Shows
Urban Radar19. THE NEW URBAN GEOPOLITICS: Inside Caracas + urban Greenland, + embassies and disinformation in London, + neighbourhood governance and moreIn this first episode of Series 2 of Urban Radar, Beth and Tom start to tackle some of the many ways in which the current moment of geopolitical turmoil is filtering down into in cities and towns across the world. We make the most of our new Sheffield-Manchester partnership by bringing on Dr. Erika Garcia Fermin (29:45 minutes onwards) from the University of Manchester's Global Development Institute, for an in-depth conversation on the Venezuala crisis and its urban dimensions. With Erika we delve into Venezuela's recent history and how Hugo Chavez's distinctly urban populist project of redistribution m...
2026-01-2653 minUrban RadarSeries 2 Urban Radar: TrailerUrban Radar is a podcast series which reflects on current events and emerging trends through the lens of cities and urban life. Launched in 2025, Urban Radar hit the UK social science podcast charts, and was amongst the top 5% of new podcast entrants (according to one major streaming platform!). It reached listeners in every continent, over 80 countries and 670 cities. Series 1 included 18 episodes, with 40 guests, including leading urban studies theorists and thinkers, early career scholars and PhD students. Series 2 of Urban Radar will continue to place urban dynamics at the centre of contemporary global affairs. Hosted by Prof...
2026-01-0504 minUrban Radar18: WRAP UP, REFLECTION & REVEAL (+ Care and the city, +Aussie social media ban, +urban themes of the year and much more...)This month, we (Beth and Tom) are podding alone, using the final episode of the year to reflect on some of the big themes we’ve discussed in 2025 as well as on the process of making Urban Radar. We start with our monthly radar for December, dipping into three current stories each as usual. Following this we offer some quick-fire thoughts on a number of issues and themes that have resurfaced repeatedly throughout the year and remain prominent as it draws to a close. Finally, we consider some of the highlights of podcasting itself, before unveiling a surp...
2025-12-1650 minUrban Radar17: CHILD LABOUR AND DISINFORMATION (+immigration policy, +COP30 in Belem, +ticket touts, +urban statistics and more…)In this episode we are joined by Professor Julia Moses to consider the working lives and rights of children, and then Dr Dani Madrid-Morales to discuss disinformation and how it plays out across urban and rural areas. Reflecting on World Children's Day on 20 November, we explore children's rights and how these relate to questions of labour, as well as how attitudes to child labour have varied over time and in different national contexts (28:08). Then, in light of recent accusations from Donald Trump towards the BBC's reporting, we delve into the the challenge of misinformation, how it is changing and...
2025-11-281h 15Urban Radar16: CHINA, THE GLOBAL INFRASTRUCTURE RACE AND ITS URBAN IMPACTS - A panel with Jon Silver, Zhengli Huang and Linda WestmanIn this feature, Tom and Beth discuss the Global Infrastructure Race with colleagues from the Urban Institute (UI), recorded live as part of the UI’s 10 year anniversary celebrations. Drawing on insights emerging from the GlobalCORRIDOR and Pluralize projects, Jon Silver, Zhengli Huang and Linda Westman share their interpretation of the Global Infrastructure Race, its urban impacts and how we can centre and decentre the role of China. Specifically they discuss:What is the Global Infrastructure Race and how can we understand its diverse geopolitical and economic manifestations?How can historical and contemporary analysis help unpack the role of...
2025-11-131h 16Urban Radar15: GREEN RESURGENCE & GAZA RECONSTRUCTION (+Brexit, +rats, +Louvre heist, +AI Friend and more)Released to coincide with World Cities Day on 31 October, this episode sees Beth and Tom first joined by Prof. Matthew Flinders (26:09) to discuss what the rise in fortunes of the Green Party, UK, under Zack Polanski, means for progressive politics in the UK, and for a city like Sheffield. Then, with Said Zaaneen (51:46), they dive into what the history of refugee camps in the Gaza strip tells us about the role of international humanitarian aid, and consider implications for future reconstruction. Also on our radar:The ongoing impacts of Brexit on Northern citiesRats and multi-species urban l...
2025-10-311h 20Urban Radar14: HUMANITY'S URBAN FUTURE - A conversation with AbdouMaliq Simone and Ash AminIn this month’s feature Tom and Beth are joined by two leading scholars of the urban condition - Ash Amin and AbdouMaliq Simone - to reflect on questions of inclusion and belonging in the search for the 'good city'. Building on their collaborative work for the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research's Humanity's Urban Future programme, our guests consider: Are ideas of the good city still relevant in face of worsening inequality, segregation and individualism?Can a progressive politics of belonging overcome these divisions in a renewed urban public sphere? And, as Black History Month draws to an end...
