Housing as Social Infrastructure Placemaking, Livelihoods and Local Economies

Over 1.1 billion people live in informal settlements, while historic urban quarters face displacement and loss of local economies. Housing policies often treat housing as shelter alone, overlooking its key role in sustaining social networks, livelihoods, cultural identity, resource efficiency, and local economic systems—undermining inclusion, resilience, and long-term affordability. This session positions housing as key social infrastructure and a productive economic asset, demonstrating how placemaking-oriented housing upgrading in informal settlements and historic quarters strengthens social cohesion, supports livelihoods, promotes resource efficiency, and sustains local economies. Drawing from implemented city experiences, the session shows how incremental housing, adaptive reuse, and street- and community-space improvements enable home-based enterprises, informal markets, and everyday economic activity while reinforcing a sense of place. The approach emphasizes co-production with residents, protection of social and economic practices, and low-cost, scalable interventions that generate inclusive economic value aligned with the New Urban Agenda.
Session Structure:
1. OPENING AND FRAMING (5 MINUTES):
Housing beyond shelter—social and economic value creation Moderator: Zainab Al-Mansour - Welcome and introduction of speakers - Framing housing as social infrastructure and economic platform - Objectives and expected outcomes of the session.
2. SPECIAL SEGMENTS (10 MINUTES):
a. The 15-minutes City.
Speaker: Carlos Moreno
b. GLOBAL PUBLIC SPACE NETWORK (GPSN)
Speaker: Jose Chong - Introduction to the Global Public Space Network (GPSN) - Relevance to housing, placemaking, and local economic systems Regional Contribution: - AMAKEN Placemaking - Role as regional representative and opportunities for engagement in the Arab region.
3. FEATURED PRESENTATION (20 MINUTES) Speaker:
China Energy Research Society - Housing as an integrated social, economic, and energy system - Scalable approaches linking:
- Housing affordability
- Local Economic Development
- Resource efficiency
- Lessons from practice and policy frameworks applicable to Global South contexts (Includes brief clarification and interaction within allocated time)
4. CITY CASE CLINICS (40 MINUTES):
Short, practice-based presentations (10 minutes each) 4 cities present how housing upgrading strengthened livelihoods, social networks, and local economies.
Synthesis (5 min):
Shared principles and replicable approaches for cities. The format prioritizes peer learning, applied experience, and actionable insights.
Speakers: - AMAKEN - CatalyticAction - Manbat - Takamol Foundation for Integrated and Sustainable Development
Focus:
- Practical interventions linking housing and livelihoods
- Incremental upgrading and adaptive reuse
- Public space improvements supporting local economies
- Key lessons and implementation challenges
5. MODERATED DIALOGUE (10 MINUTES)
Moderator:
Zainab Al-Mansour - Interactive exchange among speakers and participants
Key guiding questions:
- How can housing function as economic infrastructure?
- What governance models enable co-production with communities?
- How can global frameworks (e.g. GPSN) support local implementation?
6. KEY MESSAGES & CLOSING (5 MINUTES):
Lead: Mohammad Abousamra - Summary of key insights and takeaways - Identification of transferable tools and approaches - Opportunities for collaboration and partnerships - Contribution to the Baku Call to Action.
Speakers include international experts and representatives of international agencies, representatives of national entities targeting small and medium enterprises, community-based partners, researchers and practitioners involved in resource efficiency practices, practitioners directly involved in housing upgrading that supports livelihoods and social life, as well as placemakers. The audience includes municipal housing and economic development officials, urban planners, NGOs, community networks, and development partners.
Outcomes include practical frameworks for leveraging housing as a social and economic asset that promotes resource efficiency, transferable lessons for informal and historic contexts, new city-to-city partnerships, and concrete inputs to the Baku Call to Action.