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
Culture and the city
The Urban Land Institute UK Urban Art Forum recently released a new six-step guide to including culture in developments; we look at some of the ways to ensure that culture remains a core part of city planning.
Tall Stories 194: Hotel Torni, Helsinki
We visit Helsinki’s Hotel Torni, a building that’s witnessed the highs and lows of Finland’s history since its opening in 1931.
Down by the water
We look at some of the ways that waterside cities interact with their coastlines, from Oslo’s efforts to lower pollution to the fight against rising tides in New York. Plus: a report from Alexandria, Egypt’s second city.
Tall Stories 193: Placemaking
This week Monocle’s Editor Andrew Tuck ponders the question: how do you make a place?
Assessing the average
We discuss the impact an average-sized building, such as a mid-sized office or modest apartment block, can have on its community.
Tall Stories 192: Pelourinho, Salvador
This week we’re off to Brazil for a wander through Salvador’s historical centre, Pelourinho, where we learn about the area’s complicated heritage, and its significance to the country’s black history.
Handling a crisis
How should cities handle a crisis? As the threat of the coronavirus spreads, we look at how our urban areas have coped when disaster has struck, be it terrorism, a health emergency, a natural disaster or a cyber attack.
Tall Stories 191: Janeiro Hotel, Rio de Janeiro
We head to Rio to explore the new Janeiro Hotel in the district of Leblon. Run by the owner of Brazilian fashion label Osklen, this home away from home in an old seafront building stays faithful to the brand with its chic tropical touches.
Moving capitals
We ask why leaders often flirt with the idea of changing their country’s capital and what it means if those plans go ahead.
Tall Stories 190: Nonbei Yokocho, Tokyo
This week we head to the alleyways of Shibuya in Japan’s capital to learn how small coincidences can make seemingly impenetrable cities feel a little more welcoming.
