The Cities of the Global South Reader adopts a fresh & critical approach to the fi eld of urbanization in the developing world The Reader incorporates both early & emerging debates about the diverse trajectories of urbanization processes in the context of the restructured global alignments in the last three decades Emphasizing the historical legacies of colonialism the Reader recognizes the entanglement of conditions & concepts often understood in binary relations firstthird worlds wealthpoverty developmentunderdevelopment & inclusionexclusion By asking "whose city? whose development?" the Reader rigorously highlights the fractures along lines of class race gender & other socially & spatially constructed hierarchies in global South cities The Reader&s thematic structure where editorial introductions accompany selected texts examines the issues & concerns that urban dwellers planners & policy makers face in the contemporary world These include the urban economy housing basic services infrastructure the role of non-state civil society-based actors planned interventions & contestations the role of diaspora capital the looming problem of adapting to climate change & the increasing spectre of violence in a post 911 transnational world The Cities of the Global South Reader pulls together a diverse set of readings from scholars across the world some of which have been written specially for the volume to provide an essential resource for a broad interdisciplinary readership at undergraduate & postgraduate levels in urban geography urban sociology & urban planning as well as disciplines related to international & development studies Editorial commentaries that introduce the central issues for each theme summarize the state of the field & outline an associated bibliography They will be of particular value for lecturers students & researchers making the Cities of the Global South Reader a key text for those interested in understanding contemporary urbanization processes