YOUR CITY & YOU
ABOUT
"Your City and You," is a project with a simple, core mission: to help youth know their cities better and engage more meaningfully with their urban environments, regardless of their career paths.
Youth represent a critical demographic, comprising nearly 30% of India's population. They are vital stakeholders in the nation's urban future, both as current users of city environments and as future leaders.
"Your City and You" therefore, aims to raise awareness across several key areas:
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The impact of urbanization on our cities.
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What makes cities unique and special?
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Understanding how and why cities sometimes fail us, focusing on the key issues and challenges facing the urban domain
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Mechanisms of urban governance—how cities function, who plans / builds / manages cities?
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Enabling positive transformation – what it takes to bring about change
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Identifying avenues through which youth can contribute to a better urban future.
Your City and You conducts workshops, seminars and fireside chats to meet this aim.
WORKSHOps
series 1.0
Youth aged 15 - 18 (Class IX - XII)
This interactive workshop is designed for young people aged 15 to 18 (Class IX-XII) to deepen their understanding of and engagement with the cities they live in and visit. Through a mix of discussion, exploration, creative activities, and group work, participants will discover various aspects related to their urban environments - what a city has to offer, the unique and the not-so-unique aspects of their urban environments, how a city functions, who runs it, etc., - explore challenges and opportunities, and learn how they can engage more actively with their cities.
FORMAT
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Duration: 4 hours
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Participants: Min.16 to Max. 32
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Participation Fee: INR 500
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Location: School premises
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Schedule: As per School calendar. Workshops may be conduced on Saturdays as well.
SERIES 2.0
Youth aged 18 - 21 (Undergraduate students)
This interactive workshop is designed for young adults aged 18 to 21 (currently pursuing an undergraduate degree in any subject) to develop a nuanced understanding of cities and urban environments. The session will explore several key themes - What makes a city successful and for whom; How do various stakeholders collaborate to build a city; The successes and failures of urban governance; India’s greatest urban challenges and potential future solutions. Through a mix of presentations, guided discussions, and group activities, participants will explore how to deepen their engagement with urban issues through their respective fields of study and future careers.
FORMAT
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Duration: 4 hours
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No. of participants: Min.16 to Max. 32
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Participation Fee: INR 1000
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Location: University premises
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Schedule: As per university calendar. Workshops may be conduced on Saturdays as well.
SERIES 3.0
Youth aged 21 - 24 (Post graduate students)
This interactive workshop is designed for post-graduate students aged 21 to 24 to explore how they can deepen their engagement with cities through their respective fields of study / careers or as individual citizens. The session will address several key questions - What makes a city successful, and for whom; How do different stakeholders collaborate to shape a city; Why and when does urban governance succeed or fail; What are the greatest urban challenges facing India, and what solutions are available. While Series 2.0 and 3.0 are similar in content, the level of detail varies between them. The workshop format for Series 3.0 encourages deeper individual engagement. The session comprises a mix of presentations, discussions, group activities, and individual work to encourage each participant to explore creative ways of engaging with his / her urban environments.
FORMAT
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Duration: 4 hours
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No. of participants: Min.12 to Max. 32
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Participation Fee: INR 1500.
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Location: University premises
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Schedule: As per university calendar. Workshops may be conduced on Saturdays as well.
Our story
Your City and You is curated and led by Mriganka Saxena, an architect and urban designer.
She has been specializing in urban planning and policy for over two decades and has worked extensively with the public sector and multilateral development agencies on a range of issues. After years of working in the field, Mriganka believes it is vital to increase youths' awareness of India’s urbanization process irrespective of their subject / career choices to empower them to engage with their urban environments more actively and meaningfully.
Mriganka runs her own Urban Planning and Design Studio in Gurugram, has been teaching for over 15 years and has led multiple capacity-building workshops for industry professionals.
"Your City and You" has been conceived and created based on this experience.
