Who Keeps Our Cities Running? Cities for ALL | | Podcast

Work, Care, and Survival in the City | Invisible Labour and Urban Livelihoods Who keeps our cities running, and why are their struggles so often overlooked? From street cleaners and chai sellers to domestic workers, waste pickers, home-based workers, and daily-wage labourers, countless people sustain our cities every day. Yet many work without secure incomes, social protection, safe working conditions, or recognition. In this episode of Shehr Sub Kay Liye | Cities for ALL, we explore the realities of urban livelihoods with Asad Mehmood, labour rights activist, trade union leader, and General Secretary of the Pakistan Workers Federation. The conversation examines the often-invisible role of informal workers, the unequal burden of unpaid care work on women, the challenges of securing labour rights, and the growing impact of heatwaves, floods, and economic pressures on vulnerable communities. It also asks an important question: can our cities become climate-resilient and more inclusive without protecting the people whose work keeps them alive? From recognising informal labour to strengthening workers’ rights and creating fairer urban policies, this episode explores what it takes to build cities where every livelihood matters and everyone can live and work with dignity. Because a city’s true wealth lies not just in its roads and buildings, but in the well-being of the people who make it function. Shehr Sub Kay Liye | Cities for ALL is a podcast about building cities rooted in Inclusion, Equity, Justice, and Urban Transformation, where every person is seen, valued, and included. A podcast by Jawad Sharif Films, in collaboration with Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), Islamabad. #CitiesForAll #ShehrSubKayLiye #UrbanLivelihoods #InformalWorkers #LabourRights #InclusiveCities #ClimateJustice #UrbanTransformation #Pakistan Connect with Jawad:   / jawadshariffilms   Jawad Sharif Films aims to educate, entertain and make a significant social impact with our films. From a narrative point of view, we dedicate our work to contemporary and demanding topics. These include current social challenges in demography, the environment and the culture. 🔔 Subscribe for intriguing human stories from Pakistan.    / @jawadshariffilms   For more visit our website: https://www.jawadshariffilms.com/