Young men on South Africa’s urban margins: new book follows their lives over 10 years: South Africa’s young people, aged 15 to 34, who make up more than 50% of the country’s working age population, bear a disproportionate burden of unemployment. They have done so for more than a decade. Of this group, those aged …
Inside an urban terror network: book reveals how police finally cracked Pagad gang violence in Cape Town: A campaign against gangsterism in Cape Town, South Africa led by the People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (Pagad) turned violent in the mid-1990s when a group known as Pagad G-Force began what became known as an urban terrorism …
Why some animals defy the odds to thrive in urban areas: KreateStuff/Shutterstock Cities can be deeply unwelcoming places for wildlife. They are noisy, difficult to get around, full of people and heavily reliant on artificial lighting. Yet some species do better in urban areas than in rural ones. Research is showing that animals of the …
Kenya’s devastating floods expose decades of poor urban planning and bad land management: Floods in Kenya killed at least 169 people between March and April 2024. The most catastrophic of these deaths occurred after a flash flood swept through a rural village killing 42 people. Death and destruction have also occurred in the capital, Nairobi, …
Why are floods in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal so devastating? Urban planning expert explains: The devastation caused by the recent floods in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa demonstrates again that the country is not moving fast enough to adopt appropriate urban planning. It should be integrating risk assessment and management in the design and development of cities. This …
Seven original 1970s skateparks that show why these urban treasures should be protected: The snake run at Southsea Skatepark near Portsmouth, UK, built during the late 1970s. Patrick Quinn, CC BY-NC-ND Historic Environment Scotland – whose function to date has largely been confined to protecting standing stones, cairns and castles – is proposing to add …
Ukraine war: Russian shelling is taking a deadly toll on urban bats: Many of the buildings in Kharkiv that bats roost in have been destroyed or damaged by shelling. DarSzach/Shutterstock Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has given rise to a humanitarian crisis. More than 6.2 million people have fled Ukraine as a result …
Kenya’s new urban school meal plan is ambitious – it could offer lessons for scaling up: More than 250,000 children in public primary schools in Nairobi will receive regular subsidised school meals provided by the county government. The Dishi Na County programme is Kenya’s first in an urban setting. The national school meal programme set …
Choose Irvine Welsh: new documentary explores the life of Scotland’s ‘urban Shakespeare’: On August 23, Scottish novelist Irvine Welsh’s beloved Edinburgh football team, Hibs, went head-to-head with Aston Villa in the Europa League. But they were also competing for attention with the world premiere of Choose Irvine Welsh, a documentary by filmmaker Ian Jefferies about …
Why not all urban foxes deserve their ‘bin-raiding’ reputation: AngelaLouwe/Shutterstock Ever since their colonisation of British cities sometime during the last century, urban red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) have become somewhat of a cultural phenomenon. Some people love them for their striking marmalade coats but others, including former prime minister Boris Johnson, think of them as …
Sudan needs to accept its cultural diversity: urban planning can help rebuild the country and prevent future conflict: Smoke rises above buildings in Sudan's capital Khartoum in June 2023. AFP via Getty Images Sudan is rich in cultural, ethnic and racial diversity. The country’s 48 million people come from 56 ethnic groups, with over 595 …
Reclaiming Windrush Square: why urban development projects need to heed local voices: Windrush Square is a vibrant public plaza at the heart of Brixton, in the London borough of Lambeth. It was first named in 1998 in commemoration of the arrival of the Empire Windrush, which docked in Essex in 1948, carrying 1,027 passengers, at …
‘Clubbing a bunny to death is very effective but it sure does look bad’: the inside stories of urban animal control: Public acceptance of killing urban wild animals varies. Elena Berd/Shutterstock In July 2022, a walrus, affectionately nicknamed Freya, was culled near Norway’s capital city in the Oslo fjord – crowds of people approaching her …
Nigeria’s cities are growing fast: family planning must be part of urban development plans: Government investments in infrastructure in Nigeria will remain insufficient as urban populations grow. Frederic Soltan/Getty Images Nigeria is rapidly urbanising, with more people living in urban areas than in rural communities. A recent World Bank estimate shows that 53% of the …
How COVID lockdowns triggered changes in peregrine falcon diets – and what this means for urban pest control: Pigeons are a key source of food for the peregrine falcon. Sriram Bird Photographer/Shutterstock Many people saw their eating habits change during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Some ate more frequently or experimented with healthier recipes. Others ordered more …
As an urban economist I have seen the benefits of diversity. So why are there so few women in top development posts?: Foreign aid drives development in cities such as Ethiopia's Addis Ababa. Photo by: Edwin Remsberg/VWPics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images A global reckoning is emerging in the international development sector. Donors and the …
Climate change in urban Nigeria – 4 factors that affect how residents adapt: A house in Diobu, Port Harcourt Victoria Uwemedimo/AFP via Getty Images Climate change is a long-term shift in temperatures and weather patterns. It’s caused by solar cycle variations and human activities such as burning fossil fuels: coal, oil and gas. The impact …
Urban light pollution is a danger for marine ecosystems – new research: Artificial light is an emerging threat for marine ecosystems in coastal waters (Kochi, India). Vinu Sebastian/Shutterstock Cities are artificially lit to allow humans to make use of the night. This light pollution means that stars are often barely visible in urban skies. But reduced …