Staff profile

My work focusses on the experience and politics of the city. I explore how cities are known, lived and politicised. This includes research on urban living, wastes, densities, fragments, and learning across different cities, focussing in particular on the economic margins. My current work seeks to understand:

1: The production, experience and perception of density in cities. This research examines how high urban densities are shaped and lived in different domains, including density and crowds in public space, on the move, and in the neighbourhood and home. This work was supported through a European Research Council Consolidator grant;

2: The making and remaking of urban worlds. I am interested in how urban 'fragments' of different kinds - material bits-and-pieces, forms of knowledge, and styles of expression - become caught up in the experience and politics of being urban. This work closely connects with my interest in densities and is brought together in Fragments of the City: Making and Remaking Urban Worlds (University of California Press, 2021);

3: The relations between sanitation and the city. Much of my work focusses on the growing urban sanitation crisis, including how it unfolds at different intersections of place, density and inequality, and how to respond to it. This has been a long-term interest that led to the 2023 book, Waste and the City: The Crisis of Sanitation and the Right to Citylife (Verso). This work has been supported by the Economic and Social Research Council and the Leverhulme Trust, and also connects to my research on urban poverty and equality, for example through the a GCRF project on equality and knowledge in which I was one of several co-investigators.

These strands also surfaced in my book, Learning the City: Knowledge and Translocal Assemblage (Wiley), which examines the intersections between urban inequality, politics, and learning, as well as related edited collections, including: Global Urbanism: Knowledge, Power and the City (Routledge, with Michele Lancione), Smart Urbanism: Utopian Vision or False Dawn? (Routledge, with Simon Marvin and Andres Luque-Ayala), Infrastructural Lives: Urban Infrastructure in Context (Earthscan-Routledge, with Steve Graham), Urban Navigations: Politics, Space and the City in South Asia (Routledge, with Jonathan Anjaria), and Urban Informalities: Reflections on the Formal and Informal (Routledge, with Michael Waibel).

I have an occassional blog, and I am on Bluesky, X, and LinkedIn

Authored book

• Waste and the City: The Crisis of Sanitation and the Right to Citylife
  McFarlane, C. (2023). Waste and the City: The Crisis of Sanitation and the Right to Citylife. Verso
• Fragments of the City: Making and Remaking Urban Worlds
  McFarlane, C. (2021). Fragments of the City: Making and Remaking Urban Worlds. University of California Press
• Learning the city: knowledge and translocal assemblage.
  McFarlane, C. (2011). Learning the city: knowledge and translocal assemblage. Wiley
• Everyday Sanitation: Informal Settlements in Mumbai.
  McFarlane, C., Desai, R., & Graham, S. (2011). Everyday Sanitation: Informal Settlements in Mumbai. Durham University/AlphaGraphics

Edited book

• Global Urbanism: Knowledge, Power and the City
  Lancione, M., & McFarlane, C. (Eds.). (in press). Global Urbanism: Knowledge, Power and the City. Routledge
• DenCity: Stories of Crowds and Cities
  Mcfarlane, C., & Collver, J. (Eds.). (2023). DenCity: Stories of Crowds and Cities. Comic Printing UK
• Smart Urbanism: Utopian Vision or False Dawn?
  Marvin, S., Luque-Ayala, A., & McFarlane, C. (Eds.). (2016). Smart Urbanism: Utopian Vision or False Dawn?. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315730554
• Infrastructural Lives: Politics, Experience and the Urban Fabric
  Graham, S., & McFarlane, C. (Eds.). (2015). Infrastructural Lives: Politics, Experience and the Urban Fabric. Earthscan-Routledge
• Urban Informalities: Reflections on the Formal and Informal.
  McFarlane, C., & Waibel, M. (Eds.). (2012). Urban Informalities: Reflections on the Formal and Informal. Ashgate Publishing
• Urban Navigations: Politics, Space and the City in South Asia.
  Anjaria, J., & McFarlane, C. (Eds.). (2010). Urban Navigations: Politics, Space and the City in South Asia. Routledge

