Gentrification
All topics-
Turkish literature in translation
Hakan Bicakci's disintegrating self
At the heart of Hakan Bicakci's novel "Schlaftrunken" – literally 'half-asleep' – lies an Istanbul torn apart by the gentrifying diggers and a protagonist plagued by sleeplessness and nightmares, watching his life slip through his fingers
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Climate change in Bangladesh
The sinking of a city
Chittagong in Bangladesh is one of the ten fastest-sinking coastal cities in the world. Many people moved there fleeing climate disasters elsewhere in the country. With large parts of Chittagong under water for several hours a day, they are likely to be displaced again. Rafiqul Islam Montu reports
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Turkey earthquake
Whatever happened to Turkey's earthquake tax?
As countless Turks shiver in the cold, mourning their dead, many are asking why Erdogan's government has failed to instigate effective earthquake mitigation plans in a region so at risk from tectonic instability
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Egypt's real estate frenzy
An "iron curtain" between rich and poor
Egypt’s military regime is tirelessly modernising roads, public transport and industry across the country and erecting a luxurious administrative capital for the upper class. But the construction boom is primarily financed on credit – Cairo is racing headlong into a debt crisis. By Sofian Philip Naceur
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'The Line' in Saudi Arabia
Mohammed bin Salman's febrile dream
Plans for Neom, the futuristic ecocity in Saudi Arabia's desert, are taking shape. In the form of a straight line, for nine million inhabitants. Merely a pipe-dream? Commentary by Gerhard Matzig
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Marianne Manda's "Der Atem Kairos"
Portraying Cairo's everyday heroes
In this unusually beautiful book of images and text, published in German and Arabic, artist Marianne Manda presents her own unique take on the megacity of Cairo. In over fifty portraits, she offers a touching insight into the lives of those who inhabit this metropolis of millions. By Volker Kaminski
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Saudi Arabia's urban development
The Crown Prince's bulldozers
Entire neighbourhoods in the Saudi coastal metropolis of Jeddah are being razed to the ground. Tens of thousands of people are losing their homes. With a marina and Saudi Arabia's first opera house, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hopes to create a global urban brand worthy of Dubai or Singapore. By Jannis Hagmann
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Egypt's New Administrative Capital
The sinister side of Sisi's urban development
Years in the making, Sisi's elite New Administrative Capital will isolate most Egyptians from their centres of government in an effort to fortify the regime against any social pressures. By Maged Mandour
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Climate change in Bangladesh
The end of the line for climate migrants in Dhaka
Global warming is driving domestic migration in Bangladesh, which sits just above sea level. With a population of 160 million, it is the most densely populated nation in the world. Former fisherman Jahangir Alam, now a rickshaw driver in Dhaka, is one of a huge number of people who are fighting for their very existence. By Dominik Muller
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MoMA: Racism in U.S. urban planning
The role of architecture in America's systemic racism
Ghettos and gentrification: the latest MoMA exhibition in New York shows how urban planning promotes social division and takes a critical look at "racist" architecture. Sertan Sanderson reports
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Mass expropriation in Syria
How Assad is preventing the return of refugees
The Syrian war has moved through many phases and included a number of changing actors. But one aspect has remained constant throughout: the Assad regime is using the conflict to rid the nation once and for all of what it considers to be undesirable demographic groups. By Stefan Buchen and Sulaiman Tadmory
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Turkeyʹs Middle East exiles
Istanbul – the Arab worldʹs beacon on the Bosphorus
Istanbul has become a refuge for many Arab communities – including the Muslim Brotherhood – but its cosmopolitan ways are also changing them. By Mohanad Hage Ali