ABSTRACT Viewed through the lens of walking, this research analyses the contribution of an urban transformation to the Right to the City (RTTC). Walking as a mode of transport is a potential ‘equalising mode’ related to social, economic and environmental inequalities. Understanding an urban transformation through its effect on the experiences of pedestrians is a way to reflect on its contribution to the RTTC. The case is a settlement upgrading project in Maputo that led to the transformation of alleys into streets. The effects of this transformation are illustrated via a comparative analysis of a geolocated survey that captured the diverse walking experiences of inhabitants, comparing those of pedestrians that live in two areas that have been transformed, to those of residents and pedestrians in other parts of the studied neighbourhood. The analysis considers intersectional sociodemographic characteristic, acknowledging that the same urban environment is experienced and perceived differently by diverse individuals. Results show that, regardless of location, walking is the main mode of transport for people in the case study. The study indicates that physical interventions in the walking environment contribute to the RTTC by enabling diverse individuals to use their city accessing safely and with enjoyment their daily activities, albeit in different ways.

abstract: This study explores how refugees navigate the challenges in accessing social support within the Global South's urban centers. This research, based on interviews with Congolese refugees in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, reveals unique challenges faced by this population—compared to urban-based refugees in other regions, particularly the Global North. Notwithstanding the salience of tensions with host communities, the findings reveal how urban-based refugees in the area of the case study develop networks of shared identity (homophily) and other unique strategies as mechanisms for self-reliance and advocacy. The empirical findings also show the urban-based refugees' agency in accessing non-economic Rights to the City (RTC), such as sustainable growth, upward social mobility, and self-directed integration. The findings also highlight the dual role of the said networks of homophily in not only mitigating collective disadvantages but also potentially reinforcing in-group biases and inequalities. While offering counterarguments to the traditional models of assimilation, the findings also contribute nuanced perspectives on refugee integration and social protection within urban settings. By focusing on the non-economic aspects of urban life, this research moves beyond econometric models of refugee well-being and emphasizes the multidimensional nature of urban poverty. In deepening our contemporary understanding of refugee experiences across diverse urban environments—recommendations are proffered for further comparative research on sustainable social mobility and integration within urban settings.

Data Justice and the Right to the City consists of a set of case studies each exploring the intersections between urban governance and datafication. This volume, edited by Morgan Currie, Jeremy Knox, and Callum McGregor, situates itself within the critical discourse on how data-driven technologies reshape urban spaces, impacting notions of citizenship, justice, and democracy. Each chapter draws inspiration from Henri Lefebvre's concept of the Right to the City (RTTC) theory by integrating data justice as a complementary framework to address the political ramifications of datafication in urban contexts. RTTC emphasizes participatory parity in urban space by developing spaces and data systems that enable all residents, regardless of their economic status, cultural background, or political power, to have an equal say in how their cities are designed and managed.

Defining global themes such as Urban Policy, Urban Sustainability, and even the Right to the City (RTTC) is fundamental to stimulating and establishing a continuous dialogue with the scientific community, mainly in the social sciences. Thus, understanding the dynamics around the scope of urban sustainability requires an analysis that is focused on multiple global realities. Taking a holistic view of Brazilian Urban Policy, this entry looks at the historical contexts that make urban sustainability the driving force behind this policy. In addition, an interdisciplinary consideration of urban sustainability is proposed using an analysis that is based on the connection between urban policies and social functions that reflect the idea of a sustainable city. The results of this analysis also point to the need for a continuous debate on the subject that primarily promotes new discoveries; this is so that the driving force of urban policy can gain new meanings and new guidelines can be implemented.

In 1967, Henri Lefebvre developed the Right to the City (RTC) as ‘a cry and demand’ for ‘a transformed and renewed right to urban life’. In Brazil, the RTC was institutionalised in the City Statute in 2001. We examine the trajectory of the RTC in Recife, Brazil, through the lens of Alain Badiou’s set-theoretical ontology of inconsistency, which argues that there is a fundamental disjunction between belonging and inclusion. The articulation between belonging and inclusion produces four different arenas of power and categories of being in the city that we develop as a heuristic framework for analysing the trajectory of participation in Recife, where the struggle for the RTC resulted in a system of popular participation. This system operated under the precept that ‘everyone who lives and works here belongs here’, in opposition to urban capital’s drive to include everything and everyone in the market. However, the RTC was captured within a discourse of participation and inclusivity (what we denominate the ‘RTC for All’) becoming an element in a post-political fantasy, resulting in the decay of popular participation. Nevertheless, we argue that the emancipatory and revolutionary potentiality of the RTC, as advocated by Lefebvre, remains powerful as long as the disjuncture between people’s desire for belonging and capital’s drive for inclusion is foregrounded.

