Mapping by Gihan Karunaratne

Mapping by Gihan Karunaratne

Mapping has evolved beyond navigation into a method for interpreting spatial, ephemeral, and sociopolitical dimensions of contemporary life. This volume explores how cartographic practices are being reimagined across disciplines to understand and reconfigure urban space.

The chapters examine mapping as both representational and generative, spanning participatory mapping in informal settlements, film-based documentation of marginalised geographies, embodied cartographies, and data-driven analysis. Organised into five parts, “Representation,” “Critical Cartographies,” “Mapping Belonging,” “Performative Cartographies,” and “Data Mapping”, the volume highlights methodological and layered dimensions of contemporary mapping. By interrogating traditional cartography, the book emphasises maps’ role in constructing social realities and navigating contested urban terrains. Contributors demonstrate mapping as an engagement practice that reveals hidden geographies, amplifies marginal voices, and reimagines spaces.

This volume challenges readers to reconsider mapping as an interdisciplinary practice and mode of inquiry that can transform our understanding of complex environments and social dynamics. It will be of interest to researchers and students of urban design, architecture, planning, human geography, politics and sociology.

Gihan Karunaratne is an architect and academic whose research engages critically with urban transformation, spatial justice, and informal urbanisms, particularly in the Global South. His work explores the intersection of urban change and the lived experiences of marginalised communities, emphasising the socio-spatial dynamics of informality and resilience. Karunaratne foregrounds often-overlooked dimensions of urban life, offering insights into the structural inequalities that shape contemporary cities. His publications with Routledge, including Informal Settlement of the Global South, Resilient Urbanism, and Displaced Urbanism, contribute significantly to scholarly discourse on architecture, urban design, and the complexities of precarity in rapidly evolving urban contexts.