, Mumbai, Mexico city, Shanghai, Schenzen, etc. have much to offer to the current body of urban studies. As Rao (2006) notices, the new southern turn in literature is mainly to reimagine the urban, and rethink the contours of modernity in a global age. These cities of the global south have a direct co-relation with the idea of self-made cities, as they force you rethink the idea of urban and planned cities. They are often equated with having a large concentration of poverty and large human capital, and self-made settlements (often equated as ‘slums’) are usually claimed as its physical manifestation (Rao V, 2006).

A lot of the theoretical work on ‘self-made’ in the global south, unsurprisingly, is based out of the western world.

It is not surprising, as it is part of a canonical tradition

1

Southern Turn in Urban studies: With several interpretations of this term present, I interpret this as the literature, exploring the global cities of the south, understanding and testing the socio-economic changes and their impact. Several authors such as Appadurai (1996, 2001), Roy (2009, 2011) and Rao (2006) and other popular writers such as Saunders (2011), Davies (2006) have been recently exploring this phenomena.

where theory is produced in the crucible of a few great cities (Roy A, 2007). However, as stated earlier, that the future may lie in exploring cities of the global south. Several critics, such as Robinson (2002) state the need to redirect this urban theory and dialogue to understand the diversity of urban experiences and cities within the world economy. As select western cities have been able to form a useful theoretical model to explore other cities, perhaps, it is then worthwhile to explore what the distinctive cities of the global south have to offer in terms of developing a theoretical model (Roy A, 2007). It is now time to connect the several theories and ideas present in western writing on the socio-economical and socio-political aspects of the geography of urban theory to the new domain of the global south. Can we now reconfigure this existing theoretical understanding base derived from these cities?

Research Question:

Therefore, in this research, I seek to understand “how socio-economical and socio-political elements of ‘self-made cities’ on the edge of the western world (especially of the global south) are represented and discussed in urbanism research and popular writings; and to what extent they hold their ground in a selected case study?”

In other words, I am questioning and testing the ‘southern turn’ in urban research and popular writings, and whether the image of the ‘south’ that emerges from this discourse is any different in reality. Contrary to Rao (2006), who suggests to look at literature emerging ‘from’ the South in order to explore its need for equivalence, I intend to explore predominantly the writings ‘on’ the South. This would follow a process of testing what I call as ‘proposition’ on the selected site.

Selection of Case study: As mentioned earlier, self-made settlements are often equated with slums as its physical manifestation (Rao V., 2006). The search of a case study to test my research question lead me to Dharavi, India. Dharavi has the notoriety of being called one of the largest slums in the world called the largest slum in Asia (National Geographic, 2007).

Currently, categorised as a slum, housing over a million inhabitants in its 2.3 sq.km of area, Dharavi had humble

Figure 1: Dharavi at the centre of Mumbai ; Source: Author, derived from Google maps

beginnings. It was formed on the base of a fishing village (locally called as a koliwada) in the late 19th century, where the influx of migrants from the hinterlands flocked to Mumbai in search of better opportunities.

Over the years, Dharavi has seen a steady increase in its land area, attracting more and more people from all parts of the country, becoming an amazing mosaic of villages and townships from all across the country (Sharma K., 2000). With them came professions and industries like leather tanning, pottery, textile, which gave Dharavi its unique identity of self-sufficiency and a high employment rate. In this unique setting, Dharavi has found a permanent base, integrating itself with its surrounding metropolis of Mumbai. Set initially on the outskirts of Mumbai, the city slowly grew, making Dharavi its geographical centre in its present form (figure 1).

Figure 2: The pressure of skyrises from Mumbai on Dharavi, Source: Dr. V.S. Chauhan, http://www.panoramio.com/photo/49850476

Figure 3: The Dharavi Redevelopment Project - DRP proposed by the state government. Source: http://www.thepolisblog.org/2010/04/contested-urbanism-reclaiming-right-to.html

However, Dharavi has always shared a complex relationship with Mumbai, with Mumbai needing it more for its labour and cheap industry, than the other way around. Often seen as a slum, against the global image Mumbai wants to portray (figure 2), the state and national government has drafted several plans to redevelop this area. Several schemes brought changes, albeit superficial in nature, providing community toilets and common water taps. This was only the beginning, as in 2004 the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP) was introduced by the state government. This was in essence a mega-project redevelopment project for the entire territory of Dharavi (figure 3), with each sector of Dharavi being transformed from low-rise slum to a high-rise podium style typology by private developers (Boano, C., Lamarca, M.G. and Hunter, W., 2011).

Unfortunately, from the start, there was almost no citizen involvement in this project, leading to protests from within Dharavi, with grassroots opposition demanding a more inclusive process.

These proposals of a market/government driven process threaten the unique socio-spatial and economical relationship established within Dharavi over the last century. Dharavi has a lot to offer to urban studies as a successful and complex self-made settlement, and therefore forms the base of my research to test the different propositions of western theories of self-made cities.

Literature review: The collection of work of urban theory in South-east Asia, and especially India, is mainly concentrated around post-colonial theory (Roy A, 2007), which is stated as being a critical theory of subjectivity and power in colonial and after-colonial societies. They are more aligned towards the idea of deep democracy, a term coined by Appadurai, which deals with the optimism of urban citizenship (Appadurai, A., 2002).

Appadurai (1996, 2002), Roy (2009, 2011) and Chatterji (2005) are some of the authors who have started exploring South Asia in terms of a city, rather than just view the city from the south Asia point of view. They have also explored Dharavi, in terms of politics and urban governmentality, its future as part of slum development policies, or as an aspect of subaltern urbanism (Roy, A., 2011). In the part of the theorization of subaltern spaces, Dharavi (often categorized as a slum) occupies a large share of the interest. There are several accounts of Dharavi as a complex socioeconomic terrain of habitation, livelihood and politics.

