In previous years, the Medal has been awarded to New Yorkers whose work advances the spirit of Jane Jacobs in NYC by creating new ways of seeing and understanding cities, challenging traditional assumptions, and creatively using the urban environment to make their city a place of hope and expectation. In 2016, MAS and the Rockefeller Foundation collaborated to expand the award globally. The medal will be officially awarded at a reception in Quito, Ecuador, during the United Nations Habitat IIIConference that will take place on October 17th, 2016.

What defines the character of a city is its public space, not its private space.-Dr. Joan Clos, Executive Director, UN Habitat

"It is a great honor to award the Rockefeller Foundation Jane Jacobs' Medal to our first-ever global winners, Dr. Joan Clos and PK Das," said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation. "It is fitting that during the week of Habitat III, the effort spearheaded by Dr. Clos, we honor and recognize his tireless efforts to elevate the global discussion on resilience through smart urban development. And this is the perfect moment to honor Mr. Das, as we look ahead to implementing the New Urban Agenda, his vision for Mumbai and reimagining its citizens' access to open space and improved affordable housing in one of the most densely populated cities on the planet serves as a model for us all."

PK Das is a prolific Mumbai-based architect who takes people and places seriously. He has worked on over 150 diverse projects big and small, from museums to stadiums, offices to residences. He famously spearheaded the renewal of Mumbai’s coastline as chairperson of the Mumbai Waterfronts Centre, which used a participatory planning process to create a transformative public space in a city that offers only a quarter acre of public space per thousand people. Das has also collaborated with activists and journalists to bring democratic planning and design to residents in the slums of suburban Goregaon outside Mumbai, providing a model that could be an inspiration for redevelopment around the city. He has also campaigned for reform in the city’s real estate-driven planning system more generally, and after years of effort, Mumbai’s citywide plan finally includes citizen participation policies.

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