Journal Article

• Density textures: The crowd, everyday life, and urban poverty in Manila
  McFarlane, C., Saguin, K., & Cunanan, K. (online). Density textures: The crowd, everyday life, and urban poverty in Manila. Urban Geography, https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2024.2401715
• Density as threshold and resource: Urban life and futures in Dar-es-Salaam
  McFarlane, C., Kombe, W., Muheirwe, F., & Nuhu, S. (in press). Density as threshold and resource: Urban life and futures in Dar-es-Salaam. Annals of the Association of American Geographers,
• THE DENSITY DIALECTIC: Between Hard and Gentle Densification in London
  Habermehl, V., & McFarlane, C. (online). THE DENSITY DIALECTIC: Between Hard and Gentle Densification in London. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2427.13319
• Density and precarious housing: Overcrowding, sensorial urbanism, and intervention in Hong Kong
  Chen, H.-Y., & Mcfarlane, C. (2025). Density and precarious housing: Overcrowding, sensorial urbanism, and intervention in Hong Kong. Housing Studies, 40(1), 27-45. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673037.2023.2280033
• Urban geography I: Conceptualisation with and beyond the global-local dialectic
  McFarlane, C. (2025). Urban geography I: Conceptualisation with and beyond the global-local dialectic. Progress in Human Geography, 49(1), 99-108. https://doi.org/10.1177/03091325241295294
• In Desperate Need: Public Sanitation in Contemporary London
  Habermehl, V., & McFarlane, C. (2025). In Desperate Need: Public Sanitation in Contemporary London. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 57(1), 193-214. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.13108
• Changing climate, changing geographies?
  Bulkeley, H., & McFarlane, C. (2024). Changing climate, changing geographies?. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 49(4), Article e12718. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12718
• “There, seated upon the toilet, apparently in the midst of defecation, was the president of the United States” : Toilets and Elite Politics in the USA and UK
  Nieuwenhuis, M., & Mcfarlane, C. (2024). “There, seated upon the toilet, apparently in the midst of defecation, was the president of the United States” : Toilets and Elite Politics in the USA and UK. Political Geography, 115, Article 103228. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.polgeo.2024.103228
• Density and pandemic urbanism: Exposure and networked density in Manila and Taipei
  Chen, H.-Y., McFarlane, C., & Tripathy, P. (2024). Density and pandemic urbanism: Exposure and networked density in Manila and Taipei. Urban Studies, 61(8), 1526-1544. https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980231211011
• Way-finding agendas through Transactions
  Esson, J., Breines, M., Brickell, K., Hope, J., Yee Koh, S., Lawrence, A. M., Mcfarlane, C., McLean, J., & Sparke, M. (2024). Way-finding agendas through Transactions. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 49(1), Article e12651. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12651
• Problematising density: COVID-19, the crowd, and urban life
  Joiner, A., McFarlane, C., Rella, L., & Uriarte-Ruiz, M. (2024). Problematising density: COVID-19, the crowd, and urban life. Social and Cultural Geography, 25(2), 181-198. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649365.2022.2143879
• Density as a politics of value: regulation, speculation, and popular urbanism
  Habermehl, V., & McFarlane, C. (2023). Density as a politics of value: regulation, speculation, and popular urbanism. Progress in Human Geography, 47(5), 664-679. https://doi.org/10.1177/03091325231189824
• Post-Pandemic Cities: An Urban Lexicon of Accelerations/Decelerations
  Guma, P., Hodson, M., Lockhart, A., Marvin, S., McFarlane, C., McGuirk, P., McMeekin, A., Ortiz, C., Simone, A., & Wiig, A. (2023). Post-Pandemic Cities: An Urban Lexicon of Accelerations/Decelerations. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 48(3), 452-473. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12607
• Repopulating density: Covid-19 and the politics of urban value
  McFarlane, C. (2023). Repopulating density: Covid-19 and the politics of urban value. Urban Studies, 60(9), 1548-1569. https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980211014810
• Sanitation challenges in Dar es salaam: the potential of Simplified Sewerage Systems
  Yap, C., McFarlane, C., Ndezi, T., & Makoba, F. D. (2023). Sanitation challenges in Dar es salaam: the potential of Simplified Sewerage Systems. Environment and Urbanization, 35(1), 12-29. https://doi.org/10.1177/09562478221146722
• Density and the compact city
  McFarlane, C. (2023). Density and the compact city. Dialogues in Human Geography, 13(1), 35-38. https://doi.org/10.1177/20438206221144821
• Care for Transactions
