located in Mumbai: its motto is “user-generated cities” and they aim to question and learn from the urban environment to improve it, in collaboration with those who live there. The Institute contributes to the debate on urban development by interacting with local communities, creating new concepts, developing projects and recommending strategies and public policies. In Dharavi, the Institute studies the physical and theoretical spaces where local practices in the areas of housing, crafts and commerce converge. Results The Institute of Urbanology is involved on the one hand in research and documentation: as part of an essential learning process for any professional, semina
rs, workshops, exhibitions, conferences, publications are organized... On the other hand , this research work is intended for the ground action: as architects, urban planners, designers, they co-design different projects (houses, religiou Australia Mobile Number List s or community structures, temples) in collaboration with local actors, both residents and workers. They have offices in Mumbai and Goa and through the urbz.net collective, they expand the debate on urban development to different cities and issues around the world. Did you know...? The Institute of Urbanology is located in Dharavi, one of the largest and oldest informal settlements in Asia: as such, it has a lot of history and people have been living there for a long time. Far from the image we have of the favelas, Dharavi is a very productive neighborh
ood, with its economy, organization and culture. Even so, the municipality calls it a favela and treats it as such: infrastructure and investments too poor to make it decent to live there. Sustainability and Replicability With the rapid development and gentrification of cities, and the need for cheap labor, workers cannot afford housing and informal settlements are the way for them to stabilize themselves. Therefore, these settlements are true neighborhoods of cities and are very relevant spaces for the work of architects and urban planners. Through its designs and architectural interventions in these neighborhoods, the Institute of Urbanology wants to change the way both peop.