Postcolonial approaches to urbanism and architecture

Qualitative, empirical research and the importance of everyday life - from how people engage with the state to housing financialization, the commodification of the urban environment, collaborative/ communicative planning theory, urban citizenship, and household decision-making processes - is another research stream represented at the group. This is encapsulated by USRG’s teaching, for example, the explicitly postcolonial focus in introductory sociology coursework. Another example is a forthcoming book chapter, based on collaborative research about transport infrastructure as key to understanding the everyday mechanics of urban life in Johannesburg and Maputo, Mozambique. Much of this work relies on original digital tools like volunteered geographic information (VGI).