However, there has been some criticism of subaltern urbanism being limited to only the study of spaces of

poverty, entrepreneurship of the informal economy or the habitus of the dispossessed (Roy, A. 2011). This becomes a fine line to tread while exploring western theories in the southern context.

On the other side of the globe, popular literature explores self-made settlements of the global south through different facets. Writers such as Mike Davies (Planet of the slums), Doug Sanders (Arrival city) explore the both the certain aspects of these self-made cities. However, both of them stop short of taking a critical viewpoint or an insight of what the future holds for such cities.

Mike Davies (Planet of the slums) derives his understanding as an extension of the UN Habitat (2003) report, The challenge of slums, which was the first global audit on slums. He argues that these cities of the global south become dumping grounds for this surplus humanity and are the slums become the only way to cope with this warehousing of surplus humanity (Davis M., Planet of the slums, 2006, P.28).

Doug Saunders, in his hugely popular book, Arrival cities (2011), explores several cities of the global south in terms of its function of an ‘Arrival city’ under the limelight of the recent urban migration phenomena.

Writing both as an urbanist and a journalist, Saunders argues heavily in favour of the role these ‘arrival cities’ as they play a very crucial role in urban transformation of global cities of the south. He bases his test of the arrival city as per how much social mobility a city offers to its inhabitants, and it becomes interesting how migration, urban development and urban studies combine in an enthusiasm which is hard to match.

The Peruvian author, Hernando De Soto (1989, 2000), explores informal economy and the movement of capital in Latin American countries. His explorations laud the entrepreneurial nature of economy and commerce in informal settlements.

There is literature exploring different aspects, socioeconomic and political, of self-made cities based out of the western theoretical model. The challenge would be to extract the theories from it and to critique it based on the case study.

Research Method: To tie up the research question of how the socioeconomic and socio-political aspects manifest in selfmade cities of the global south and the urban studies from the western world, I suggest the idea of testing theories via ‘propositions’.

I interpret the term of proposition as a hypothesis or theory which needs to be tried and tested. Dharavi acts as my case-study to explore different propositions derived from western theories of urban studies.

Some of the initial propositions derived are: 1. Self-made cities function as successful hubs for industry and commerce: Authors such as Hernando De Soto (1989, 2000) explore the need and brilliance of the entrepreneurial nature of the inhabitants of self-made cities or informal settlements. On the other hand Davies (2006) takes a much more pessimistic view. What becomes interesting is to see is whether their claims hold true in Dharavi.

2. Can the self-made cities function as an arrival base for newcomers?: Saunders (2011) emphasises on the importance of informal settlements as an important arrival base for new arrivals from the hinterlands. Does Dharavi serve as a true arrival base, acting as a transition zone to the bigger city, or does it become a more permanent base for its inhabitants?

3. Self-made cities are hotbeds for ‘contested urbanism’: Dharavi can be viewed like other urban scenarios, through the web of contested visions (Boano, C., Lamarca, M.G. and Hunter, W., 2011). The production of space is inherently a complex and conflicting process in a self-made city. As Lefebvre (1991) had noted, that space is not a neutral container or a milieu in which life transpires; but it is subject to several forces of architecture, human densities and locations which structure this contested space. But, how does this contested space manifest itself in Dharavi, with its interplay of citizenship and power amongst actors? To what extent does its complex socio-economic system have an influence on its spatialities in its contested territories?

Conclusion: As a reflective note, it is important to understand that there are no straight comparisons to be made. Each self-made settlement is unique, with its own socioeconomic and political factors. However, the current body of urban studies has much to learn from subaltern urbanism. As mentioned earlier, the future lies in the new global south, and testing western theories there would offer us an opportunity to validate or critique them over a wider spectrum.

References: APPADURAI, A., 1996. The production of locality.

Modernity at large, University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis.

APPADURAI, A., 2001. Deep democracy: urban governmentality and the horizon of politics.

Environment and Urbanization, 13(2), pp.23-43.

BOANO, C., LAMARCA, M.G. AND HUNTER, W., 2011.

The frontlines of contested urbanism mega-projects and mega-resistances in Dharavi. Journal of Developing Societies, 27(3-4), pp.295-326.

CASAKIN, H., PORTUGALI, J., The design and dynamics of cities as self-organizing systems. [Pdf] Available at < http://ead.verhaag.net/fullpapers/ead06_id116_2. pdf> [Accessed 26 June 2016] DAVIS, M., 2006. Planet of Slums: Urban Involution and the Informal Proletariat, Verso, London

DE SOTO, H., 1989. The other path: The invisible revolution in the Third World. London: I. B. Taurus DE SOTO, H., 2000. The mystery of capital: Why capitalism triumphs in the West and fails everywhere else. New York: Basic Books.

Lefebvre, H., 1991. The production of space (Vol. 142).

Blackwell: Oxford.

National Geographic, 2007. Mumbai’s Shadow City [online]. Available at <http://ngm.nationalgeographic. com/2007/05/dharavi-mumbai-slum/jacobson-text> [Accessed 26 June 2016]

RAO, V., 2006. Slum as theory: the South/Asian city and globalization. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 30(1), pp.225-232.

ROBINSON, J., 2002. Global and world cities: a view from off the map. International journal of urban and regional research, 26(3), pp.531-554.

ROY, A., 2009. The 21st-century metropolis: new geographies of theory. Regional Studies, 43(6), pp.819830.

ROY, A., (2011). Slumdog cities: rethinking subaltern urbanism. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 35(2), pp.223-238.

SAUNDERS, D., 2011. Arrival City, Random House, London UN-HABITAT, 2003. The Challenge of Slums, Earthscan Publications Ltd. London and Sterling.