A Case for Livable Neighborhoods

Case-Livable-Neighborhoods_FeaturedImage_Picture1-passenger-plaza-Balekundri-Circle.jpeg
The pedestrian plaza at Balekundri Circle, Bengaluru. Bengaluru Smart City Limited and the city traffic police joined hands with WRI India to redesign this junction into a safe, pedestrian-friendly intersection. Photo by Chetan Sodaye/WRI India.
by

Jaya Dhindaw

,

Rama Thoopal

-
SHARE

Earlier this month, the UK government dismissed ’15-minute cities’ – an urban planning concept that reimagines neighborhoods as self-contained spaces, offering residents all they need, in a 15-minute radius on foot or by bicycle. With the government taking up cudgels on behalf of motorists, this seemingly innocuous idea has become a source of contestation worldwide. Nonetheless, the need for people-centered livable neighborhoods cannot be discounted.

Post the pandemic, cities around the world, such as Milan and Paris, began prioritizing livability by focusing on walking and cycling. In India too, the government is working to create public spaces through different initiatives. This is particularly important, considering India’s urban population of 377 million, according to census 2011, is further expected to grow to over 800 million by 2050 (UN DESA, 2014). Contemplating millions of new residents seeking basic services and opportunities is overwhelming. Instead, we could break this down – by looking at improving how we live, work and play – at the basic unit of a neighborhood. How livability, at the neighborhood scale, shapes up will determine India’s urbanization trajectory.

Streetside residual space at Poovath Street in Fort Kochi transformed into an active family-friendly public space under the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge. Photo by Visakha KA/WRI India.

Streetside residual space at Poovath Street in Fort Kochi transformed into an active family-friendly public space under the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge. Photo by Visakha KA/WRI India.

Neighborhoods are the physical construct within which our daily lives play out. A ‘Livable Neighborhood’ is the building block that ensures equitable access to services in a healthy environment. This also entails the creation of shared spaces that foster a sense of community – all housed within a resource envelope compatible with planetary boundaries.

While a broad transformation toward sustainable cities is ambitious, we can begin with people-oriented development and people-centric spatial planning at the neighborhood level. On-ground demonstrations have the potential to garner public support. This can create a ripple effect, building the city’s confidence in scaling up and even institutionalizing the prospect of livable neighborhoods as part of urban policies and planning.

Micro-greening initiative at Shahaji Nagar Municipal School, Cheeta Camp, Mumbai. Photo by: Shruti Maliwar/WRI India.

Micro-greening initiative at Shahaji Nagar Municipal School, Cheeta Camp, Mumbai. Photo by: Shruti Maliwar/WRI India.

This approach must take into consideration, people – particularly services such as housing, public transport and public spaces for vulnerable groups, nature – compact development models and resource efficiency that protects natural assets, and climate – interventions for building urban resilience and community adaptation capacities.

Women from the coastal fishing village of Penthakotta in Odisha beautify the blue-green water filtration system and work to improve the public area around the project

Women from the coastal fishing village of Penthakotta in Odisha beautify the blue-green water filtration system and work to improve the public area around the project – a pilot project conducted under WRI India’s CityFix Lab: Accelerating Access Prize. Photo by Spandan.

Discussion with residents of the Bakkarwala Resettlement Colony in Delhi to understand their challenges and need for improved water access and public spaces.

Discussion with residents of the Bakkarwala Resettlement Colony in Delhi to understand their challenges and need for improved water access and public spaces. This was conducted under the Australia-India Water Security Initiative (AIWASI). Photo by WRI India.

A people-centric approach to local-level urban development can transform neglected areas and create a strong sense of ownership, as seen in Kochi, where the Kawaki initiative sparked a science-based urban greening movement. This led to the mayor’s office earmarking a budget for scaling it up, while employing women for operations and maintenance of the natural infrastructure through the Ayyankali Mission, Kerala’s Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Ayyankali Mission workers in Kochi planting trees under the Kawaki project, an initiative by the Kochi.

Ayyankali Mission workers in Kochi planting trees under the Kawaki project, an initiative by the Kochi Municipal Corporation and WRI India to build Kochi’s climate resilience. Photo by: Achu Sekhar/WRI India.

Other projects, such as the ‘Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge (NNC)’ led by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), adopt a promising perspective by looking at cities from the lens of young children. NNC focuses on the needs of our cities’ youngest residents, and the people who care about them, and goes well beyond playgrounds. The 10 finalist cities have gone on to execute 150+ projects, laying the foundation for larger ecosystem behavior change. Many of these projects also fostered integration and equity in ways that some excluded communities had never experienced before.

Under the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge, Vadodara transformed 390 square meter of underutilized area, below a flyover, into a vibrant public space complete with an Anganwadi, sensory play opportunities and a flexible space that can host multiple community activities. Photo by WRI India.

One such transformational project was implemented in a leper’s colony in Rourkela. Separated from the rest of the community by a forbidding wall for over 30 years, the residents of the colony were largely shunned and stigmatized. NNC empowered city stakeholders to adopt a community co-creation process and a public park was created. Gradually, the neglected area around the park transformed into a vibrant community space.

The area in and around the refurbished playground of Leprosy Colony in Rourkela now attracts people from other communities. Photo by Rourkela Smart City Limited

This began drawing in children and adults from other neighboring areas, gradually leading to interactions that helped reduce prejudice against the community. The democratization of a simple urban feature – a public space – not only led to a better understanding of an otherwise excluded community but also instilled a sense of pride and dignity in residents of the colony.

Creating a vibrant play space in the marginalized Leprosy Pada colony in Rourkela. This initiative is part of the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge led by MoHUA with the support of the Bernard Van Leer Foundation and WRI India. Photo by WRI India.

Creating a vibrant play space in the marginalized Leprosy Pada colony in Rourkela. This initiative is part of the Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge led by MoHUA with the support of the Bernard Van Leer Foundation and WRI India. Photo by WRI India.

While focusing on neighborhoods is vital, so is looking at their connectedness. Bengaluru, for example, will invest USD 7 billion over the next 12 years on the metro rail. The city is also working with different stakeholders to improve last-mile access, bring jobs and economic activity closer and strengthen resource-management strategies for the ecosystem integrity of the neighborhoods around the metro. Reimagining livable neighborhoods, in and around transit corridors, has the potential to leverage up to seven times the existing investment and economic opportunities, along with easing congestion and improving air quality.

Navigating Majestic Bus Circle in Bengaluru. Photo by WRI India.

Navigating Majestic Bus Circle in Bengaluru. Photo by WRI India.

Building sustainable cities, one neighborhood at a time, comes with its fair share of challenges and our cities have a long way to go before they become livable, especially, for the most vulnerable. Along with placing people, nature and climate firmly at the center, there are three major ways in which we can maximize impact. First, delivering an urbanization policy that prioritizes the tenets of livable neighborhoods and people-centered urbanization. Second, taking a multi-disciplinary systems approach to developing city plans and projects that promote coordinated urban development and strengthen governance. And third, communicating with and building the capacity of a diverse range of groups who have a stake in cities and their livability.

Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in cities, and nearly three-quarters will do so within our lifetimes. Our use of resources and our choices will not just shape urbanization but will determine the very future of our species on the planet.

All views expressed by the authors are personal.