Rachel Keeton | University of Twente, Faculty of Geoinformation Science and Earth Observation (ITC) (original) (raw)

Videos by Rachel Keeton

In this film, we discuss New Towns as an urban typology, New Towns across Africa from a historica... more In this film, we discuss New Towns as an urban typology, New Towns across Africa from a historical perspective, and the spatial challenges we see in the current generation. Based on this understanding, we can look for new ways to develop New Towns that address the challenges we identified here. The next film in this series discusses the adaptive planning and design principles presented in the book "To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual" (INTI/nai010, 2019).

The film was created by Rachel Keeton (research, narration) and Krithika Samavedula (graphic design, animation). It provides a summary of the first phase of research conducted by Rachel Keeton during her Ph.D. at the Urbanism Department of TU Delft. This Ph.D. was funded by the Delft Global Initiative (https://www.tudelft.nl/global/) and completed in 2020.

20 views

Books by Rachel Keeton

Research paper thumbnail of 'Unplanning' the Planned City Lessons from Ouagadougou for African New Towns

The Beeker Method: Planning and Working on the Redevelopment of the African City, 2017

Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African con-tinent, over the l... more Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African con-tinent, over the last three decades many African countries have seen a shift from state-led housing development to fully privatized development. Increasingly, this urban development takes the form of New Towns: master planned com-munities developed on greenfield sites. Because they are dependent on mar-ket-driven returns on investments, these privately-developed New Towns tend to ignore existing social and environmental realities and instead accommodate only the upper and middle classes in spatially segregated enclaves. Although this urban model has recently become more popular with both investors and poli-ticians, it is not entirely new. As early as the 1980s, Dutch urban planner Coen Beeker was a vocal critic of developments in and around Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, which replaced vibrant traditional communities with both formally and de-mographically uniform developments. This paper argues for a re-examination of Beeker’s own methods and the reasons for the sustained popularity of the urban projects that he led.

Research paper thumbnail of To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual (Introduction)

To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual , 2019

Africa’s population and economic growth make it the world’s fastest urbanizing continent. While s... more Africa’s population and economic growth make it the world’s fastest urbanizing continent. While some might still associate Africa with rural development, the future of Africa is, in fact, very urban. This urbanization poses a huge challenge in areas with fragile institutional frameworks and chronic poverty; new city-dwellers frequently end up in self-organized settlements without basic services. Developers and investors have offered one alternative, designing and building new towns in Africa modeled after Asian and American cities. But is this really a proper alternative? Does one size fit all?

To Build a City in Africa brings together authors from various academic, political and design backgrounds to explore case studies on new towns in Ghana, Egypt, South Africa, Angola, Morocco and Kenya, among other examples. This publication provides a critical narrative about African urbanization and questions the western world’s role in the radical transformations happening in Africa today.

Research paper thumbnail of Rising in the East: Contemporary New Towns in Asia

This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in con... more This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in contemporary Asian New Town planning. In doing so, Rising in the East presents a relatively immediate account of the current urbanization processes that are transforming the Asian continent. As a key part of this development, New Towns have their own sometimes tragic, sometimes spectacular stories to tell. Their histories reveal the drama behind the mundane rows of cookie-cutter housing blocks. While globalization continues to blur regional differences, it becomes imperative to ask: what can we learn from these new New Towns?

Papers by Rachel Keeton

Research paper thumbnail of Climate migration and well-being: a study on ex-pastoralists in northern Kenya

Population and environment, Jun 19, 2024

Research paper thumbnail of 16 New Towns in Africa

New Towns for the Twenty-First Century

Research paper thumbnail of To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual

Research paper thumbnail of HABITABLE Study Area Report: Akatsi North District, Ghana

Research paper thumbnail of Appendix 2

New Towns for the Twenty-First Century, 2021

Research paper thumbnail of Unplanning' the Planned City : Lessons from Ouagadougou for African New Towns

Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African continent, over the la... more Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African continent, over the last three decades many African countries have seen a shift from state-led housing development to fully privatized development. Increasingly, this urban development takes the form of New Towns: master planned communities developed on greenfield sites. Because they are dependent on market-driven returns on investments, these privately-developed New Towns tend to ignore existing social and environmental realities and instead accommodate only the upper and middle classes in spatially segregated enclaves. Although this urban model has recently become more popular with both investors and politicians, it is not entirely new. As early as the 1980s, Dutch urban planner Coen Beeker was a vocal critic of developments in and around Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, which replaced vibrant traditional communities with both formally and demographically uniform developments. This paper argues for a re-examinati...

