Incremental open spaces: the case of Dharavi, India

Dharavi, in Mumbai, India, is one of the largest, liveliest—and wealthiest—slums in the world. Working with the urban planning research organization URBZ, the authors have been exploring the ways in which its inhabitants’ informal way of living benefits Dharavi as well as the whole city of Mumbai, and how these benefits would be compromised or destroyed if the city’s current redevelopment plan is carried out, resulting in the razing of the entire district and depriving its inhabitants of basic means of support. The article proposes an alternative design trying to combine formal and informal approaches.