This book documents the methodology and findings from an Architecture Sans

Frontières (UK) action research workshop, Change by Design, undertaken in

Nairobi, Kenya, which explored the opportunities and limitations of community-led

participatory design which directly engages slum dwellers in planning slum upgrading

projects.



Through concurrent investigations at the ‘macro’ institutional scale, the ‘meso’

neighbourhood scale, and the ‘micro’ dwelling scale, the findings highlight that

undertaking participatory design at these three scales is a proactive way to facilitate

negotiations, highlight diversity and reach consensus.



Central to the innovative approach is a focus on the degree to which it can not only

build an improved physical environment but also recognise the social production

of space; empower slum dwellers to be active agents of change; and build socially,

economically, and environmentally sustainable communities.