

Returning Is Not the Same as Going Home
Reflections on the World Cities Report 2026, displacement, and the phenomenology of home The recently published World Cities Report 2026: The Global Housing Crisis, Pathways to Action offers a stark assessment of the state of global housing. According to UN-Habitat, as many as 3.4 billion people worldwide now live without secure, safe, or adequate housing. The report describes a world shaped by spiralling housing costs, displacement, informal urbanisation, climate vulnerabili


A Fait Accompli: Architecture, Memory, and the Norwegian Way
Rethinking Memory, Openness, and Public Space in Post-Terror Oslo Frazer Macdonald Hay / Uniform November In the wake of the 2011 attacks, Norway set out to rebuild Oslo’s Government Quarter as both a symbol of resilience and a statement of democratic values. More than a decade later, that reconstruction tells a different story. Despite years of consultation and political rhetoric about openness, the project has hardened into a vast, expensive, and increasingly centralised re


The Theatre of Silence
Rebuilding Mariupol’s Drama Theatre as an Act of Erasure by Frazer Macdonald Hay, Uniform November In March 2022, Russia bombed the Mariupol Drama Theatre, a building clearly labelled with the word “CHILDREN” (“ДЕТИ”) in enormous white letters visible from the sky. Hundreds of civilians were sheltering inside. According to investigations by the Associated Press , at least 600 people were killed. It was one of the deadliest single attacks of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Uk


Upcoming Book Launch at UCL: Reconstruction as Violence in Assad’s Syria
I'm eagerly anticipating the upcoming book launch of Reconstruction as Violence in Assad's Syria , scheduled for June 9, 2025, from 17:00...


Rebuilding After Conflict: A Guide for Decision-Makers in the Middle East and Ukraine
Written (and Image) by Frazer Macdonald Hay ( scroll down for French, Arabic or Russian translations) Introduction As nations emerge from...


















