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
Urban heroes
A special edition looking at how people around the world are helping their cities.
Tall Stories 87: Islamabad
For this week’s Tall Stories, Monocle’s Hong Kong bureau chief takes us to the Pakistani capital to explore a Christmas market in 20-degree heat.
Cities tour
As homelessness rises in London, we hear about a train station turning into a shelter over Christmas. Plus: the Galápagos Islands’ growing population, Los Angeles’ first mobile bookstore and an audio essay about Berlin.
Tall Stories 86: New York’s evolution
We look at how New York has evolved over the past 100 years. While some might complain about lost grit and gentrification, our bureau chief in the city Ed Stocker feels that they are missing the point and that, in the end, a safer New York is a more open…
Looking ahead
What role do technology giants play in urban planning? And what do you love the most about your city? Plus: an audio essay on Venice’s troubled relationship with water.
Tall Stories 85: Ho Chi Minh City’s scooters
Ho Chi Minh City is arguably most well known as being the site of one of the world’s most poignant political protests in the 1960s. But for modern-day visitors it is known for something more novel: scooters.
Bike lights, trains and neighbours
Our man in Seoul climbs aboard one of the new express trains to the Olympic village, Dublin is the testing ground for a new smart bike light and when was the last time you spoke to your neighbour?
Tall Stories 84: Ringturm
Presiding over the northwestern curve of Vienna’s Ringstrasse boulevard, the Ringturm carried a powerful message of reconstruction and renewal after the Second World War. Today its facade serves as a giant canvas for artworks and a lighthouse on the roof forecasts the weather using colour.
That’s rubbish
Waste management and recycling are essential components of what makes a city work for its citizens. This week we get down and dirty to find out how cities deal with different types of waste.
Tall Stories 83: Portuguese quiosques
Lisbon’s quirky ‘quiosques’ (kiosks) have been around since the mid-19th century and are partly responsible for the community spirit in the city today.