  Bailey, A. J., Breines, M., Emmerson, P., Esson, J., Halvorsen, S., Hope, J. C., Joronen, M., Koh, S. Y., Krishnan, S., Lai, K., McFarlane, C., McLean, J., Reid, L., & Sparke, M. (2023). Care for Transactions. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 48(1), 2-8. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12592
• Interrogating ‘urban social innovation’: relationality and urban change in Berlin
  McFarlane, C., Langley, P., Lewis, S., Painter, J., & Vradis, A. (2023). Interrogating ‘urban social innovation’: relationality and urban change in Berlin. Urban Geography, 44(2), 337-357. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2021.2003586
• Pathways to Urban Equality through the Sustainable Development Goals: Modes of Extreme Poverty, Resilience, and Prosperity
  Lavell, A., McFarlane, C., Moore, H. L., Woodcraft, S., & Yap, C. (2023). Pathways to Urban Equality through the Sustainable Development Goals: Modes of Extreme Poverty, Resilience, and Prosperity. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development, 15(1), 215-229. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463138.2023.2226099
• Urban health challenges: Lessons from COVID-19 responses
  Ruszczyk, H. A., Castán Broto, V., & McFarlane, C. (2022). Urban health challenges: Lessons from COVID-19 responses. Geoforum, 131, 105-115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2022.03.003
• The Crowd and Citylife: Materiality, Negotiation, and Inclusivity at Tokyo’s Train Stations
  Chowdhury, R., & McFarlane, C. (2022). The Crowd and Citylife: Materiality, Negotiation, and Inclusivity at Tokyo’s Train Stations. Urban Studies, 59(7), 1353-1371
• Perceptions of atmosphere: air, waste, and narratives of life and work in Mumbai
  Tripathy, P., & McFarlane, C. (2022). Perceptions of atmosphere: air, waste, and narratives of life and work in Mumbai. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 40(4), 664-682. https://doi.org/10.1177/02637758221110574
• Crowdfunding cities: Social entrepreneurship, speculation and solidarity in Berlin
  Langley, P., Lewis, S., McFarlane, C., Painter, J., & Vradis, A. (2020). Crowdfunding cities: Social entrepreneurship, speculation and solidarity in Berlin. Geoforum, 115, 11-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2020.06.014
• Understanding and Researching Urban Extreme Poverty: A Conceptual-Methodological Approach
  Yap, C., & McFarlane, C. (2020). Understanding and Researching Urban Extreme Poverty: A Conceptual-Methodological Approach. Environment and Urbanization, 32(1), 254-274. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247819890829
• Introduction: rethinking urban density
  Chen, H.-Y., Chowdhury, R., McFarlane, C., & Tripathy, P. (2020). Introduction: rethinking urban density. Urban Geography, 41(10), 1241-1246. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2020.1854531
• De/re-densification: a relational geography of urban density
  McFarlane, C. (2020). De/re-densification: a relational geography of urban density. City: analysis of urban trends, culture, theory, policy, action, 24(1-2), 314-324. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2020.1739911
• The force of density: political crowding and the city
  McFarlane, C. (2020). The force of density: political crowding and the city. Urban Geography, 41(10), 1310-1317. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2020.1837527
• Relational Housing Across the North-South Divide: Learning Between Albania, Uganda, and the UK
  Heslop, J., McFarlane, C., & Ormerod, E. (2020). Relational Housing Across the North-South Divide: Learning Between Albania, Uganda, and the UK. Housing Studies, 35(9), 1607-1627. https://doi.org/10.1080/02673037.2020.1722801
• The Urbanization of the Sanitation Crisis: Placing Waste in the City
  McFarlane, C. (2019). The Urbanization of the Sanitation Crisis: Placing Waste in the City. Development and Change, 50(5), 1239-1262. https://doi.org/10.1111/dech.12533
• Fragment Urbanism: Politics on the Margins of the City
  McFarlane, C. (2018). Fragment Urbanism: Politics on the Margins of the City. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 36(6), 1007-1025. https://doi.org/10.1177/0263775818777496
• Enhancing urban autonomy: towards a new political project for cities
  Bulkeley, H., Luque-Ayala, A., McFarlane, C., & MacLeod, G. (2018). Enhancing urban autonomy: towards a new political project for cities. Urban Studies, 55(4), 702-719. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098016663836
• Cities within Cities: Intra-Urban Comparison of Infrastructure in Mumbai, Delhi and Cape Town
  McFarlane, C., Silver, J., & Truelove, Y. (2017). Cities within Cities: Intra-Urban Comparison of Infrastructure in Mumbai, Delhi and Cape Town. Urban Geography, 38(9), 1393-1417. https://doi.org/10.1080/02723638.2016.1243386
• On alternative smart cities: from a technology-intensive to a knowledge-intensive smart urbanism
