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The majority of the world's population is now living in urban areas, and the urban population is growing at a higher rate than the rural population. In developing countries, large scale urbanization continues to support squatting and informal settlements in large cities. While some urban regimes have been able to halt or reverse this process, it is ongoing in most countries. The case studies examined in this book illustrate the extent of the problem and the variety of efforts being made to mitigate it. Slums and informal settlements in most cities suffer from extreme inequality and are deprived of basic services which are essential for human existence. For the urban poor, housing is a basic problem. If sustainable policies with respect to housing can be derived and implemented, the poor in the developing world will experience a significant improvement in their living standards. The book illustrates the profound but varied transformation taking place in the social organization of societies with regard to housing. It reviews myriad case studies from developing societies across continents, and it further compares several societies at once in terms of their strategies and cultural orientations towards providing housing for the poor.