Overview

Over the past two decades it has become widely recognized that housing issues have to be placed in a broader framework acknowledging that civil society in the form of Community Based Organizations (CBOs) and their allies are increasingly networking and emerging as strong players that cannot easily be overlooked. Some of these networks have crossed local and national boundaries and have jumped political scales. This implies that housing issues have to be looked at from new angles: they can no longer simply be addressed through localized projects, but rather at multiple scales. The current debate is largely limited to statements about the relevance of individual organizations for local housing processes and tends to overlook the innovativeness in terms of re-scaling those processes and of influencing institutional change at various levels by transcending national boundaries. There is a significant lack of a systemic understanding of such globally operating grassroots networks and how they function in the housing process. This book brings together different perspectives on multi-scalar approaches within the housing field and on grassroots’ engagement with formal agencies including local government, higher levels of government and international agencies. By moving away from romanticizing local self-initiatives, it focuses on understanding the emerging potential once local initiatives are interlinked and scaled-up to transnational networks.

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9781138546844

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Reviews

Its contributions challenge readers, scholars and policy-makers alike to rethink traditional conceptions of policy communities and advocacy by fleshing out key motives for transnational cooperation between urban poor organizations. The authors offer an invaluable theoretical contribution to the emerging field of transnational housing activism. Timothee Labelle, Centre Mechtilde, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, Housing Studies.

'This book opens a new chapter in the tale of economic globalization: the transnational organization of the urban poor. Globalization has restructured our cities, increasing both wealth and inequality. What started in Asia and Africa as community-based organizations, often led by women, have become powerful national and transnational players. An extraordinary book on an extraordinary phenomenon!' Harald A. Mieg. Humboldt-UniversitAt zu Berlin, Germany 'This innovative book explores a new social space in the fields of housing and urban studies of which little is known: transnational links from below . Based on ample evidence of interlinked, scaled-up and multi-scalar housing initiatives of the urban poor in Africa and Asia it scans strategic options to move beyond informality and marginalization through collaborative urban governance.' Volker Kreibich, TU Dortmund University, Germany Its contributions challenge readers, scholars and policy-makers alike to rethink traditional conceptions of policy communities and advocacy by fleshing out key motives for transnational cooperation between urban poor organizations. The authors offer an invaluable theoretical contribution to the emerging field of transnational housing activism. Timothee Labelle, Centre Mechtilde, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, Housing Studies.

Author Information

Dr Peter Herrle is Professor for International Urbanism at the Technische Universität Berlin, Germany and until 2012 was Director of the Habitat Unit at Faculty VI at the same institution, Dr Astrid Ley is Professor for International Urbanism and Director of the Institute for Urban Planning and Design at the University of Stuttgart, Germany, and Dr Josefine Fokdal is lecturer and researcher for International Urbanism at Technische Universität Berlin, Germany.

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