  McFarlane, C., & Söderström, O. (2017). On alternative smart cities: from a technology-intensive to a knowledge-intensive smart urbanism. City: analysis of urban trends, culture, theory, policy, action, 21(3-4), 312-328. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2017.1327166
• Navigating the city: dialectics of everyday urbanism
  McFarlane, C., & Silver, J. (2017). Navigating the city: dialectics of everyday urbanism. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 42(3), 458-471. https://doi.org/10.1111/tran.12175
• The Poolitical City: “Seeing Sanitation” and Making the Urban Political in Cape Town
  McFarlane, C., & Silver, J. (2017). The Poolitical City: “Seeing Sanitation” and Making the Urban Political in Cape Town. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 49(1), 125-148. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.12264
• Life at the urban margins: sanitation infra-making and the potential of experimental comparison
  Lancione, M., & McFarlane, C. (2016). Life at the urban margins: sanitation infra-making and the potential of experimental comparison. Environment and Planning A, 48(12), 2402-2421. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518x16659772
• The Geographies of Urban Density: Topology, Politics and the City
  McFarlane, C. (2016). The Geographies of Urban Density: Topology, Politics and the City. Progress in Human Geography, 40(5), 629-648. https://doi.org/10.1177/0309132515608694
• Sites of entitlement : claim, negotiation and struggle in Mumbai
  McFarlane, C., & Desai, R. (2015). Sites of entitlement : claim, negotiation and struggle in Mumbai. Environment and Urbanization, 27(2), 441-454. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247815583635
• The politics of open defecation: informality, body, and infrastructure in Mumbai
  Desai, R., McFarlane, C., & Graham, S. (2015). The politics of open defecation: informality, body, and infrastructure in Mumbai. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 47(1), 98-120. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.12117
• Introduction: Grammars of Urban Injustice
  MacLeod, D., & McFarlane, C. (2014). Introduction: Grammars of Urban Injustice. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 46(4), 857-873. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.12085
• 'Factors affecting slum sanitation projects in Dhaka City: learning from the dynamics of social-technological-governance systems'.
  Mizanur, M., Atkins, P., & McFarlane, C. (2014). 'Factors affecting slum sanitation projects in Dhaka City: learning from the dynamics of social-technological-governance systems'. Journal of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Development, 4(3), 346-358. https://doi.org/10.2166/washdev.2014.081
• Informal Urban Sanitation: Everyday Life, Poverty and Comparison
  McFarlane, C., Desai, R., & Graham, S. (2014). Informal Urban Sanitation: Everyday Life, Poverty and Comparison. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 104(5), 989-1011. https://doi.org/10.1080/00045608.2014.923718
• Water wars in Mumbai.
  Graham, S., McFarlane, C., & Desai, R. (2013). Water wars in Mumbai. Public Culture, 25(1_69), 115-141. https://doi.org/10.1215/08992363-1890486
• From sanitation inequality to malevolent urbanism: the normalisation of suffering in Mumbai.
  McFarlane, C. (2013). From sanitation inequality to malevolent urbanism: the normalisation of suffering in Mumbai. Geoforum, 43(6), 1287-1290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2012.08.005
• Rethinking enclosure: space, subjectivity, and the commons.
  Jeffrey, A., McFarlane, C., & Vasudevan, A. (2012). Rethinking enclosure: space, subjectivity, and the commons. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 44(4), 1247-1267. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8330.2011.00954.x
• The entrepreneurial slum: civil society, mobility, and the co-production of urban development.
  McFarlane, C. (2012). The entrepreneurial slum: civil society, mobility, and the co-production of urban development. Urban Studies, 49(13), 2926-2947
• On assemblages and geography.
  Anderson, B., Kearnes, M., McFarlane, C., & Swanton, D. (2012). On assemblages and geography. Dialogues in Human Geography, 2(2), 171-189
• Rethinking informality: politics, crisis and the city.
  McFarlane, C. (2012). Rethinking informality: politics, crisis and the city. Planning Theory & Practice, 13(1), 89-108. https://doi.org/10.1080/14649357.2012.649951
• The city as a machine for learning
  McFarlane, C. (2011). The city as a machine for learning. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 36(3), 360-376. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-5661.2011.00430.x
• Assemblage and critical urbanism.