Is the Right to the City (RTTC) still a useful framework for a transformative urban politics? Given recent scholarly criticism of its real-world applications and appropriations, in this paper, we argue that the transformative promise in the RTTC lies beyond its role as a framework for oppositional struggle, and in its normative ends. Building upon Henri Lefebvre's original writing on the subject, we develop a “radical-cooperative” conception of the RTTC. Such a view, which is grounded in the lived experiences of the current city, envisions an urban society in which inhabitants can pursue their material and social needs through self-governed cooperation across social difference. Growing and diversifying spaces and sectors of urban life that are decoupled from global capitalism are, we argue, necessary to create space for this inclusionary politics. While grassroots action is essential to this process, so is multi-scalar support from the state.

Walkability and the Right to the city: A snapshot critique of pedestrian space in Maputo, Mozambique

By a vast review of the right to the city literature, this paper tries to understand how the right to the city is perceived by citizens of Tehran. To address this question, 15 Khordaad Pedestrian Street is chosen as our case study. This street is located in the center of Tehran and is a historic, multivalued, and multifunctional street in Tehran, attracting thousands of citizens every day which makes this space, a festival of different gender, and social, economic, and religious groups of people and consequently increases inclusiveness of our findings. The main data presented in this paper are derived from semi-structured interviews with 32 participants according to the data saturation level collected as part of a community-based research project. The qualitative data were generated in 2018, seven years after the implementation of the pedestrian project in 15 Khordaad Street in Tehran. Four general questions were asked in all interviews however we were open to any new idea by applicants. Our findings show that democracy, diversity, and equity are the main pillars of the cries and demands of citizens in our case. Moreover, a paradigm shift from urban management to good governance along with employing a more democratic and collaborative urban design approach coupled with a shift from passive dwellers to active citizens are required to increase right to the city in future similar projects.

For over a decade, the explosion of various forms of urban activism has been observed: so- called urban social movements or the right to the city (RTTC) movements actively participate in the realm of non-institutional politics. This trend has been observed both world-wide and in Europe, particularly in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. Poland is also a clear example of this tendency. The paper presented aims to achieve two goals. First of all, it is based on desk research and offers a broad literature overview, indicating the main directions and results in urban activism research in Poland of the last 10 years. Recalling and discussing the broadest possible body of literature, with particular emphasis on Polish-language references, should be useful for international readers and researchers. Secondly, the paper attempts to synthesize these current research results, including the authors own research results, identifying the complexity of the field of urban activism. As a result, it points to various entities using the RTTC slogan in their social struggles, consequently identifying two main types of RTTC activism: radical and middle-class (petite bourgeoisie?) movements.

Is the Right to Mobility a Right to the City? Examining a Well-Accepted Planning Paradigm

The issue of limiting motorized traffic can sometimes generate unexpected problems. For example, the city centre of Strasbourg is crossed by a major motorway, which is constantly congested and polluted. This source of irritation is now at the heart of debates on urban planning. The public authorities wish to transform the route into a boulevard as well as to develop surrounding areas. Currently, the numerous vacant spaces around the transport infrastructure are used by various associations, whose right of residency is relatively unsettled. An increasing number of small illegal settlements can also be found here as well as in adjacent neighbourhoods. While the city council is implementing inclusive policies towards migrants, how can these issues be translated locally into urban planning tools? Strasbourg is an important transit point for migrants between France and Germany. Further, due to its border location, the city has always been an important hub for the exchange of ideas; in particular, new concepts of urban planning find fertile ground here. In order to transform the motorway, the public authorities intend to implement the German urban development tool known as the International Building Exhibition (German: Internationale Bauausstellung or IBA). In the following, we examine the IBAs of Hamburg and Berlin in order to try to identify good practices which could inspire French town planners and elected officials. This study is conducted through the prism of Henri Lefebvre’s book The Right to the City (1968).