2025-10-201h 03Urban Radar13: CONFLICT & URBAN TERRITORY - FROM UK HOMELESSNESS TO UPRISING IN NEPAL (+West Bank settlements, +witchcraft, +cars and more)This month we are joined by Dr Sam Burgum & Professor Simon Rushton to dive into what the new UK Minister for Homelessness should have on their agenda (27:50) and how we can understand the wider socio-economic issues shaping the recent Gen Z uprising in Nepal (50:08). Cutting across our discussions are questions of conflict over and in urban territory, federalism and decentralisation and how best to meet basic needs - such as shelter, health or security at the local (and national) level.Also on our radar:What does the new US-UK tech partnership mean for regional i...
2025-09-291h 19Urban Radar12: URBAN INFORMALITY AND TRANSLOCAL LEARNING - A conversation with Melanie Lombard and Diana MitlinIn this month's episode Tom and Beth discuss the value of translocal learning to address poverty and inequality for women in low income communities in India, Southern Africa, Kenya and the UK. Joined by guests Melanie Lombard and Diana Mitlin, they ask:What can we learn from informal processes and practices in South Asian and African cities to address social injustice and poverty here in the UK?What kinds of trans-national networks can support this work and how do they build solidarities amongst and within low income communities?What does this mean for the roles of a...
2025-09-2356 minUrban Radar11: SCHOOLING AND SURVIVING IN ENGLAND AND SUDAN (+policing/protests, +flags/fakes, +mining and cities on the move)This month we are joined by Drs Christina Tatham & Cathy Wilcock for a post-summer bumper episode. First in England, many children are starting school for the first time, including those with English as a second language, against a backdrop of stubborn spatial inequalities in educational outcomes later in life (31:26). Then, in the face of civil war and conflict in Sudan, we dive into how urban communities in and beyond national borders are finding ways to build resilience and retain diaspora identities (52:20). And on our radar:Labubus & counterfeits in the cityLocal variations in pol...
2025-09-041h 21Urban Radar10: URBAN LABS IN TIMES OF CONFLICT AND POST-TRUTH - A conversation with Mona Fawaz & Nausheen AnwarIn this month’s feature, Beth and Tom are joined by Professors Nausheen Anwar and Mona Fawaz, Directors of the Karachi Urban Lab and Beirut Urban Lab respectively. This feature is a live recording of an in-person event on Urban Research Labs in Times of Conflict and Post-Truth, recorded in July as part of the Sheffield Urbanism Summer Programme. This was an ‘in conversation’ event during which Tom and Beth explored the challenges that Mona and Nausheen face running urban labs in the face of persistent conflict, misinfo...
2025-08-1954 min
The MachinistFeature 6: CYBORG RIGHTS & THE CITY? A conversation on tech & urbanism with Simon Marvin & Allan McCay Podcast: Urban RadarEpisode: Feature 6: CYBORG RIGHTS & THE CITY? A conversation on tech & urbanism with Simon Marvin & Allan McCayPub date: 2025-07-15Get Podcast Transcript →powered by Listen411 - fast audio-to-text and summarizationIn this month's special feature, Tom and Beth are joined by Simon Marvin and Allan McCay to discuss how advances in neurotechnology - specifically Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) - are changing the way we think about urban infrastructures and human-technology relations in the city. We discuss: How can we understand the complex and cont...
2025-08-1947 minUrban Radar9: URBAN POLITICS OF TRUTH AND WEALTH (+ AI data centres, +extreme heat and more)In this episode we are joined by Dr Katie Pruszynski and Professor Rowland Atkinson to explore how political and wealth elites are reshaping cities from New York to London and beyond. We dive into Zohran Mamdani's journey to becoming the Democratic Party's nominee for Mayor of New York City (25:10) and the pros and cons of increasing tax on the super-rich (47:26), through an urban political tour of truth and wealth.Also on our radar:The loss of pubs & representations of young people's urban lifestylesAI data centres & their potential in low income neighbourhoodsThe past & future of pickpocketingUkrainian cities i...
2025-07-291h 12Urban Radar8: CYBORG RIGHTS & THE CITY? A conversation on tech & urbanism with Simon Marvin & Allan McCayIn this month's special feature, Tom and Beth are joined by Simon Marvin and Allan McCay to discuss how advances in neurotechnology - specifically Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) - are changing the way we think about urban infrastructures and human-technology relations in the city. We discuss: How can we understand the complex and continuously changing relationship between cities and technology over the last few decades?What and where are the new frontiers of urban technology in light of neuro-technological advances, such as Brain Computer Interfaces?What are the legal and ethical implications for cities and residents of...
2025-07-1547 minUrban Radar7: HOUSING SAFETY, TRANS RIGHTS & THE CITY (+ Bunkers, AI protest & more)In this month’s episode, we are joined by Jenny Preece to dive into the issue of building safety in the context of the recent anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire (22:33). Next, we consider trans rights in the context of Pride month and the impact of the UK’s recent Supreme Court ruling (38:40).Also on our radar: Bunkers and new forms of subterranean exclusionUrban festivals Touristification and the commodification of citiesThe LA riots and urban stigmaAI propaganda and AI protestVape fires and the disposable vape banDr. Jenny Preece is a Lecturer in the School of Geo...