Research paper thumbnail of Participatory Workshops as a Tool for Building Inclusivity in New Towns in Africa

Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, ... more Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, New Towns are increasingly employed by private developers as a means of providing well-serviced urban environments to middle- and upper-income groups. These comprehensively-planned New Towns are often seen in contrast to the perceived ‘chaos’ and ‘congestion’ of large African cities. As a result, two urban forms, the highly controlled New Towns and the unregulated settlements at their edges, engage in complex social and economic exchanges, but remain spatially segregated and socially exclusive. Current research points to the need for an alternative approach to top-down New Town planning in Africa. Participatory workshops are one alternative that can offer planners access to local knowledge that is otherwise difficult to access. This paper explores the potential of short-term reflective, design, and serious gaming workshops by reflecting on the experiences of the authors in four recent wo...

Research paper thumbnail of Rising In The East

Research paper thumbnail of Spatial challenges in contemporary African New Towns and potentials for alternative planning strategies

International Planning Studies, 2019

New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century... more New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century planning models ranging from functionalist Chinese grids to American gated communities. Contemporary African New Towns based on these models are often unable to adapt to stimuli and, as a result, exacerbate both spatial and ecological challenges. The objective of this paper is to argue that African New Towns require a substantial shift from current practice and that planners must imagine new, hybrid planning strategies. This paper takes an exploratory approach and identifies the spatial challenges specific to contemporary African New Towns. Building on the argument that planning benefits from linkages between critical social theory and environmental science, this paper asserts that an adaptive urban planning approach that effectively engages citizens can be a more sustainable alternative to current practice. The paper concludes with implications for future research on the translation of challenges into potentials for African New Towns.

Research paper thumbnail of Supplementary data to African New Towns 1960-2018

This dataset brings together information on contemporary African New Towns identified between 201... more This dataset brings together information on contemporary African New Towns identified between 2015-2018 by Rachel Keeton in collaboration with the International New Town Institute. For each of the 148 New Towns identified, data regarding location of the New Town, year of initiation, period of construction, developers and planning organizations involved, the nationality of the initiator, etc., has been identified where possible. The dataset is incomplete, as it was not possible to find all relevant data for every New Town.

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns

Since the economic shifts of the 1990s, New Towns have become an increasingly popular approach to... more Since the economic shifts of the 1990s, New Towns have become an increasingly popular approach to urban development across the African continent. While New Towns are not a new development model, their contemporary materialisation often targets middle- and highincome buyers, leaving no space for low-income residents. Strict regulations in these exclusive developments often impede spatial appropriations by the informal sector such as fresh markets, unregulated housing, street kiosks and ‘public’ transit options. As a result, this approach may exacerbate spatial segregation and increase the visibility of economic inequality. This research addresses contemporary African New Towns as a group through the lens of urban design, identifying shared spatial challenges across a dataset of 146 New Towns. Through three case studies (Sheikh Zayed City, Egypt; BuraNEST, Ethiopia, and Kilamba, Angola) it takes a deeper look at the idiosyncrasies of individual New Towns, and the diversity of examples...

Research paper thumbnail of Rising in the East: Contemporary New Towns in Asia

This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in con... more This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in contemporary Asian New Town planning. In doing so, Rising in the East presents a relatively immediate account of the current urbanization processes that are transforming the Asian continent. As a key part of this development, New Towns have their own sometimes tragic, sometimes spectacular stories to tell. Their histories reveal the drama behind the mundane rows of cookie-cutter housing blocks. While globalization continues to blur regional differences, it becomes imperative to ask: what can we learn from these new New Towns?

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns: An adaptive, principle-based approach

Research paper thumbnail of New Towns in Africa

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns: An adaptive, principle-based planning approach

The New Towns (mixed use urban developments planned and built from scratch) initiated across the ... more The New Towns (mixed use urban developments planned and built from scratch) initiated across the African continent since 1990 are overwhelmingly designed and built according to urban planning models from the previous century (Watson 2013; Marcinkowski 2018; Keeton and Provoost 2019). This has produced a generation of New Towns with rigid physical infrastructure and strict building regulations, that do not support the spatial manifestations of the ‘informal’ sector. As a result, these New Towns may become insular enclaves and informal settlements may develop adjacently to them. Residents of these adjacent areas may not have access to the services and amenities offered within the New Towns (Keeton and Provoost 2019). Coupled with the implicit vulnerabilities of emerging and threshold economies, the contextual mismatch of the imported urban models exacerbates spatial segregation at an urban scale. Additionally, contemporary New Town models often do not take current climate variability ...

