The Urban Frontier

Morning Edition (Yes...I'm an NPR junky. Without TV and with many responsibilities at work, I get all my news either while I'm getting ready in the morning or on my drive too work. DC's paper, the Washington Post, has such a reputation for fair and intelligent reporting. Every year, I think I should make a new years resolution to read the Washington Post. I guess I should start by making new year's resolutions or overcoming my normal resolution...I resolve not to have new years resolutions. Watch...I'll just read the style section, world section and the comics...and anything real estate related.)

Rabbit trail aside, Morning Edition is doing a series on "The Urban Frontier" which I have found fascinating. The reports address socioeconomic and ecological concerns surrounding these epicenters of real estate development.

Today's story was about Khartoum, Sudan.

In brief: Sudan's burgeoning capital city, Khartoum, is a microcosm of the nation. Locals migrate to this desert oasis from every region of the country. It's a cosmopolitan city, like London, and it is Sudan's center for jobs and infrastructure. But Khartoum is also soaking up precious resources that are needed in places like Darfur and in southern and eastern Sudan.

Yesterday's story, about Mumbai, kept me in the car for a few more minutes before I headed into the office:

In brief: Mumbai, or Bombay as many Indians still call it, is India's largest city, one of the world's greatest commercial centers and home to the vast, vibrant Bollywood film industry.
Some of the richest people on the planet live within its boundaries. But so does a multitude of poor. Half of Mumbai's population lives in slums.