This paper is an earnest effort to develop a coherent theoretical migration model by embedding the dynamics of urban economics, ignored by the celebrated migration models such as Harris–Todaro model of migration. The principal motivation behind the composition is the eruption of the COVID-19 global pandemics, which has forced migrant labours (the engine of a globalized economic system) to shift from the urban areas to their origin. This migration crisis has put a serious challenge for the revitalization of the city economy in the post lockdown period. Further, this raises the question can the city provides the migrants better opportunities and benefits to get them to return? In contrast to standard migration models that attempted to limit the migration into the cities, our new theoretical perspective highlights the importance of agglomeration economies, urban informal sector and the development of core urban infrastructure to catalyse agglomeration externalities in the process of urban development and accommodating rural–urban migrants. The presentation of urban political economy into the theoretical account of migration leads to the importance of policies to augment agglomeration economies. These include the provision of infrastructure and affordable housing and mitigate congestion diseconomies in the form of sprawl, slums, poverty, traffic bottlenecks and so forth. Stopping migration or wage subsidy to the urban producer is not only unrealistic but also a myopic solution. On the contrary, cities should be prepared with planning, financing and governance mechanism to create the infrastructure needed by employment-generating activities, catalysing agglomeration-led and knowledge-powered growth. In the end, our model suggests any approach to deal with urbanization issues in India must bring into account the critical part played by migrants-urban poor and address their needs while benefitting rural areas. The migrants-urban poor do not need charity. They need to be recognised as partners in the wealth creation process of cities and deserve ‘right to the city’ on their merit. While markets have failed them in the past, governments have also not catered to their needs. The urban planning and governance processes which failed to recognise the ‘location’ and ‘access’ of the poor urban migrants need to be reformed.

In Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh with a population of 18 million, nearly one-third are living under the threat of eviction without resettlement due to lack of tenure security. This occurs despite the Bangladesh government’s ratification of multiple international conventions as well as provisions within the national Constitution with regard to people’s rights. Within this context, drawing on Lefebvre’s theorization of space and using the right to the city (RTC) framework, this article explores the urban poor’s right to housing in the context of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Findings suggest that the local and central government officials categorize slum dwellers as encroachers and criminals, who pose a direct threat to an orderly, clean and green city. Hence, they cannot be allowed to exist in the city. Additionally, the state has shifted the development of land and housing markets to real estate developers, following a neoliberal economic model. Consequently, a few powerful developers control Dhaka’s land and housing markets, only supplying housing for the growing middle class. Access to these houses is far beyond poor people’s reach. Thus, the urban poor’s housing rights are denied both by the state and by the market in Dhaka.

The “right to housing” is provided for the Constitutional Charter as a social right of the Brazilian people. However, as the law does not create reality, understanding the relations of the space production is fundamental for the analysis of the conditions for realizing rights. In the absence or limitation of housing policies and the impossibility of access to housing by the market, social movements of “struggle for housing” promote occupations of buildings and land in order to guarantee the right to housing, while also problematizing private property. The Social Function of Urban Property, in this context, emerges as a legal-political category in dispute in the field of contradictions between the guarantee of property and the Right to the City. The objective of the work was to understand how the social function is signified in the discourses and practices of these collective subjects. The National Movement for Struggle for Housing (MNLM) and the Union for Popular Housing of Parana (UMP-PR) in Curitiba, Brazil were analysed. It was observed that social movements unfold the “struggle for housing” in different collective actions and heterogeneous discourses in the dispute for housing provision and for the right to the city, with social function being one of the categories that emerges notably in the mediations between the State and the legal field.

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The aim of this paper is to outline a way in which research can contribute to the advance of environmental social movements. Current struggles under capitalism are fragmented and localized, which means that creating unity out of fragmented struggles is essential for movements to become more successful. The Right to the City (RTC) as a concept, in its most radical formulation, has this ambition at its core. I examine various attempts from the RTC literature to promote unity, paying particular attention to the use of ideas of justice. In general these attempts are too abstract to be of practical use to existing movements. They do provide useful insight to researchers, by showing the necessity of paying attention to the context that particular movements operate in, but means of formulating advice for movement activists remain vague. I argue that to be more useful to movements, research should and can have something to say about the practical issues movements face, such as, how demands are framed and how to engage with other organizations. I argue that this can be done by bringing together analysis at a number of levels. In the case of movements of labor for the environment, Marxist geographic structural analysis can be combined with political and cultural analysis based on Gramsci’s theory of hegemony and analysis of the dynamics of movement emergence and advance using social movement theory. I argue that such a framework can connect a vision for radical change with the more immediate problems of organizing social movements.

