Electronic Theses and Dissertations (Masters)

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A Symphony of Sakina: Using mosque design to facilitate community development in Mooiplaas
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Jaffer, Raeesah; Janse van Rensburg, Ariane
This research report studies Mooiplaas Informal Settlement in Pretoria, South Africa. The research first discusses the developmental challenges of this marginalised community and then investigates ways in which informal settlements can be developed. It explores the design and application of a Mosque complex, focusing on its potential to facilitate community development. Mooiplaas has a growing Muslim population, and a Mosque is a fundamental requirement to facilitate prayer. The Mosque is further investigated to understand its significance and functionality in community settings throughout history. Previous developmental initiatives undertaken have not reached full potential to holistically address the needs of the Muslim and non-Muslim communities in Mooiplaas. Thus, this research investigates ways the Mooiplaas community can enhance resilience and sustainability by applying the Mosque complex as a fundamental instrument for future development initiatives. The proposed Mosque can facilitate social and economic upliftment within the settlement by providing spiritual development and education and promoting social cohesion.
Acid[c]ity - Undamning the Dam: Wicking of the Harmony Gold Mine Dam Through Algae Exploration
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Le Pere, Justine; Doermann, Kirsten; Daskalakos, Christos
This project discusses the need to help fight against the effects of mining on water, and to help the surrounding environment and community. A large emphasis is placed on the use of algae to treat the water from the Harmony Gold Mines’ tailings dams, and the facility plays host to this natural water treatment method. The facility provides the space for water resource management and water treatment education to take place. The community of Tshepisong Phase 2 lies north of the facility and acts as the activator of the facility. Without the community needing to collect water for use at home, the facility would not have a strong sense of integration into the township. The layout of the facility allows the layers of privacy to help aid the program, and the program allows the facility to be transparent to its visitors and the neighbouring township.
Alternative Tenure Options as a Stepping Stone for Urban Land Reform: The Case of Kwa Mai Mai Muthi Market
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Mnguni, Thobeka; Maina, Miriam M.
This research uses qualitative methods to investigate the case of the Kwa Mai Mai muthi market located in the central business district of Johannesburg where over the decades informal traders have converted their trading units into residential homes. This case is used to respond to the research question, ‘To what extent is taking administrative action to improve land tenure by offering communities rights to occupy urban land feasible and necessary for advancing the urban land reform agenda?.’ The research acknowledges that popular approaches to improving tenure by converting insecure tenure rights to statutory ownership through the Deeds office has had limited success and resulted in efficiencies due to the high costs and the resources intensive nature of this approach. Instead, the research recommends a necessary transition to improving tenure in innovative, context-specific ways that work to build on existing settlements through taking low-cost and low LOE administrative action.
An investigation on the impact of landownership dynamics in rural development: A case of Nooitgedacht area in Muldersdrift, Mogale City Local Municipality
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Masonganye, Thoriso Obakeng; Sithagu, Taki
South Africa's history of land ownership is deeply intertwined with the legacy of colonialism and segregation. In the contemporary context, land ownership has emerged as a pivotal catalyst for rural development, aimed at addressing historical injustices and fostering sustainable socio-economic growth. Despite numerous reforms and initiatives introduced since the dawn of democracy, challenges persist, particularly in rural regions like Nooitgedacht in the West of Gauteng. In Nooitgedacht, landlessness, underdevelopment, poverty, and minimal economic activity continue to plague the community. This study delves into the intricate relationship between land ownership dynamics and rural development, with a specific focus on Nooitgedacht within the Mogale City Local Municipality. To comprehensively assess this issue, a multi-faceted research approach was employed, incorporating primary and secondary data collection methods. The research methods encompassed a thorough desktop survey, the distribution of questionnaires to community members, and in-depth interviews with municipal officials and community stakeholders. The desktop survey harnessed municipal valuation data to discern the existing patterns of land ownership in Nooitgedacht, revealing a marked imbalance, with most of the land controlled by private individuals and businesses, while national, provincial, and local governments held relatively merger land ownership within the study area. This skewed ownership pattern underscores the profound challenge of land access in Nooitgedacht. Consequently, the area grapples with persistent land inequalities encompassing issues of access, ownership, distribution, and administration, which further manifest through ongoing threats of land invasions, evictions, limited development, and a dearth of economic activities. Despite the presence of municipal policies aimed at addressing these disparities, implementation remains sporadic, fragmented, and inadequately coordinated within the municipality, resulting in a sluggish delivery of rural development. In conclusion, the study underscores the pivotal role of land ownership in shaping the trajectory of rural development in Nooitgedacht. It is evident that without equitable and well-coordinated land ownership policies and practices, the goal of achieving sustainable rural development in this region remains an elusive aspiration.
