Nyasha Harper-Michon

Land supply is consistently identified as the primary structural bottleneck for housing delivery, especially in cities where demand, affordability pressures, and planning constraints converge. The session will examine the tools cities use to activate land for housing, addressing how land can be identified, planned, governed, and mobilised through public action, regulatory frameworks, and strategic coordination. It will also consider the role of public land, zoning, land value capture, and inter-institutional cooperation in creating housing opportunities that support affordability, urban quality, social value, and long-term public interest.

The majority of the homes that will exist in most cities in 2050 have already been built. Rehabilitating them —improving energy performance, accessibility, structural safety, and housing quality— is one of the most pressing and complex challenges of urban housing policy. At the same time, ageing housing stock is both a social challenge and a climate opportunity, especially when inefficient or inaccessible buildings are occupied by lower-income or elderly households with limited capacity to invest in improvements. The session will address how cities can scale renovation and retrofit through coordinated action between governments, building owners, residents, finance institutions, and the construction sector, ensuring that upgrades improve affordability, quality of life, and neighbourhood resilience.