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Articles on Human settlements

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What route did the first settlers to colonize the islands of the Caribbean take? M.M. Swee/Moment via Getty Images

Archaeologists determined the step-by-step path taken by the first people to settle the Caribbean islands

Did people settle these islands by traveling north from South America, or in the other direction? Reanalyzing data from artifacts discovered decades ago provides a definitive answer.
Oceanix, a proposed floating city, has captured the attention of the UN. OCEANIX/BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group

Floating cities: the future or a washed-up idea?

Floating cities are back on the agenda, with the UN recently hosting a meeting on the subject. The latest in a long line of proposals since the ‘50s was unveiled, but just how feasible is the idea?
As machinery demolishes houses behind them, Jakarta police evict residents from the settlement of Luar Batang in April. Reuters/Beawiharta Beawiharta

Will Habitat III defend the human right to the city?

The world’s informal settlements are growing at an unprecedented rate, with about one in four urban dwellers living in slums. We need to rethink how we view and deal with these people and places.
Demand for housing in South Africa continues to outstrip supply despite the government having made more than three million houses to poor households. Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko

Waiting for the state: politics of public housing in South Africa

The dismally slow provision of housing in South Africa is such that more than 2.2 million households live in 2700 informal settlements. Waiting is the norm and can take years, even decades.

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