Research paper thumbnail of African Perspectives PrepCon Executive Report

African Perspectives PrepCon, 2017

Executive Report - African Perspectives PrepCon, UN, Addis Ababa, February 25th-27th 2018, Event ... more Executive Report - African Perspectives PrepCon, UN, Addis Ababa, February 25th-27th 2018, Event jointly organised by the TU Delft Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment and Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development (EiABC).The Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment of the Delft University of Technology is launching the ‘A is for AFRICA’ initiative, in which research, education and cooperation come together under one umbrella. This initiative articulates endeavours in three areas (research, education and cooperation) in order to maximise TU Delft’s positive impact on African urbanisation. The organisation of this PrepCon (preparatory conference) is the first step in this process. In the PrepCon, scholars and practitioners concerned with questions related to African urbanisation came together for two days in January 2018 to discuss the following questions: What are challenges associated with contemporary African urbanisation? How can TU Delft engage with African institutions in order to produce a positive impact on African urbanisation? What are on-going educational experiences and research projects from which we could learn together?

In this film, we discuss New Towns as an urban typology, New Towns across Africa from a historica... more In this film, we discuss New Towns as an urban typology, New Towns across Africa from a historical perspective, and the spatial challenges we see in the current generation. Based on this understanding, we can look for new ways to develop New Towns that address the challenges we identified here. The next film in this series discusses the adaptive planning and design principles presented in the book "To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual" (INTI/nai010, 2019).

The film was created by Rachel Keeton (research, narration) and Krithika Samavedula (graphic design, animation). It provides a summary of the first phase of research conducted by Rachel Keeton during her Ph.D. at the Urbanism Department of TU Delft. This Ph.D. was funded by the Delft Global Initiative (https://www.tudelft.nl/global/) and completed in 2020.

20 views

Research paper thumbnail of 'Unplanning' the Planned City Lessons from Ouagadougou for African New Towns

The Beeker Method: Planning and Working on the Redevelopment of the African City, 2017

Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African con-tinent, over the l... more Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African con-tinent, over the last three decades many African countries have seen a shift from state-led housing development to fully privatized development. Increasingly, this urban development takes the form of New Towns: master planned com-munities developed on greenfield sites. Because they are dependent on mar-ket-driven returns on investments, these privately-developed New Towns tend to ignore existing social and environmental realities and instead accommodate only the upper and middle classes in spatially segregated enclaves. Although this urban model has recently become more popular with both investors and poli-ticians, it is not entirely new. As early as the 1980s, Dutch urban planner Coen Beeker was a vocal critic of developments in and around Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, which replaced vibrant traditional communities with both formally and de-mographically uniform developments. This paper argues for a re-examination of Beeker’s own methods and the reasons for the sustained popularity of the urban projects that he led.

Research paper thumbnail of To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual (Introduction)

To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual , 2019

Africa’s population and economic growth make it the world’s fastest urbanizing continent. While s... more Africa’s population and economic growth make it the world’s fastest urbanizing continent. While some might still associate Africa with rural development, the future of Africa is, in fact, very urban. This urbanization poses a huge challenge in areas with fragile institutional frameworks and chronic poverty; new city-dwellers frequently end up in self-organized settlements without basic services. Developers and investors have offered one alternative, designing and building new towns in Africa modeled after Asian and American cities. But is this really a proper alternative? Does one size fit all?

To Build a City in Africa brings together authors from various academic, political and design backgrounds to explore case studies on new towns in Ghana, Egypt, South Africa, Angola, Morocco and Kenya, among other examples. This publication provides a critical narrative about African urbanization and questions the western world’s role in the radical transformations happening in Africa today.

Research paper thumbnail of Rising in the East: Contemporary New Towns in Asia

This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in con... more This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in contemporary Asian New Town planning. In doing so, Rising in the East presents a relatively immediate account of the current urbanization processes that are transforming the Asian continent. As a key part of this development, New Towns have their own sometimes tragic, sometimes spectacular stories to tell. Their histories reveal the drama behind the mundane rows of cookie-cutter housing blocks. While globalization continues to blur regional differences, it becomes imperative to ask: what can we learn from these new New Towns?

