Want to create an interactive transcript for this episode?
Podcast: New Books in Anthropology
Episode: Stephen Marr and Patience Mususa, "DIY Urbanism in Africa: Politics and Practice" (Zed Books, 2023)
Description: Protracted economic crises, accelerating inequalities, and increased resource scarcity present significant challenges for the majority of Africa's urban population. Limited state capacity and widespread infrastructure deficiencies common in cities across the continent often require residents to draw on their own resources, knowledge, and expertise to resolve these life and livelihood dilemmas.In DIY Urbanism in Africa: Politics and Practice (Zed Books, 2023), editors Stephen Marr and Patience Mususa investigate these practices. The edited volume develops a theoretical framework through which to analyze them, and presents a series of case studies to demonstrate how residents invent new DIY tactics an...