An analysis of public-private partnerships in housing in the Zimbabwe National Housing Delivery Programme: a case of Masvingo City
(2014-10-27) Chikomwe, Savory
Based on evidence of the performance of a public-private partnership (PPP) housing arrangement in Masvingo City, Zimbabwe, I argue that PPPs may not thrive in youthful democracies entrenched in informal approaches to project management. The PPP strategy which was meant to deliver about 10 000 housing units in Masvingo City has dismally failed to live to its expectation, save for an ignited spirit of cooperativism. This is in spite of what was dubbed as a potentially promising partnership strategy involving indigenous private developers and contractors. Yet the compulsory acquisition of urban and peri-urban farmland country-wide presented powerful launch pad for a promisingly successful housing delivery that is widely expected to wipe out serious housing deficits. Housing problems were recently further compounded by Operation Murambatsvina in 2005 which ruthlessly demolished all informal housing and left several hundreds of thousands homeless. Following an insightful in-depth interview methodology and several ground-truthing trips to the Victoria Ranch Housing Project site, I argue that Government of Zimbabwe (GOZ) arrangements in terms of legal, administrative and financial aspects were weak to enable successful implementation of a formal PPP strategy. The arrangements advertently or inadvertently promoted privatism instead of the mutually beneficial PPP arrangement. As such, there were no clear regulatory mechanisms and modalities to enable beneficiation of the targeted low-income people and other economically weaker sections of the Masvingo City Community. There are fears that undeserving better-offs could have hijacked the scheme. However, a commendable resilience has emerged through a resurgent self-help housing delivery approach resulting in many self-built houses in what is widely viewed as a “peculiar” parallel development. While it could be too early to meaningfully comment on the long-term performance of the PPP approach, it is clear that justice has not been done to low-income people in Masvingo who remain largely homeless.
Architecture as mnemonic experiencing past, present, and future narratives in a Johannesburg cultural complex
(2024) Segal, Yehuda
Memory is transient, it comes and it goes. It is a passing remembrance of a past time, person or place. Memory is the experience we store in our minds to recall at a future time and date. It is the friends we make on the first day of school, our childhood holidays, or beach sand between our toes. Memory is also stored in books, visuals, art, and the internet. It is the long-gone monarch in a painting, the photographs and videos of historical events that record a past time and people. And so, memory is architecture- or, simply, space. Spatial recall- the ability to remember a space or place, directions from point A to point B, is the reason we find our way when lost. The architecture of memory is related to that of structures, buildings and spaces that serve to record or preserve a past event or person, yet also the landmark that guides us. It is a museum, memorial, triumphal arch and even a religious or cultural space. It is also the old as opposed, or in harmony with, the new. Architecture as mnemonic is relatable to other aspects and devices with mnemonic value. Memory is therefore an important aspect of archi - tecture and the built world. Not only do we remember through spatial interactions, we also experience spaces which lead to us creating new memories.
A bathhouse in Cyrildene - a phenomenological approach to the design of a bathhouse in Johannesburg
(2021) Kow, Alan
In Johannesburg, there is a lack of global bathhouse typologies. They either don’t exist or are in a form which caters to a niche subculture. Bathhouse culture has been around for hundreds of years and many people around the world take advantage of it as a form of communal bonding, relaxation and general hygiene. In addition to this, when done correctly, it has the effect of stripping away of social class and distinction as well as providing a safe and entertaining environment for those within its walls. This study aims to bring my personal experience of an East-Asian bathhouse into Cyrildene, a predominantly Chinese neighbourhood, that is slowly losing its cultural identity. Building on existing data on historic bathhouses from around the world, it asks: How can the concept of phenomenology be used to guide the design of an Asian style bathhouse in order to enhance the Asian/Chinese cultural experience and help in the revitalisation of Derrick street as a distinct cultural hub In Johannesburg? The main methodologies that will be used in this report will be from literature reviews on historical analysis of bathhouses around the world but more specifically in Eastern Asia. One on one interviews with the residents and shop owners living in Cyrildene as well as the owner/s of a spa. Observations based on mapping and photography will also be employed. The last will be the use of auto-ethnographic data from my own experiences. The main hypothesis of the report will be seeing if the bathhouse typology through the use of a variety of different programs that range from bathing to eating to sleeping in addition to the application of architectural phenomenological theories helps make it suitable for Cyrildene and thereby revitalise and strengthen the areas existing cultural identity.