Research paper thumbnail of Climate migration and well-being: a study on ex-pastoralists in northern Kenya

Population and environment, Jun 19, 2024

Research paper thumbnail of 16 New Towns in Africa

New Towns for the Twenty-First Century

Research paper thumbnail of To Build a City in Africa: A History and a Manual

Research paper thumbnail of HABITABLE Study Area Report: Akatsi North District, Ghana

Research paper thumbnail of Appendix 2

New Towns for the Twenty-First Century, 2021

Research paper thumbnail of Unplanning' the Planned City : Lessons from Ouagadougou for African New Towns

Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African continent, over the la... more Following the emergence of neoliberal economic policies across the African continent, over the last three decades many African countries have seen a shift from state-led housing development to fully privatized development. Increasingly, this urban development takes the form of New Towns: master planned communities developed on greenfield sites. Because they are dependent on market-driven returns on investments, these privately-developed New Towns tend to ignore existing social and environmental realities and instead accommodate only the upper and middle classes in spatially segregated enclaves. Although this urban model has recently become more popular with both investors and politicians, it is not entirely new. As early as the 1980s, Dutch urban planner Coen Beeker was a vocal critic of developments in and around Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, which replaced vibrant traditional communities with both formally and demographically uniform developments. This paper argues for a re-examinati...

Research paper thumbnail of Participatory Workshops as a Tool for Building Inclusivity in New Towns in Africa

Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, ... more Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, New Towns are increasingly employed by private developers as a means of providing well-serviced urban environments to middle- and upper-income groups. These comprehensively-planned New Towns are often seen in contrast to the perceived ‘chaos’ and ‘congestion’ of large African cities. As a result, two urban forms, the highly controlled New Towns and the unregulated settlements at their edges, engage in complex social and economic exchanges, but remain spatially segregated and socially exclusive. Current research points to the need for an alternative approach to top-down New Town planning in Africa. Participatory workshops are one alternative that can offer planners access to local knowledge that is otherwise difficult to access. This paper explores the potential of short-term reflective, design, and serious gaming workshops by reflecting on the experiences of the authors in four recent wo...

Research paper thumbnail of Rising In The East

Research paper thumbnail of Spatial challenges in contemporary African New Towns and potentials for alternative planning strategies

International Planning Studies, 2019

New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century... more New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century planning models ranging from functionalist Chinese grids to American gated communities. Contemporary African New Towns based on these models are often unable to adapt to stimuli and, as a result, exacerbate both spatial and ecological challenges. The objective of this paper is to argue that African New Towns require a substantial shift from current practice and that planners must imagine new, hybrid planning strategies. This paper takes an exploratory approach and identifies the spatial challenges specific to contemporary African New Towns. Building on the argument that planning benefits from linkages between critical social theory and environmental science, this paper asserts that an adaptive urban planning approach that effectively engages citizens can be a more sustainable alternative to current practice. The paper concludes with implications for future research on the translation of challenges into potentials for African New Towns.

Research paper thumbnail of Supplementary data to African New Towns 1960-2018

This dataset brings together information on contemporary African New Towns identified between 201... more This dataset brings together information on contemporary African New Towns identified between 2015-2018 by Rachel Keeton in collaboration with the International New Town Institute. For each of the 148 New Towns identified, data regarding location of the New Town, year of initiation, period of construction, developers and planning organizations involved, the nationality of the initiator, etc., has been identified where possible. The dataset is incomplete, as it was not possible to find all relevant data for every New Town.

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns

Since the economic shifts of the 1990s, New Towns have become an increasingly popular approach to... more Since the economic shifts of the 1990s, New Towns have become an increasingly popular approach to urban development across the African continent. While New Towns are not a new development model, their contemporary materialisation often targets middle- and highincome buyers, leaving no space for low-income residents. Strict regulations in these exclusive developments often impede spatial appropriations by the informal sector such as fresh markets, unregulated housing, street kiosks and ‘public’ transit options. As a result, this approach may exacerbate spatial segregation and increase the visibility of economic inequality. This research addresses contemporary African New Towns as a group through the lens of urban design, identifying shared spatial challenges across a dataset of 146 New Towns. Through three case studies (Sheikh Zayed City, Egypt; BuraNEST, Ethiopia, and Kilamba, Angola) it takes a deeper look at the idiosyncrasies of individual New Towns, and the diversity of examples...

Research paper thumbnail of Rising in the East: Contemporary New Towns in Asia

This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in con... more This book aims to illustrate both the opportunities and challenges that present themselves in contemporary Asian New Town planning. In doing so, Rising in the East presents a relatively immediate account of the current urbanization processes that are transforming the Asian continent. As a key part of this development, New Towns have their own sometimes tragic, sometimes spectacular stories to tell. Their histories reveal the drama behind the mundane rows of cookie-cutter housing blocks. While globalization continues to blur regional differences, it becomes imperative to ask: what can we learn from these new New Towns?

