The final instalment of the City-to-City learning webinar series took place on 29 January, bringing together cities to exchange knowledge and experiences for more sustainable urban development. The series aimed to strengthen networks where communities, practitioners, and researchers can collaborate, learn from one another, and drive meaningful change.
The discussion centred on three key areas of innovation for scaling up grassroots initiatives: governance, finance, and networks and partnerships. These elements are essential for ensuring that cities remain responsive to their communities and develop sustainably with and for their residents. Speakers Rafael Sotomayor, Theresa Carampatana, Joseph Kimani and Mino Ramaroson shared insights from their experiences in scaling grassroots initiatives across diverse contexts. Additionally, we were joined by George Gachie of UN-Habitat, Esmeralde Marsman and Brenda van Breemen-Olij from the Municipality of Rotterdam and Jan Fransen, Anthony Boanada-Fuchs, and Elena Marie Enseñado from IHS, who contributed valuable perspectives to the conversation.
Five types of scaling: Growing and sustaining grassroots innovation
Jan Fransen opened the discussion by outlining five types of scaling, establishing a shared understanding of the approach. He emphasised that urban development must prioritise empowering grassroots communities, particularly in today’s political climate, where global funding and international aid are in decline.
- Scaling In: Enhancing community capacity.
- Scaling Down: Securing policy support for local initiatives.
- Scaling Out: Replicating successful projects like the Mukuru Special Planning Area and river regeneration networks.
- Scaling Up: Driving policy and governance reforms.
- Scaling Deep: Achieving long-term, transformative system change.
Scaling community innovations through effective governance in Peru
Effective governance is key to scaling community innovations. A great example is TECHO, an organisation that operates at both the neighbourhood level and across an entire continent. By scaling in and out, TECHO addresses housing challenges in 19 Latin American countries, demonstrating the power of governance in driving impactful change.
Rafael Sotomayor from TECHO Peru shared their community-driven approach to transforming informal settlements across Latin America. With over 20 years of experience, the organisation mobilises an average of 76,000 volunteers. Rafael outlined their successful "identify–diagnose–act—evaluate" framework, which not only addresses immediate housing needs but also fosters community autonomy. He emphasised that grassroots organisations know best when it comes to developments in their communities, that successful scaling is built on trust, and that celebrating small victories is just as important as winning.
"Everything that we do starts in the communities."
- Rafael Sotomayor
Long-term financing and self-sufficiency in the Philippines
Financing grassroots innovation is not only essential for meeting the needs and long-term goals of community groups but also crucial for scaling in and scaling deep. Sustainable funding guarantees the robustness of grassroots innovations, as Theresa Carampatana highlighted through her expertise in community savings and financial self-sufficiency. As part of Homeless People’s Federation Philippines, an organisation with 9,400 members across many municipalities in the Philippines, she explained how blended financial mechanisms - combining community savings with government funding - can be a powerful response to the decline of traditional development funds. Complementing this, the transition from informal savings groups to more formal cooperative movements demonstrates the potential of grassroots-driven financial models to secure the rights and livelihoods of urban poor communities.
"Because we know we can provide everything, but we are not there to provide everything. We want them to be independent, resilient and have autonomy."
- Theresa Carampatana
Levelling-up informal settlements in Nairobi
Building on Theresa's insights, Joseph Kimani highlighted the role of grassroots women and daily savings groups in shaping inclusive urban spaces in Nairobi, a city where informal settlements make up nearly 50% of the urban fabric. Joseph discussed how community-led financial models, including micro-lending and incremental housing strategies, can be scaled up to improve access to basic services like water and sanitation. He also gave an example of how community savings groups leveraged their accounts to get investment from banks for incremental slum upgrading in areas where large banks are normally hesitant to invest.
"There is a lot of effort and innovation from communities that are passed along that requires scaling up."
- Joseph Kimani, SDI Kenya
Communities are also using thorough planning applications to negotiate resources with the county authorities, securing investment from reluctant actors through their own innovations and strong organisation. Joseph concluded his talk by highlighting how the urban poor in Nairobi have successfully utilised finance to benefit their communities. However, he cautioned that as investment from large private interests increases, it is crucial to safeguard the dignity and ingenuity of these communities.
Building networks and partnerships for long-term change
No community group can shape regional governance or manage its finances effectively without strong connections to other communities, local and national governments, and global institutions. Mino Ramaroson from Huairou Commission presented a framework for bridging grassroots innovation with policy, highlighting four pillars: leadership & organising, knowledge development & sharing, networking & alliance building, and advocacy & lobbying. She stressed the need to amplify grassroots women's voices and incorporate gender-sensitive criteria into policy evaluation to ensure lasting impact. Mino further underscored the importance of strong membership bases and long-term partnerships, emphasising that closer collaboration between governments and community organisations is essential for sustaining and scaling innovation.
"That's part of the challenge, getting the seat at the table, keeping the seat, and being heard, because it's not just about [being] window dressing."
- Mino Ramaroson
Plenary insights
After vibrant discussions in breakout rooms, Theresa Carampatana summarised a fundamental challenge: ensuring that grassroots movements - not just as informal players but as recognised drivers of change - secure the necessary policy support and funding. The plenary also touched on using the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to integrate participatory, community-led approaches into formal government policies. As participants debated how to scale up these initiatives, it became clear that breaking down silos and building long-term institutional frameworks intersect with all the types of scaling introduced at the start of the webinar.
In his closing remarks, George Gachie reinforced the speakers' core message: Empowering grassroots organisations through peer learning and local capacity building is essential to tackling the complex challenges facing urban informal settlements. His call for incremental change—driven by innovative financing, community-managed funds, and robust policy instruments—served as a powerful reminder that sustainable urban development begins at the grassroots level.
This blog post was written by Hector Steenbergen-Cockerton, Academic Assistant at IHS.