Bridging the Past: Redeveloping parts of Fordsburg to create secure and empowering environments for women
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-03) Dar, Sarah; Szentesi, Anita
The safety of women in public spaces has become an increasingly unsettling issue in South Africa. One of the most severe violations of human rights that still occurs in communities worldwide is gender-based violence, a phenomenon that has a foundation in gender inequity. Gender-based violence affects both men and women, but women and girls comprise most of victims. Public spaces have favored the safety of men, whereas women struggle for their wellbeing in the same space. There is a need for a re-imagined women only space concept, in which women can evolve in, in hopes of creating safer spaces. (UN-Habitat, 2015). The proposal for this thesis is a Skills and Development Centre for women. The Centre will aim to create women run businesses in male dominated spaces with the research focusing on women empowerment through education, and further investigating past architectural theories on women-only design.
Change the GOAL: Promoting sports & community engagement through the integration of FNB Stadium
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Ramsarup, Shreya; Kirkman, Deborah
South Africa has invested many billions of rands to build and renovate stadiums. This investment has some advantages, such as fostering national pride and boosting political and economic agendas. However, the benefit to the ordinary citizen is exaggerated. This is evident at the FNB Stadium, while used for elite sport, majority of the Soweto community do not come to the stadium. To the local community it a symbol of something beyond their lived worlds. Against this context my project explored how the FNB stadium can become a sport and cultural led space that locates local people at the center of its use identity. I explored the design of the stadium precinct as a mixed-use space with a focus on sport and football development, allowing opportunities for more people to better connect and understand what the stadium has to offer. This re-imagining of FNB as a stadium fostering broader community aims helps to break the pattern of the stadium as an alienated icon within this historically disadvantaged community.
Critically exploring the link between privatization and institutional capacity at the local government level in South Africa
(2024) Ralane, Hluma Luvo
This study aims to critically explore the link between privatization and institutional capacity at the local government level in South Africa. The study is presented in a user-friendly manner for a wider readership. The central themes explored by the study are local municipalities and privatization. A discussion of the central themes of this paper evolves in the following way. Firstly, the paper outlines the nature of local government in South Africa dating back from the apartheid epoch to the inception of democracy in 1994. It reflects on the local government sphere which is a collective of local municipalities, analysing the nature and structure of this sphere. In its expedition, it particularly focuses on a Category B municipality from Queenstown Eastern Cape. Surveying the outplay in the link between privatization and the institutional capacity in this municipality through the contracting-out of services, particularly water privatization in that municipality. The reflection on local government is succeeded by the scrutiny of the privatization theoretical framework. The study assesses the root nature of privatization. It investigates its emergence from a global frame of thought, how it has evolved through neoliberalism, and ended up superseding other macro-economic frameworks and being a central policy of governance linked to the institution's capacity. The study further looks at the different frameworks provided by the government to enhance institutional capacity at the local government level, together with the methods and theories that characterize privatization, and the outcomes that underpin it. The scrutiny of the above central themes leads to a broad analysis of case studies from a global realm, regional arena, and local arena. The study utilized both qualitative and quantitative research methods to gather data for the study to complement the former methods the study used an exploratory research design as it was broadly exploring the link between privatization and institutional capacity. It further used semi-structured interviews to substantiate the theoretical findings. Throughout the paper, explicit examples are provided to substantiate all arguments raised.
Cross-border pollination: incubation hub for urban farming in Yeoville
(2024) Kubanza, Nzoli Gloria
Yeoville holds the reputation as an Afro-migrantcentric suburb in Johannesburg (ABED, 2019), with each dispossessed body desiring to keep their cultures alive. This has created social boundaries between South Africans and other African nationalities in the urban landscape. The burning of Yeoville Market is the physical manifestation of growing tension in the community. Gambela (BÉNIT-GBAFFOU, 2019) (known by the neighbourhood) provides migrant women from the diaspora the opportunity to respond to the economic crisis they face in their home country. The enclosed market sphere encourages cultural exchange and interaction by eating, processing, and selling food from home. For migrants living in Yeoville, food is not only a source of nutrients but a tool to transmit culture. Thus, the burning of the market signifies the resistance of the community to integrate. The thesis will follow the Congolese women in the Yeoville market who frequently encounter borders, traveling with various products including cassava. The traders use cassava to transgress the misconceptions of a patriarchal stereotype of an African housewife, simultaneously ensuring household survival. Cassava holds a cultural significance to the West African women as the method of processing cassava requires the knowledge of the native women that have passed down from one generation to another, perfected through time and across borders (Christina Emery, 2021). The importance of the plant not only lies in its mobility but its functional characteristics of promoting harmony, encouraging collaboration, and a medium in which information is transferred (Christina Emery, 2021). In asking the question “how can cassava be used to mend the fragmented community of Yeoville” this thesis will be using cassava as a framework to explore themes of, mobility, boundary, and identity. Re-introducing the market to the community as an agricultural hub. The architectural intervention will re-interpret the market as a space that transmits and preserves culture. The project aims to mediate the fragmented communities of Yeoville using food to educate, generate social spaces, and food works to encourage community involvement.
