PEAK Urban Theory of Change - Influencing policy and practice
The Indian Institute of Human Settlements (IIHS) has developed a Framework for policy and
practice which has influenced an emerging social protection agenda for Rajasthan.
Achieving sustainable cities requires a step change in the capacity of urban actors to anticipate and plan for the challenges and opportunities of the future. PEAK Urban’s vision is that such a step change leads to future policy, practice, and investment decisions which enhance the development of ‘inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable cities’(SDG11).
To contribute towards this outcome, our Theory of Change commits to share research with external stakeholders and engage with decision makers around the implications of research. Influencing the social protection agenda in Rajasthan to support urban informal workers is just one example across the programme of where PEAK research and engagement has helped strengthen the capacity of cities to deal with next generation challenges.
PEAK Urban team leads in India, Shriya Anand and Gautam Bhan, were commissioned by the Chief Minister’s Rajasthan Economic Transformation Advisory Council in 2021 to develop a policy and practice Framework to support informal work and workers in urban Rajasthan. The Framework, Towards a Different Future of Work: A framework for informal work and workers in urban Rajasthan, influenced the state government proposal in March 2022 for a Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme to support informal workers in Rajasthan. The scheme, and further measures to support the informal sector, could significantly improve living standards and quality of life for the six million informal urban workers across the State, and transform the informal economy contribution to economic and social development
“IIHS has carried out an incredible study and developed a holistic pathway to manage urban informality in Rajasthan. Their work has brought out not only a template for the State but a model for the entire country. As the policy frame (in India) is beginning to shift towards addressing ‘quality of life’, the IIHS framework on urban informality for Rajasthan makes for an unparalleled and much needed study that all policy planners across the country must give adequate heed to.”
Abhishek Kumar, INDICC, state government partner responsible for coordinating all the CMETAC studies
The PEAK Urban programme uses a framework with four inter-related components to guide its work.
- The sciences of Prediction are employed to understand how cities evolve using data from often unconventional sources.
- Emergence captures the essence of the outcome from the confluence of dynamics, peoples, interests and tools that characterise cities, which lead to change.
- Adoption signals to the choices made by states, citizens and companies, given the specificities of their places, their resources and the interplay of urban dynamics, resulting in changing local power and influencing dynamics.
- Finally, the Knowledge component accounts for the way in which knowledge is exchanged or shared and how it shapes the future of the city.