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
Sports in the metropolis
Sport: from football to Formula 1, sports can unify cities, influence their form and brand them for decades. We head to Madrid, Rio, New York and Monaco see how cities are staying on track.
Cities and war
Cities and war: we put on our flak jackets to speak to people from the worlds of architecture, the military and academia to find out what happens when a city gets caught in the crossfire.
Philanthropy in the city
People who give: we take a look at the history of philanthropy in London, the art collector in Spain who is struggling to give up her masterpieces, and the seaside town that’s trying to whip up a creative storm. Plus, a roundtable with authors Bruce Katz and Benjamin Barber.
Becoming a creative hub
The hub obsession: cities are in hot pursuit of the creative industries but when trying to become a hub for tech or design, what should be done?
The Atlantic Dialogues 2013
The Atlantic Dialogues: the Urbanist team head to Rabat for the Atlantic Dialogues summit, meeting speakers and participants to ask why cities have made the agenda at this year’s conference.
The Urbanist turns two
Turning two: for The Urbanist’s second anniversary we speak to some of our favourite thinkers and doers: Ben Rogers, Brian Girard, Jeff Speck and Charles Landry, and others.
Boosting populations
Come together: in the drive for density, what is the difference between good and bad? We visit Manila, New York, Madrid and Perth to ask how cities should be boosting city-centre populations.
Fast and slow
Fast and slow: we take a look at when and where we want speed in cities, from overnight construction and fast food to slowed streets and tech detoxes. Our study subjects: Paris, San Francisco, Belgrade and Istanbul.
The feral city
The feral city: what happens when City Hall doesn’t cut it and residents take things into their own hands? From lawless post-war developments in Beirut to Belgrade’s squat-turned-arts centre, we look at how city dwellers are doing it for themselves.
Urban experimentation
Experimentation: whether it’s City Hall or community crusaders, innovation arrives through daring to do things differently.
