As part of the Pedestrian Space ‘Global URBAN HEAT Media Lab’ and network in development, we are recording our conversations with incoming collaborators around the world, as well as students pursuing academic internships related to the project.
As part of that, we recently met Prishtina-based Vlera, whose work focuses on how urban spaces influence everyday life, safety, and belonging, especially for women and marginalized communities.
About joining the Global URBAN HEAT Media Lab, she reflects that she keeps thinking about how she could approach this topic, and keeps coming back to women’s everyday experiences of the city.
Vlera notes: “I think it’s interesting to look at how women experience extreme heat, especially when so much of their daily lives involves moving through public spaces, running errands, or caring for others. When it’s too hot to comfortably walk, wait for a bus, or spend time outside, these things don’t simply stop. And I wonder how often we consider this when we talk about urban heat and the way our cities are designed. I’d be interested in exploring this through the everyday realities of cities in Kosovo, looking at the relationship between women, care work, and public space, and how something as ordinary as finding a shaded place to sit can tell us a lot about whose needs our cities take into account.”
View more about Vlera’s writing and communication at Pedestrian Space at: https://pedestrianspace.org/tag/vlera-zymeri/
Learn more about the Global URBAN HEAT Media Lab below: