Centre for Urban Excellence

Centre for Urban Excellence
Name	Centre for Urban Excellence
Formation	2010
Headquarters	Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Region served	Urban India
Leader title	Founders
Leader name	(see text)

Centre for Urban Excellence

The Centre for Urban Excellence is an Indian non-profit urban research and practice organization based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, focused on built environment interventions, public space design, and community-driven urbanism. Founded in the early 2010s by practitioners with backgrounds in architecture, urban planning, and civic engagement, the organisation works across neighbourhoods, municipal bodies, heritage precincts, and grassroots collectives to pilot design solutions, inform policy, and produce evidence for practitioners and policymakers. Its activities intersect with municipal corporations, academic institutes, heritage trusts, philanthropic foundations, and civic movements.

History

The organisation emerged from networks that included alumni and faculty of Indian Institute of Science, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, CEPT University, Bangalore Urban Art Commission and practitioners who had worked with Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, Delhi Development Authority and Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority. Early projects drew on precedents from initiatives such as Jaipur Development Authority interventions, Sabarmati Riverfront Project, and community initiatives in Shahpur Jat and Khan Market. Founders collaborated with civic groups like United Way India, Akshaya Patra Foundation, and neighbourhood trusts influenced by movements exemplified by Pune Placemaking Project and Mumbai First. Over time, the organisation established relationships with international partners including UN-Habitat, World Bank, and bilateral agencies connected to DFID and USAID.

Mission and Objectives

The organisation’s mission is to advance inclusive urban design, resilient infrastructure, and participatory governance in Indian cities through applied research, capacity building, and on-ground demonstration. Objectives include co-producing interventions with municipal agencies such as Bengaluru Smart City Limited and Greater Chennai Corporation, documenting case studies for institutions like National Institute of Urban Affairs and Indian Council of Social Science Research, and training practitioners from institutions including Tata Trusts, Azim Premji Foundation, Jindal Urban Lab, and Rani Channamma University to influence statutory plans crafted by bodies like Town and Country Planning Department, Karnataka.

Projects and Initiatives

Project work has ranged from street redesign and heritage conservation pilot projects in collaboration with organisations such as Archaeological Survey of India and INTACH to water-sensitive urban design tied to reservoirs and lakes managed by entities including Karnataka Lake Conservation and Development Authority and Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board. Initiatives include public space upgrades in neighbourhoods influenced by precedents like Connaught Place renovation and pedestrianisation studies referencing M.G. Road, Bengaluru and Colaba Causeway interventions. Other projects partnered with grassroots collectives such as OpenStreetMap India, Majlis, Housing and Land Rights Network, and community organisations active in settlements like Dharavi and Old Delhi, producing pilots on sanitation, waste management, and street vending regulation aligned with rulings from tribunals such as National Green Tribunal.

Research and Publications

Research outputs include policy briefs, technical manuals, and design guides shared with universities and think tanks including Centre for Policy Research, Observer Research Foundation, Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, and Institute for Human Development. Publications have addressed topics ranging from incremental housing strategies reflecting debates in Right to the City literature to heritage streetscapes informed by scholarship from Sahapedia and conservation charters akin to principles in the Venice Charter. Work has been showcased in journals and conferences associated with World Urban Forum, International Federation for Housing and Planning, Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), and national symposia organised by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

Partnerships and Collaborations

Collaborative partners span municipal agencies like Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, academic institutions such as Indian Institute of Management Bangalore and National Institute of Design, philanthropies like Tata Trusts and Rockefeller Foundation, and international bodies including UNESCO and Asian Development Bank. Field collaborations involved civic coalitions such as Bengaluru Habba and advocacy networks like Noida Rising and legal support from organisations including Human Rights Law Network. Cross-sector alliances included work with technology platforms such as Esri India and mapping collaborators like Mapbox and OpenStreetMap Foundation.

Funding and Governance

Funding sources have combined grants from national agencies such as Ministry of Culture (India) and state schemes administered by Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation with philanthropic support from Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives, corporate social responsibility partners tied to Tata Group and Infosys Foundation, and research funding from Indian Council of Social Science Research and multilateral lenders including World Bank and Asian Development Bank. Governance has typically featured a board comprising practitioners and academics with links to institutions such as IIM Bangalore, IISc Bangalore, CEPT University, and legal oversight from trustees associated with NGOs like Centre for Science and Environment.

Impact and Recognition

Impact metrics include built interventions that influenced municipal practices in cities referenced by urbanists associated with Janmarg and Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation, adoption of guidelines by statutory bodies like Karnataka Town Planning Department, and case studies cited by commissions such as Justice Verma Commission and policy documents from Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The organisation’s work has been recognised by awards and citations from bodies including Intach Heritage Awards, Ashoka Fellowship networks, and platforms such as Urban Design Forum and National Geographic Society features, while alumni have moved into roles at institutions like World Resources Institute and Centre for Policy Research.

Category:Non-profit organisations based in India