  McFarlane, C. (2011). Assemblage and critical urbanism. City: analysis of urban trends, culture, theory, policy, action, 15(2), 204-224. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2011.595111
• Encountering, describing and transforming urbanism: concluding reflections on assemblage and urban criticality.
  McFarlane, C. (2011). Encountering, describing and transforming urbanism: concluding reflections on assemblage and urban criticality. City: analysis of urban trends, culture, theory, policy, action, 15(6), 731-739
• The city as assemblage: dwelling and urban space.
  McFarlane, C. (2011). The city as assemblage: dwelling and urban space. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 29(4), 649-671. https://doi.org/10.1068/d4710
• On context: assemblage, political economy and structure.
  McFarlane, C. (2011). On context: assemblage, political economy and structure. City: analysis of urban trends, culture, theory, policy, action, 15(3-4), 375-388. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2011.632901
• The Comparative City: Knowledge, Learning, Urbanism
  McFarlane, C. (2010). The Comparative City: Knowledge, Learning, Urbanism. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 34(4), 725-742. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2427.2010.00917.x
• The limits of responsibility: a postcolonial politics of academic knowledge production
  Jazeel, T., & McFarlane, C. (2010). The limits of responsibility: a postcolonial politics of academic knowledge production. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 35(1), 109-124. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-5661.2009.00367.x
• Translocal assemblages: space, power and social movements
  McFarlane, C. (2009). Translocal assemblages: space, power and social movements. Geoforum, 40(4), 561-567. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2009.05.003
• Guest Editors Introduction: Debating Capital, Spectacle and Modernity
  Jeffrey, A., McFarlane, C., & Vasudevan, A. (2008). Guest Editors Introduction: Debating Capital, Spectacle and Modernity. Public Culture, 20(3), 531-538. https://doi.org/10.1215/08992363-2008-011
• Spaces of Enclosure.
  Vasudevan, A., McFarlane, C., & Jeffrey, A. (2008). Spaces of Enclosure. Geoforum, 39(5), 1641-1646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2008.03.001
• Governing the contaminated city: infrastructure and sanitation in colonial and postcolonial Bombay
  McFarlane, C. (2008). Governing the contaminated city: infrastructure and sanitation in colonial and postcolonial Bombay. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 32(2), 415-435. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2427.2008.00793.x
• Urban Shadows: Materiality, the 'Southern city', and Urban Theory
  McFarlane, C. (2008). Urban Shadows: Materiality, the 'Southern city', and Urban Theory. Geography Compass, 2(2), 340-358. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-8198.2007.00073.x
• Sanitation in Mumbai's informal settlements: state, 'slum' and infrastructure
  McFarlane, C. (2008). Sanitation in Mumbai's informal settlements: state, 'slum' and infrastructure. Environment and Planning A, 40(1), 88-107. https://doi.org/10.1068/a39221
• Postcolonial Bombay: decline of a cosmopolitan city?
  McFarlane, C. (2008). Postcolonial Bombay: decline of a cosmopolitan city?. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 26(3), 480-499. https://doi.org/10.1068/dcos6
• Responsible Learning: Cultures of Knowledge Production and the North-South Divide.
  Jazeel, T., & McFarlane, C. (2007). Responsible Learning: Cultures of Knowledge Production and the North-South Divide. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 39(5), 781-789. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8330.2007.00559.x
• Knowledge, learning and development: a post-rationalist approach
  McFarlane, C. (2006). Knowledge, learning and development: a post-rationalist approach. Progress in Development Studies, 6(4), 287-305. https://doi.org/10.1191/1464993406ps144oa
• Transnational development networks: bringing development and postcolonial approaches into dialogue
  McFarlane, C. (2006). Transnational development networks: bringing development and postcolonial approaches into dialogue. The Geographical Journal, 172(1), 35-49. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4959.2006.00178.x
• Crossing Borders: development, learning and the North-South divide
  McFarlane, C. (2006). Crossing Borders: development, learning and the North-South divide. Third World Quarterly, 27(8), 1413-1437. https://doi.org/10.1080/01436590601027271
• Geographical Imaginations and spaces of political engagement: Examples from the Indian Alliance
  McFarlane, C. (2004). Geographical Imaginations and spaces of political engagement: Examples from the Indian Alliance. Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography, 36(5), 890-916. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8330.2004.00460.x