The Placemaker's Guide to Building Community

'The Placemaker's Guide to Building Community is filled with the coherent contradictions we never learned in design studio - scaling down to scale up - work backward to move forward . Hamdi takes the reader on a transit walk through the reality of the bottom billion of the economic pyramid. It is this process of being present and attentive to the vision of the community that enables the best development workers to participate fully in the process of community based design in spite of our experience.' Steven Weir, VP Global Program Development, Habitat for Humanity International, USA 'Nabeel Hamdi is a humane visionary who never forgets that it is the people, not the experts, who must have the loudest voices in the building of communities. This important book distils the work of a lifetime spent making the world a better place.' Tim Smit, founder of the Eden Project, UK 'Hamdi again sets new benchmarks for his simplicity in approach, yet profundity in the underlying principles of participatory planning. Essential reading for anyone who thought they already knew everything about planning with communities.' Manu Gupta, Director SEEDS, Chairperson, Asian Disaster Reduction & Response Network 'Essential reading for effectively dealing with the challenges of urban poverty reduction by learning from a wealth of global experience.' Mohamed El Sioufi, Head of the Shelter Branch, UN-HABITAT 'A must read for anyone who has a vested interest in the process of placemaking through participatory planning - architects, designers, planners, developers, government officials, owners, and users. The book frames a context for becoming a doer in the process of mediating the interests and values, cultural norms, and governmental practices of all the conflicting communities of interest and practices. It provides through example the methods and tools for creating partnerships through participatory planning as agents of change.' Professor Emeritus W. Mike Martin, University of California Berkeley, USA 'Hamdi has masterly weaved in three strands of planning ideas and experiences, first, by documenting how the notion of place building has evolved since John Turner wrote his classic book , Housing as Freedom; then integrating the idea of organizational learning; and finally, cultivating a new paradigm of professionalism whose goals are to be providing, enabling, adapting and sustaining. Based on Hamdi's extensive fieldwork in India, sir Lanka, Ecuador, Peru, South Africa and Thailand, this book will motivate development planners, Architects, and community organizers to not only learn from but also enjoy the uncertainties of the development process.' Bish Sanyal, Ford International Professor of Urban Development and Planning and Director, SPURS/Humphrey Programs, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA