In the sprawling urban landscapes of the twenty-first century, the stark contrast between state-of-the-art infrastructure and the underdeveloped networks within informal settlements lays bare a critical inequity that shapes modern cities. This discrepancy not only perpetuates social and economic divides but also impacts millions of residents who inhabit the margins of metropolitan centers worldwide. A new perspective, emerging from a transdisciplinary coalition of researchers, engineers, urban planners, and social scientists, emphasizes the urgent need to reframe how data is utilized to address infrastructural inequities in low-income urban environments. Their work, recently presented in Nature Cities, urges a paradigm shift towards data-rich, actionable, and ethically grounded research that meaningfully involves the affected communities at every stage.
The challenge at hand lies not solely in the lack of infrastructure but in the fragmentation of data and the compartmentalization of methodologies that currently stand as barriers to effective intervention. Conventional research often operates within silos – with engineers focusing on technical provision, urban planners emphasizing policy frameworks, and social scientists analyzing community dynamics – rarely crossing the disciplinary divides necessary for integrated solutions. Such methodological insularity leads to partial insights that risk overlooking the nuanced realities of informal settlements, thereby weakening the potential for coordinated, context-sensitive action.
Advancements in remote sensing technologies, satellite imaging, and data analytics have revolutionized the ability to observe urban growth and infrastructural deficits at unprecedented scales and resolutions. However, the deployment of these technologies frequently occurs without meaningful engagement with the residents of informal settlements. The emerging research agenda critiques this detachment, arguing that seeing a settlement from afar without understanding its lived realities results in superficial assessments that fail to inform sustainable improvements. Remote data, while invaluable, must be coupled with ground-truthing processes that prioritize community narratives and indigenous knowledge systems.
A core aspect of this agenda revolves around integrating diverse epistemological traditions — blending quantitative data streams with qualitative insights garnered through participatory methods. This fusion aims to overcome the limitations posed by fragmented datasets and to develop comprehensive knowledge frameworks that capture both infrastructural parameters and social dimensions. This interdisciplinary approach promises to deliver actionable intelligence that respects the complexities inherent in informal urban landscapes and guides interventions attuned to local contexts.
Context specificity emerges as a thematic imperative. Informal settlements vary widely in their physical layouts, governance structures, cultural norms, and vulnerability profiles. Therefore, a one-size-fits-all model for infrastructure development is untenable. Research must therefore be tailored to the idiosyncrasies of individual communities, ensuring that technological solutions are adaptable and responsive, rather than prescriptive impositions. This bespoke approach fosters resilience and sustainability by aligning infrastructural upgrades with the priorities and capacities of local actors.
Underlying these technical and methodological considerations is a profound commitment to ethical standards that foreground the rights, dignity, and agency of the affected populations. Historically, infrastructural interventions in informal settlements have often been top-down, marginalizing the voices of residents and exacerbating vulnerabilities. The proposed research framework calls for a participatory ethos, wherein community members are collaborators rather than subjects, shaping research questions, data collection, and interpretation. This democratization of knowledge production aims to remedy power asymmetries and enhance the legitimacy and efficacy of infrastructural solutions.
The ethical dimension also underscores concerns about data privacy, surveillance, and consent, which become particularly acute in informal settings. The proliferation of data-gathering tools raises the risk of unintended harms, including stigmatization or displacement. To mitigate such risks, the agenda advocates for transparent protocols and accountability mechanisms that ensure data is used responsibly, respecting confidentiality and promoting trust between researchers and communities.
From a technical standpoint, bridging data fragmentation involves leveraging integrative platforms capable of harmonizing heterogeneous data types — from geospatial coordinates and sensor outputs to ethnographic records and participatory mapping results. Advances in machine learning, data fusion, and cloud computing offer promising avenues for synthesizing these diverse inputs into coherent, actionable dashboards for decision-makers. Yet, the adoption of such technologies must be accompanied by capacity building within local institutions and grassroots organizations to sustain data-driven governance.
The call for a transdisciplinary research approach also highlights the necessity of cross-sector partnerships. Effective infrastructural improvements demand the coordination of governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, private sector stakeholders, and community-based groups. Establishing collaborative networks fosters resource sharing, aligns strategic goals, and ensures that infrastructural development navigates political, economic, and social complexities inherent in informal urban ecosystems.
Moreover, action-oriented research emphasizes not just theoretical knowledge production but tangible outcomes that translate into policy reform, infrastructure upgrades, and livelihood improvements. Pilot projects and iterative feedback loops between researchers and communities are critical to recalibrate interventions in response to emergent challenges and successes. Such dynamic processes help avoid static, outdated solutions and enable adaptive management attuned to evolving settlement realities.
The integration of ethical, methodological, and pragmatic considerations represents a holistic framework for confronting one of the most pressing urban sustainability challenges of our time. By foregrounding infrastructural equity, the research agenda envisions cities where no community remains invisible or underserved. This vision has far-reaching implications, not only for improving living conditions but also for advancing social justice, public health, and environmental resilience.
In conclusion, the systematic examination of data-rich, action-oriented, and ethical research strategies for infrastructure in informal settlements offers a blueprint for transformative urbanism. It challenges traditional paradigms, embraces complexity, and demands that those historically marginalized become central agents in shaping their futures. The interdisciplinary collaboration spearheading this agenda marks a pivotal step in addressing urban inequities that threaten the social fabric of our fast-urbanizing world.
As urban populations continue to swell, particularly in rapidly developing regions, the urgency to rethink infrastructure research and interventions in informal settlements intensifies. Data-driven approaches must overcome fragmentation to enable comprehensive spatial-temporal analyses while respecting ethical imperatives. When done thoughtfully, this approach harbors the potential to revolutionize how cities grow, ensuring that infrastructure investment is both just and effective.
Looking ahead, the success of this agenda will depend on sustained investment in capacity development, technological innovation, and institutional reform. It also requires a cultural shift within academia and practice to value transdisciplinary collaboration and community-centric research paradigms. If these conditions are met, the resulting insights and interventions may finally begin to close the infrastructure gap that defines so much of urban life in the global south and beyond.
Ultimately, this new research ethos not only advances scientific knowledge but also embodies a moral imperative to reimagine urban futures that are inclusive, sustainable, and equitable. The intersection of data richness, ethical commitment, and practical action delineates a path forward — one that holds promise for millions of informal settlement residents seeking dignity, security, and opportunity within the complex realities of modern cities.
Subject of Research: Infrastructural equity and data-driven, ethical research methodologies in informal urban settlements.
Article Title: An agenda for data-rich, action-oriented, ethical research on infrastructure in informal settlements.
Article References:
Borofsky, Y., Kersey, J., Caprotti, F. et al. An agenda for data-rich, action-oriented, ethical research on infrastructure in informal settlements. Nat Cities 2, 1026–1036 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44284-025-00340-9
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44284-025-00340-9
Keywords: Urban infrastructure, informal settlements, data integration, ethical research, transdisciplinary approaches, participatory methods, infrastructural equity, urban sustainability
