Written specifically as a teaching text and authored by a team of leading academics in the field, this is the first book to bring together the key issues of rapid urbanisation with approaches to planning and housing. The book outlines and explains core concepts from 'informal settlements' to 'sustainability', focusing on the rapid urbanisation of developing countries with case studies from Latin America, Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. The impact of rapid urbanisation and associated globalisation on land land-use and housing is described and analyzed with reference to the particular issues of poverty, health and the environment of these areas. An accessible yet rigorous introduction to the subject, this book links theory with practical application and includes an annotated bibliography as a useful study tool.