City profile: Nicosia

Nicosia is a city best known as the last divided capital in the world. Indeed, since 1974, it has been partitioned by an UN-controlled buffer zone that separates the Republic of Cyprus (RoC) and the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Yet, despite this harsh division imposed by the ongoing conflict, local agents of cooperation and bridge building have challenged this partition since its onset by fostering material, functional, and sociopolitical connections on both sides of the divide. This profile presents a contemporary review of the city's current affairs through the prism of everyday urban geopolitics and depoliticization. It emphasizes the geopolitical and urban transitions since 1974 and the ongoing efforts to reconnect its fractured urban realm in five main areas: sewage system, urban planning, crossing points, energy, and civil society.