The city fabric. What makes a city tick? The rhythm of the streets? The bustle of the people? How can cities become great places to inspire fresh ideas and offer a high quality of life to its residents?
To get a glimpse into that we attended a workshop on the “city fabric” led by the founders of The Brown Book as part of their Cultural Engineering programme. The workshop took place in Karama, one of the most populous districts of Dubai. Despite 40 Celsius heat — even after the sun set — a group of urban planners, architects, and people with a general interest in urban development came armed with smart cameras and pen and paper to take note of what makes an urban space great and conversely to note what does not work. It was a great experience and allowed us a chance to be tourists in our own city, as Karama is (unfortunately) a neighbourhood not well known amongst the professional expat community in Dubai.
© Natural Born Vagabond, 2016