Though the relevance of the concept of neighbourhood in both research and policy oriented circles is unquestionable, the concept remains contested and fluid, making its operationalisation a daunting task, particularly in practice. This study explores how the concept of neighbourhood has been operationalised in Kigali city and how the neighbourhood boundaries and typologies are defined. The paper dwells on the review of relevant literature, interviews with 25 practitioners and field observations. It is argued that neighbourhood conceptualisation in Kigali is both theory—it bears the common aspects of neighbourhood definitions—and practice driven, reflecting modernity and context. On the one hand, modernity suggests the desire of planning authorities to follow contemporary planning practices. Context, on the other hand, reflects the desire to tailor local policies to country specific challenges. While boundaries follow subjective, administrative and physical models, typologies tend to be overly physical, focusing mainly on housing structures. The study identified three conventional neighbourhood typologies—planned, informal and mixed types. Given the predominance of informal and mixed neighbourhoods, this study further argues that such areas form the ‘bedroom’ and ‘transit point’ for most lower- and middle-class workers, in addition to serving as a ‘laboratory’ for testing various social interventions. The study recommends a well-serviced mixed classification typology to foster a strong sense of belongingness.

This special issue of The Journal of Public Space on “Public Space and Placemaking in African Cities” raises awareness and articulates the importance and value of urban public space in the context of the African continent. A key contemporary driver of such issues is the context of Africa's urbanisation, which is exponentially faster than comparable processes in the Global North. A vibrant, diverse and supportive public life in these contexts will increasingly become a critical public good, which will depend on the conceptualisation, design, development, process and maintenance of public space. Already the continent’s vast diversity of communities and cultures is visible in the utilization of public open spaces such as streets and markets and the congestion of pedestrian activities therein. The so-called ‘informality’ of many of these urban conditions is indicative of the increasing imperatives of public space. Such spaces are often faced with extraordinary demands, not easily visible in cities of the Global North. They are often expected – or forced – to accommodate extensive forms of cultural diversity, from street markets and food and drink, to outdoor gyms and children’s playgrounds, to dance and ceremonies, and even the urban presence of cattle and livestock. Yet a lack of appropriate planning can also lead to conflict and an exacerbation of incidences of urban insecurity.

This article explores strategies to improve livelihoods in Kigali’s peri-urban areas by utilising the valuable knowledge and adaptive strategies of residents. Through the framework of knowledge co-creation, it examines peri-urban residents’ livelihoods, identifies potential threats posed by urban growth and evaluates resident-driven projects for livelihood improvement. The study was conducted in three peri-urban administrative sectors—Bumbogo, Mageragere and Gahanga—representing the three districts of Kigali. A mixed-methods participatory action research design was employed, and data were collected from 99 participants, who were selected using reputational and snowball sampling techniques. Through the data collection process, residents were supported in ideating and implementing 30 distinct projects to support their livelihood. The effectiveness of these projects was analysed through field evaluations and interviews with participants. The findings revealed that the majority of the residents were dissatisfied with the quality of life in peri-urban areas. However, the study also showed that within four months of project implementation, the beneficiaries reported greater potential to improve living conditions through savings and diverse urban economic activities. The article concludes that knowledge co-creation is an effective approach in helping residents cope with rapid urban changes.

Rwanda’s and Serbia’s cities are under the pressure of a growing urban population, with social, political, environmental, and economic changes, technological innovations, and cultural transformations playing a primordial social development role and global ecological challenges that question existing built heritage preservation and protection. During Rwanda's early urban development phase (1980s to 2000), and during Serbia’s process of recovery and reconstruction after the Second World War, the local clay bricks were not anymore seen as the predominantly used building material. In Rwanda, although the Government, and its development partners are supporting traditional brick manufacturers to upgrade their production facilities into semi-industrial facilities to improve the quality and supply of local bricks, along with their embodied carbon coefficient reduction, the art of self-made adobe bricks for housing is increasingly practised, making them the most used construction material in Rwanda, especially in rural areas. In comparison, in the Serbian northern, autonomous province of Vojvodina, given industrialisation and rapid construction systems developed after the Second World War, adobe bricks are no longer used. That created a gap – protecting adobe brick buildings built in the last centuries requires knowledge of traditional building processes that no longer exist within communities in Serbia. The paper is based on the hypothesis that Rwanda could face the similar problem in preserving adobe-built heritage if an adequate system of preservation and transfer of traditional skills and knowledge is not established – as it is the case in Serbia. Therefore, the main goal of the research is to define guidelines for improving knowledge and skills documenting and sharing in the field of earthen architecture learning from Rwanda that could be applied in other environments. This research also forms a methodological framework for the standardisation and development of models for the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge and skills in adobe brick heritage.

At no other time has a student’s knowledge of the world seemed greater and that same world seemed smaller than now. Their global awareness and ethical perspective have developed throughout childhood thanks to education, digital communication and access to international travel. Can meaningful work and geographic and cultural variety satisfy their outward and inward gaze? Is this the deeper motivation in joining a school of architecture? As they imagine their future, how can we help them put their values into practice and reinforce their belief that others’ lives can be improved through their agency as an architect? This paper explores four phases of an ongoing internationally collaborative live project between The Mackintosh School of Architecture at The Glasgow School of Art in the UK (MSA) and The School of Architecture and the Built Environment (SABE) at The University of Rwanda (UR).