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns: An adaptive, principle-based approach

Research paper thumbnail of New Towns in Africa

Research paper thumbnail of African New Towns: An adaptive, principle-based planning approach

The New Towns (mixed use urban developments planned and built from scratch) initiated across the ... more The New Towns (mixed use urban developments planned and built from scratch) initiated across the African continent since 1990 are overwhelmingly designed and built according to urban planning models from the previous century (Watson 2013; Marcinkowski 2018; Keeton and Provoost 2019). This has produced a generation of New Towns with rigid physical infrastructure and strict building regulations, that do not support the spatial manifestations of the ‘informal’ sector. As a result, these New Towns may become insular enclaves and informal settlements may develop adjacently to them. Residents of these adjacent areas may not have access to the services and amenities offered within the New Towns (Keeton and Provoost 2019). Coupled with the implicit vulnerabilities of emerging and threshold economies, the contextual mismatch of the imported urban models exacerbates spatial segregation at an urban scale. Additionally, contemporary New Town models often do not take current climate variability ...

Research paper thumbnail of African Perspectives PrepCon Executive Report

African Perspectives PrepCon, 2017

Executive Report - African Perspectives PrepCon, UN, Addis Ababa, February 25th-27th 2018, Event ... more Executive Report - African Perspectives PrepCon, UN, Addis Ababa, February 25th-27th 2018, Event jointly organised by the TU Delft Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment and Ethiopian Institute of Architecture, Building Construction and City Development (EiABC).The Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment of the Delft University of Technology is launching the ‘A is for AFRICA’ initiative, in which research, education and cooperation come together under one umbrella. This initiative articulates endeavours in three areas (research, education and cooperation) in order to maximise TU Delft’s positive impact on African urbanisation. The organisation of this PrepCon (preparatory conference) is the first step in this process. In the PrepCon, scholars and practitioners concerned with questions related to African urbanisation came together for two days in January 2018 to discuss the following questions: What are challenges associated with contemporary African urbanisation? How can TU Delft engage with African institutions in order to produce a positive impact on African urbanisation? What are on-going educational experiences and research projects from which we could learn together?

Research paper thumbnail of Participatory Workshops as a Tool for Building Inclusivity in New Towns in Africa

Research in Urbanism Series, 2020

Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, ... more Africa is currently the fastest-urbanizing continent in the world. As part of this rapid growth, New Towns are increasingly employed by private developers as a means of providing well-serviced urban environments to middle- and upper-income groups. These comprehensively-planned New Towns are often seen in contrast to the perceived ‘chaos’ and ‘congestion’ of large African cities. As a result, two urban forms, the highly controlled New Towns and the unregulated settlements at their edges, engage in complex social and economic exchanges, but remain spatially segregated and socially exclusive. Current research points to the need for an alternative approach to top-down New Town planning in Africa.

Participatory workshops are one alternative that can offer planners access to local knowledge that is otherwise difficult to access. This paper explores the potential of short-term reflective, design, and serious gaming workshops by reflecting on the experiences of the authors in four recent workshops. The paper evaluates the effectiveness of these workshops as useful tools to increase inclusivity in African New Towns by bringing together stakeholders with competing agendas and supporting open discussion, negotiation, and informed decision-making. The paper concludes that participation from stakeholder groups that would normally be marginalized from the planning process (such as current residents, temporary users, and residents of adjacent unregulated communities), can offer new insights to planning bodies and inform more inclusive New Towns across the continent.

Research paper thumbnail of Spatial challenges in contemporary African New Towns and potentials for alternative planning strategies Spatial challenges in contemporary African New Towns and potentials for alternative planning strategies

International Planning Studies, 2019

New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century... more New Towns in development across Africa are overwhelmingly designed according to twentieth-century planning models ranging from functionalist Chinese grids to American gated communities. Contemporary African New Towns based on these models are often unable to adapt to stimuli and, as a result, exacerbate both spatial and ecological challenges. The objective of this paper is to argue that African New Towns require a substantial shift from current practice and that planners must imagine new, hybrid planning strategies. This paper takes an exploratory approach and identifies the spatial challenges specific to contemporary African New Towns. Building on the argument that planning benefits from linkages between critical social theory and environmental science, this paper asserts that an adaptive urban planning approach that effectively engages citizens can be a more sustainable alternative to current practice. The paper concludes with implications for future research on the translation of challenges into potentials for African New Towns.