The Urbanist
Monocle’s guide to better cities. Explore urban innovation, cutting-edge infrastructure, and compact living with insights from planners, architects, and city leaders.
Latest Episodes
Guerilla gardening, winter cycling and vacancy tax
Green thumbs can help to transform communities. We speak to an activist and horticulturist about how gardening has had a positive effect on his neighbourhood – and helped it to heal after tragedy. Then: we find out how two wintery countries encourage their citizens to take to two wheels, as…
Tall Stories 401: Bulgur Palace, Istanbul
Emily Wither explores the effect that the ‘Bulgur King’ had on Istanbul’s skyline.
Are sports developments for the good of the community?
How can sporting developments bring about community change and have a lasting legacy, while driving equality and protecting the environment? Our guests, Lindsay Johnston, Kevin Owens and Angus Campbell, discuss all of this and more.
Tall Stories 400: Tenement Museum, New York
Mandy Sinclair takes us on a tour through one of the Tenement Museum’s homes to tell the story of a New York couple from the 1860s.
Mipim 2024
We’re in Cannes to report from the world’s leading property fair, Mipim, where more than 20,000 property professionals have gathered to discuss the future of our cities and the built environment.
Tall Stories 399: Nihonbashi bridge, Tokyo
Tomas Pinheiro uncovers the layers of history in an Edo-period bridge in Tokyo that was overshadowed by an expressway in the 1960s.
The Sustainable Cities in Action Forum
We are in Dubai for the Sustainable Cities in Action Forum, which sees more than 500 guests discuss heat resilience, climate mitigation and adaptation in the Global South.
Tall Stories 398: Eagle Pass, Texas
HJ Mai visits Eagle Pass to find out how the city has become the centre of the American border crisis, and how residents are dealing with the national spotlight.
Canada Water and Helsinki Innovation Districts
We explore two projects redefining urban areas, from a mega-development in an often overlooked area of London to a collection of groundbreaking projects in the suburbs of Helsinki.
Tall Stories 397: Tin Pan Alley, New York
Paul Logothetis visits a tiny stretch of one street in New York, which is celebrated for its place in American music history.
