Designing Jaipur’s first fully self-sustaining and regenerative neighborhood

Radical collaboration with the more-than-human

Shaping neighborhoods for planetary and human well-being requires radical collaboration between humans and the natural world. Gehl’s eye-level approach to city-making has always begun with listening to and learning from diverse groups to uncover stories and lessons that inspire design actions.

For Dhun’s masterplan, Gehl facilitated workshops to understand the unique conditions of the bioreserve and how it might foster people-planet coexistence. The masterplan was built on a multi-year nature conservation process, utilizing Indigenous water management techniques to create a bioreserve with high biodiversity, a cooler microclimate, and varied activities around water. It also preserves all existing trees to support a rich ecosystem of birds and insects.

Gehl’s masterplanning approach thoughtfully considered the interdependencies between humans and nature, with reciprocity as a key ingredient for regenerative living. Dhun represents one of Jaipur’s first fully self-sustaining neighborhoods, setting a precedent for future developments where humans and nature can thrive together.