MIES - Slums

Is it knowledge or prejudice that "slums" are places to avoid? Most architects and designers interested in urban renewal have been asking that question for decades now. Some of the common features of a generalized building within a slum include narrow courtyards and alleyways, divisions of a building into small blocks, and the use of different colors and materials within the same building.

Still, that is only a generalization of what a slum is. Jane Jacobs, in her seminal text, "The Life and Death of Great American Cities" writes the following, more radical approach to the slum: "If slums look dirty and chaotic, they are also one of the most efficient urban settlements: people can live close to each other, and possibilities to randomly meet are maximized. Social organization emerges naturally, and the overall system uses the available resources in the most efficient way."

Jacobs' statement does address the uncleanliness and health issues of a slum, however. It may point out where a slum succeeds (and correspondingly where a PUD might not), but the continual lack of sanitary and social services still has to be considered in order for a "slum" to become something cleaner, something more inhabitable.

This is where Robert Neuwirth comes in. Neuwirth is as much an architectural theorist as he is a scientist. After spending two years in some of Asia's more famous slums (such as Mumbai's), Neuwirth comes away with the impression that the problem isn't in slums is neither density nor the lack of sanitary infrastructure. The main problem, he says, is the lack of reconnaissance between slum dwellers and local authorities, that blocks all long-term investment. (watch video below)

Furthermore, in his talk "The 21st-century Medieval City," Robert Neuwirth took an overflow audience to "the cities of tomorrow," the developing-world shanty-towns where a billion people live now, and three billion (a third of humanity) are expected to be living by 2050. With vivid stories and slides (shown for the first time publicly), Neuwirth detailed how life works for the squatters in Rio, Nairobi, Istanbul, and Mumbai. It's hard for new arrivals--- 1.4 million a week around the world, 70 million a year. They throw together mud huts and make do with no water, no electricity, no transportation, no sewage, and barely room to turn around amid square miles of dense crowding.

Lastly, for photos depicting the life of the slums in Mumbai, click here.