Mapping narratives of urban resilience in the global south

In the context of global environmental change, much hope is placed in the ability of resilience thinking to help address environment-related risks and numerous initiatives aim at incorporating resilience into urban planning practices. The purpose of this paper is to open up a conversation on urban resilience by unpacking how diverse science methods contribute to the production of different narratives of urban resilience and mobilize different experts and forms of evidence. A number of scholars have cautioned against uncritical approaches to resilience and asked what resilience means and for whom, also pointing out the normative dimension of the concept. Building on this emerging scholarship, we use insights from science and technology studies (STS) and critical social sciences to look at the knowledge infrastructures and networks of actors involved in the development of resilience strategies. Drawing on fieldwork in Manila, Nairobi, and Cape Town, we map different narratives of urban resilience, paying particular attention to the ways in which science serves to legitimate or alienate particular perspectives on what should be done. Whereas urban resilience is often portrayed as consensual, we show that a range of narratives, with diverse material implications, exist at the city level. After discussing the multiple roles that science methods have for resilience planning, we reflect on policy implications and outline future research directions.