Investigating the Invisible: Children as Place-Makers in Bangladesh’s Urban Polycrisis

Abstract

This study investigates children’s spatial agency across three crisis geographies in Bangladesh hyper-dense informal settlements, climate-eroded peripheries, and Rohingya camps. Addressing the historical underrepresentation of children from Global South urban planning and climate adaptation discourse, this research utilizes a multi-sited qualitative design. Drawing on a six-month study with 36 children and community-based participatory research in three Dhaka settlements, reflexive thematic analysis with three-point triangulation reveals four convergent patterns of spatial intelligence: material innovation, spatial claiming, environmental narration, and cognitive mastery. These patterns, consistent across geographies sharing no physical, cultural, or institutional overlap, constitute what this paper terms vernacular design intelligence (VDI)- embodied spatial knowledge forged through constraint. The academic contribution of this study lies in challenging dominant deficit-based planning models, arguing instead that children actively out-design professionals under severe spatial compression. A four-layer child-informed urban design framework is proposed, with operational proof of concept from three pilot models. The paper concludes with low-cost, scalable policy interventions, including temporal zoning and municipal material redirection designed for resource-constrained Global South municipalities.