2025-06-2759 minUrban Radar6: POWERING THE NORTH - A conversation with Andy Burnham and Steve RotheramIn this first stand-alone feature, Tom and Beth introduce an uncut conversation with Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram - the Mayors of Greater Manchester and the Liverpool City Region in the North of England, recorded at Sheffield's Festival of Debate.The conversation was chaired by Beth at the Octagon Theatre, and focussed on Andy and Steve's 10-point plan for a fairer, more equal Britain, set out in their book Head North: A Rallying Cry for a More Equal Britain (2024). In the discussion, they reveal how their time spent as MPs in Westminster convinced them that devolution is...
2025-06-161h 07Urban Radar5: POWER & THE POPE (+ Gaza urbicide, gambling cities & more)In this month’s Radar, we dive into the issue of community power - the energy kind! - with Dr Jayne Carrick (22:28), before discussing how a new pope (or an AI confession box!) will alter relations between religion, faith and the city with Dr Krzysztof Nawratek (35:26). On our urban radar (02:41) we also consider: The UK government’s Immigration White Paper and the ‘local impacts’ of international student recruitmentRace and space in Trump’s welcoming of white South African ‘refugees’Urbicide in Gaza and its historical antecedentsGambling and its urban discontents The urban impacts of deconcentrating central government departments outside London
2025-05-2954 minUrban Radar4: BATS, BUILDINGS & BIG IDEAS (+ local action on water, + the urban impacts of tariff wars, and more...)In this month's bumper episode we are joined by Malcolm Tait, Kiera Chapman and Hugh Ellis for a feature (45:13) on the UK government's planning reforms, how we can save nature and whether we need more utopian thinking to engage citizens in planning for sustainable communities. With Liz Sharp and Antonio Navas, Tom and Beth also dive into the local impacts of the UK's water crisis (20:35) and the urban impacts of tariff wars (33:37). Also on our radar (3:15):How levels of urbanization impact on Myanmar's earthquake resilience, and man-made factors shaping urban crisis Paris city hall's ant...
2025-04-291h 12Urban Radar3: CITIES & AUTHORITARIANISM (+ addressing urban air pollution, + cities and the UK asylum crisis, and more)This month’s special feature focuses on the rise of authoritarianism in cities (34:48). What are the strategies and tactics that authoritarian regimes might use to control their capital cities? Beth and Tom are joined by David Jackman to discuss the insights provided in his edited book with Tom, as well as a discussion of urban political dynamics in Bangladesh - the subject of David's other new book. With Miguel Kanai and Hannah Lewis, they dive into urban interventions to address air pollution (13:17) and discuss the UK’s hostile asylum regime and how Cities of Sanctuary can help (22:59).A...
2025-03-2656 minUrban Radar2: MANCHESTER'S DEVELOPMENT MODEL (+ German elections, + UK local government reform, and more)In this month's feature (21:09), Tom & Beth turn their attention to Manchester’s model of property-led development. As the UK government pins hopes on enabling greater private sector investment to boost economic growth, can the 'Manchester model' deliver the expected outcomes? They are joined by Adam Leaver and Richard Goulding to discuss their new report, co-authored with Jon Silver, on the "Centripetal City: A Critique of Supply-Side Urban Development". In our wrap-up of what’s on our radar (01:49) we also cover:What fatbergs and sinkholes tell us about the urban underground How Artificial Intelligence might affect urban culture...
2025-03-0640 minUrban Radar1: CITIES & CLIMATE CHANGE (+ human rights for mountains, + foreign aid cuts and more)On this month's Urban Radar, Beth & Tom zoom in on:Why recognising the rights of a New Zealand mountain is an urban issue Conflict in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and its impacts on the city of GomaHow cutting US international development funding will impact cities Whether ‘more-than-schools’ can offer community level responses to the crisis in young people and children’s mental healthWaste tipping in Litchfield, UKAnd in our Special Feature (24:20) on Cities and Climate Change, they are joined by Vanesa Castán Broto and David Dodman, t...
2025-02-1853 minUrban RadarUrban Radar: TrailerIn this trailer, we set out the background to Urban Radar, the format of the show and the main questions that we will explore. Urban Radar is a podcast series which reflects on current events and emerging trends through the lens of cities and urban life. It is brought to you by Sheffield Urbanism, a community of urban researchers in the Faculty of Social Science at the University of Sheffield, UK. Urban Radar places urban dynamics at the centre of contemporary global affairs. In each episode we scan the news to bring unique urban perspectives in...
2025-02-1703 min