FinTech is the term used to refer to financial and technology convergence space solutions. It usually refers to new innovations that conduct or connect with financial services via the internet, smart devices, software applications, or cloud services and encompasses anything from mobile banking to cryptocurrency applications. Despite the advantages of FinTech, cybercriminals seized the opportunity to exploit vulnerabilities in FinTech systems. Phishing attacks, ransomware, and data breaches have become more prevalent, targeting individuals and FinTech institutions. Bahrain, which is not different from the rest of the world, was impacted by such cyber threats. Thus, FinTech companies have had to strengthen their cybersecurity countermeasures and protocols to combat these threats. Existing countermeasures in the literature primarily focus on general cybersecurity practices and frameworks, with limited attention given to the specific needs of the FinTech industry. Hence, there is a notable gap in the literature regarding a focused cybersecurity framework that caters to the unique requirements of FinTech innovations, especially in Bahrain. To bridge this gap, this research addresses the problem by conducting an extensive review of existing cybersecurity challenges, common practices, and cybersecurity standards and through in-depth research interviews with executives, experts, and other FinTech business stakeholders. Leveraging this knowledge, this research proposed an adaptable framework that addresses the risks and vulnerabilities faced by FinTech innovations in Bahrain. Through panel discussions and Delphi sessions, industry experts evaluated the framework’s practical feasibility, ability to address specific risks, and compatibility with the existing FinTech regulatory landscape. The results demonstrate a high acceptance of the developed framework and highlight the framework’s potential to enhance cybersecurity resilience significantly. Moreover, the experts acknowledge the proposed framework as a fundamental baseline in securing the FinTech ecosystem in Bahrain. The importance of this research lies in its potential to enhance the cybersecurity posture of the FinTech industry in Bahrain, mitigating risks and vulnerabilities associated with cyber threats in this vital sector.

The contemporary urban sphere presents us with challenges of different (dis)orders and is itself one of the main issues to be addressed nowadays. This article deals with the public use of city space in neoliberal times and the modalities and consequences of its appropriation for social life, according toLefebvre. The essay focuses on the Bairro Cova da Moura and the inscription, in 2013, of the Cape Verdean Kola San Jon in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The analysis is based on ethnographic research undertaken between 2011 and 2018 and deals with Kola San Jon both as a cultural practice that actualises social processes and as a strategical identity device that reclaims the visibility of the community. We focus on the yearly festival at Cova da Moura and the schedule of activities outside the neighbourhood, considering the struggle for the valorisation of the place in Lisbon Metropolitan Area, as well as the process of recognising Kola as heritage in Portugal. The reflection around a practice committed to strategies of action that generate forms of resistance and identity-based assertion, takes us to the question of the right to the city, both in relation to a place that capitalism pushes to the margins as well as a playful event capable of the generating citizens’ centralities. Kola San Jon calls to the fore the notion that we currently inhabit, with increasing intensity, webs in which tangled trajectories cross each other, in ways that are more important than frontiers.

Resumo Este artigo analisa as experiências recentes de ativismo sindical de duas categorias de trabalhadores do setor de serviços urbanos: os teleoperadores e os rodoviários. Mais especificamente, são tratados como objetos a greve dos teleoperadores do estado do Rio de Janeiro, em 2014, e a luta dos rodoviários cariocas entre a criação do Sintraturb-Rio, em 2009, e a greve de 2014. Argumenta-se que o ciclo de protestos iniciado em 2013 revelou e reforçou o entrelaçamento entre a luta pelo direito à cidade e a luta por condições dignas de trabalho nos grandes centros urbanos. As tensões criativas entre gerações distintas de militantes e as inovações táticas observadas nos casos dos teleoperadores e dos rodoviários no Rio de Janeiro apontam nessa direção.

Resumo Este artigo é uma tentativa de balanço dos dez anos de um ciclo importante de lutas organizadas por movimentos sociais em Belo Horizonte. Ao longo desse tempo, os movimentos transformaram-se, ampliaram suas pautas para além do direito à moradia e assumiram estratégias de luta ampliada pelo direito à cidade – e contra o processo recente de neoliberalização da gestão municipal – que tomaram principalmente a forma de ocupações organizadas. Durante o período, caracterizado por uma hibridização das lutas urbanas, foi alterado significativamente o padrão de relacionamento dos movimentos com as instituições, que passou a se basear na ação direta, na ação institucional e na ação cotidiana.