What happens when we plug electric vehicles into cities that were never built for them? Urban designer Zohra Mutabanna joins us to unpack the real design challenges of India’s mobility future...from shared transport to the Avoid-Shift-Improve model, and how our cities can evolve into living, breathing ecosystems instead of chaotic grids.
Designing Cities for People, Not Just Cars: Rethinking Urban Mobility with Zohra MUTABANNA
What happens when we plug electric vehicles into cities that were never built for them? Urban designer Zohra Mutabanna joins us to unpack the real design challenges of India’s mobility future...from shared transport to the Avoid-Shift-Improve model, and how our cities can evolve into living, breathing ecosystems instead of chaotic grids.
Welcome to the Energising India Podcast. On this program, we engage with the key protagonists shaping the future of energy, mobility, and sustainability within India and globally. I’m your host, Ravin MIRCHANDAN, and today we step into the world of cities, the spaces that hold our daily lives together yet often crack under the weight of growth, congestion, and unsustainable planning. Today, we speak with Zohra MUTABANNA —an architect, urban designer, and thought leader who believes that cities must be designed as ecosystems, not afterthoughts. She works with the intersection of design, policy, and sustainability, asking bold questions about whether India’s cities are truly ready for electric mobility or whether we risk building EVs into an already broken urban fabric. Zohra brings years of experience reimagining the built environment through resilience, inclusivity, and innovation. With her, we’ll explore the Avoid-Shift and improve framework,the realities of urban transport and shared mobility, and design choices that will determine whether our urban future is chaotic or truly sustainable.