Designing for belonging: How Nourhan found a people-first perspective through placemaking

When it comes to rethinking public space, no blueprint can match the wisdom of the people who actually live there. For Nourhan – urban designer and feminist urbanist – The City at Eye Level course wasn’t just professional development. It was a transformation in how she sees cities, power, and participation.

“Cities are living, breathing spaces. And the people who inhabit them? They’re the real experts.”
— Feminist Urbanist & Course Alumna Nourhan

A community for changemakers
“I always say The City at Eye Level is more than just a course – it’s a community,” she reflects. “It brought together like-minded professionals grounded in meaningful dialogue, shared values, and real-world challenges.”

When she joined the training, she brought with her a complex case centered on segregated communities and participation. What made the course so valuable, she says, was the chance to dive into practice-based conversations, not just theory. “We weren’t discussing abstract ideas. We were engaging with real community experiences, learning from them, and offering our own.”

From designing for to designing with
The course sharpened something she already believed: that communities must be centered in urban design. “As designers and architects, we have a responsibility to create with people, not for them,” she says. “Top-down masterplans will never be as powerful as the lived knowledge communities already hold.”

What stood out most was the daily learning rhythm: new tools, new perspectives, new case studies. “It’s a reminder that placemaking is never finished. Cities evolve, and so should we.”

A case that stuck: the kolenkit story
One case that continues to influence her work is Amsterdam’s Kolenkit neighborhood: a diverse, historically underserved area facing challenges like social fragmentation and spatial inequality.

“It was such a powerful example,” she says. “What inspired me was the bottom-up, community-led nature of the project. Residents weren’t just invited to participate, they became co-creators of their environment.”

From that, she saw how regeneration could be human-centered and rooted in care, rather than driven by economic interests or aesthetic agendas. “This story showed me what’s possible when we build trust, share power, and create space for people to shape their own neighborhoods.”

She often references this example when teaching or speaking about feminist urbanism. “To me, it’s a live example of what it means to challenge systems, redistribute spatial power, and reimagine who gets to shape the city.”

Ground floors, street power and feminist design
One major shift in her own practice has been how she approaches ground floors and street interaction. “These thresholds between private and public life hold immense power. They can foster safety and belonging, or reinforce exclusion.”

The course helped her see that street-level design is political. It’s not just about materials or layout, it’s about who feels seen, who feels safe, and who feels welcome. “Through a feminist lens, I now ask questions like: Who owns this space? Who gets to linger here? What messages are we sending through our design choices?”

This has made her more intentional in creating open, transparent, and socially engaging ground-floor spaces, especially for those often left out of urban planning conversations.

Bringing the course into practice
Since taking part in The City at Eye Level, she’s brought its tools and principles into multiple projects, from urban planning strategies to educational work. “The idea that cities must evolve with their communities, it’s something I now embed in everything.”

Still, she acknowledges challenges. “When you’re working with traditional stakeholders or rigid systems, it can be hard to apply these ideas at full strength. But even then, the course gives you a language, a logic, and a community to lean on.”

That’s one of the most lasting takeaways for her: the people. “Having a network of professionals who care about equity, co-creation, and the human experience of place – it’s powerful.”

A vision for future cities
She’s hopeful that more city-makers will embrace the approach. “If we want truly inclusive, resilient, and joyful cities, we need to start at eye level. with the people who live, move, struggle, and thrive in these spaces.”

And for anyone wondering whether The City at Eye Level is worth their time?

“If you care about people, places, and power – it’s not just worth it. It’s essential.”

Apply here for our Berlin edition (2-4 June): 
https://stipo.nl/event/city-at-eye-level-placemaking-training-2025-berlin-edition-english/?lang=en

And here for our London edition (25 – 27 June):
https://stipo.nl/evenement/the-city-at-eye-level-placemaking-training-2025-london/