Blogs By Our Fellows

Open Space Development in an informal settlement in Odisha under Jaga Mission Over the past several months, my journey through the study of citizen participation, as a UCAN Fellow with Janaagraha, has taken me to cities where democracy is not just debated in council halls but lived, practiced, and reshaped by ordinary citizens. From the […]

Showcasing SVHPS project to the community, government stakeholders and urban experts in Yuvascape held in October 2025 Looking Back to Look Ahead When I began this fellowship, I thought my task was to study spaces. What I did not realise then was that I would be studying how people relate to them. Over the past […]

Source: Coimbatore Creates Case for Tactical Urbanism Why Pilots Matter Ideas can be powerful, but unless they are tested on the ground, they risk staying confined to drawings, maps, and conversations. This is especially true when those ideas come from adolescents. Their imagination is often dismissed as unrealistic, yet it is in their lived experience […]

It was a muggy June afternoon when we found ourselves staring at stagnant water collecting near the entrance of Pelathope Street in Mylapore, Chennai. A narrow street just six metres wide, Pelathope is tucked between the bustling RK Mutt Road and the commercial North Mada Street, adjacent to the historic Kapaleeshwarar Temple. The puddles were […]

Capacity Building Workshop,Ward Committee, Mangaluru In the previous blog, I discussed how meetings keep dialogue continuous and decisions transparent. But for participation to move from procedural to powerful, it must also evolve in method and mindset. Beyond the structure of meetings, what truly sustains participation are the approaches and innovations that make it accessible, adaptive, […]

Source: Coimbatore Creates Case for Tactical Urbanism Why Pilots Matter Ideas can be powerful, but unless they are tested on the ground, they risk staying confined to drawings, maps, and conversations. This is especially true when those ideas come from adolescents. Their imagination is often dismissed as unrealistic, yet it is in their lived experience […]