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Shouldn’t New towns be Joy Towns?

The UK’s planning to build a fresh generation of new towns

We think those towns should be full of character, interest, and joy. Places we’d be proud to live in. Places that lift us up, not drag us down.

Latest news

Six joyful Brazilian buildings

Designer and filmmaker Marina Willer shares her shortlist of joyful Brazilian buildings.

Latest event

The Joy Factor: making cities feel good again

How can mayors and city leaders resist the blandification of our towns and cities?

News & Views

The latest news, opinion, insight and inspiration.

Shortlists

Six joyful Brazilian buildings

Designer and filmmaker Marina Willer shares her pick of joyful Brazilian buildings.

22 April 2026By Marina Willer

Campaign news

The Joy Factor: making cities feel good again

Humanise is hosting an industry event which explores how mayors and city leaders can resist the blandification of our towns and cities  – and why joy is a serious weapon in the fight against soulless design.

15 April 2026By Persephone Quarme

Inspiration

Giving more than taking: generosity and publicness at The BuStop House

The thinking behind the brilliant reimagining of a family home in Cambridgeshire, UK.

01 April 2026By Raveena Bhavsar

Views

Healthier buildings, healthier brains, healthier economies

How can buildings and cities support and boost the ‘brain economy’?

24 February 2026By Abigail Scott Paul

Views

What’s more important: buildings that fulfil our basic needs or nurture our spirit?

A healthy society needs both functional infrastructure and places that nurture our spirit.

11 February 2026By Thomas Heatherwick

Research

Seven studies, one story: why we must build more joyful cities

What we’ve learned this year about how the outsides of buildings affects our health and wellbeing – and why we need more than ever to build for joy.

13 January 2026By Dr Anna Kim

Campaign news

Bell Phillips becomes first architects to join Humanise

Together we’re hoping to amplify the conversation around creating more of the kind of buildings that lift us up, connect us, and which are loved enough to last.

12 December 2025By Persephone Quarme

Views

Designing for people, investing for generations

The Chief Executive of Japanese brand Not A Tokyo sees the simple commercial sense in designing sustainable human buildings.

21 November 2025By Midori Omori

Views

An emotional city, a global conversation: reflections from Seoul

Our Senior Research Lead reflects on a trip to the Seoul Biennale’s Emotional City conference in September.

06 November 2025By Dr Anna Kim

Long reads

Urban rooms: what they are and why we need them

They’ve proved an effective space for people to come together and create a future for their local area. But we’re still a long way from every town having one.

11 September 2025By Harriet Saddington

Talks & Events