Desire Lines: Addressing the Pedestrian and their Access to the Jukskei River Through Public Interest Design
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Smuts, Robyn; Felix, Sandra
In this thesis, the propinquity of pockets defined between urban schemes of Dainfern and Diepsloot is explored. As well as the overlap zones of various networks of urban goers. The possibility of developing the prospective benefits of these pockets will be outlined through the principles of public interest design (PIB), placemaking, and adventure playgrounds. This reinforces the ideals of ‘rights to the city’ and creates a feeling of citizenship by focusing on the commonalities of the urban goers. To create a community between otherwise divided groups. The research methodology is site and context-centred, revealing where conflicts may lie, and opportunities sourced. Doing this through the exploration of the materiality and features of the Jukskei River site, and the desire line paths that weave through it. The proposed design develops a productive, shared space that instigates common curiosity and skill development through addressing the propinquity of various urban goers and utilizing the rubble and waste that has accumulated on the site.
Eco-vital[c]ity: Ecological Regeneration of the Robinson Deep Landfill through Microclimate Superstructures and Phytoremediation
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Leong, Keilun; Goncalves, Kevin
Landfills are essential to our society for waste disposal. However, they have many negative impacts due to contaminants that are released, polluting the air and ground as leachate seeps into the soil and nearby water sources, affecting the health of surrounding communities and the environment. This research report aims to re-naturalize and repair the Robinson Deep Landfill, which bears scars of exploitative industrial use, and attempts to rehabilitate the environment while mitigating the effects on the community. This will be achieved through phytoremediation techniques, using Sunflowers grown in Hydroponic farms, housed within greenhouses. The design for these facilities will consist of superstructures, greenhouses, and a waste-to-energy plant (incinerator) within a closed loop system. Additionally, the report seeks to generate economic opportunities that promote tourism, entertainment, and education through a recreational centre which will incorporate Biophilic Design and Parametricism to create a public space that will be beneficial to the community.
Empowered for Employment: A Collaborative Learning and Skills Development Centre in Primrose
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Scremin, Michele; Felix, Sandra
South Africa currently experiences the highest unemployment rate in the world. Due to the inequitable educational policies of Apartheid, large sectors of the population missed out on basic education and remain ill-equipped for the demands of the labour force. A culture of poverty, crime and social instability prevails. The solution lies in building a bridge to cross this gap and improve opportunities for learning and skills development of the youth and older adults. This will empower them for employment and improve their overall socio-conomic prospects. This study investigates the architectural narratives that are relevant to the design of a successful, collaborative adult learning centre that will serve the Makause informal settlement in Primrose. The research is directed through an explorative lens of the sustainability triangle, discussing the social, economic and environmental implications. Literature reviews of the multi-disciplinary theoretical foundations of adult learning give insight into the unique social, intellectual and physical requirements of adult learners while existential needs are influenced by phenomenological approaches. Appropriate designs of learning spaces are subsequently guided by informed decisions. Economic sustainability is reinforced with financial support of corporate stakeholders and the large waterbody on the site provides environmental opportunities that will benefit both the facility and the community it serves.
Exploring the effect of spatial planning in delivering access to socio-economic opportunities to address spatial inequality - The case of the Tswaing Mega Project and the Marikana-Soutpan community
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Malope, Kgomotso Mirriam; Izar, Priscila
South Africa is challenged by persistent spatial inequality inherited from previous regimes, which contributes to various socio-economic challenges and hinders the sustainable development of urban areas. Consequently, poverty tends to be more severe in previously marginalised areas where poor residents, the majority of them being black, still suffer from a lack of proximity to adequate socio-economic opportunities (Harrison & Todes, 2013). Several urban and spatial policies have been adopted and implemented, but spatial fragmentation persists. The Department of Human Settlements proposed adopting Mega Projects to develop large-scale, new housing projects integrated with infrastructure, in greenfield sites which are located in urban peripheries. Mega Projects also aim at attracting private sector investment. However, this strategy has been criticised for disregarding planning ideals of compactness and integration with existing economic centres and job opportunities, and for putting forward plans that lack details (Ballard, 2017; Turok, 2015). Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate how spatial planning and infrastructure investment could be used to promote access to socio-economic opportunities for marginalised people in spatially fragmented urban areas by focusing on the case of the Tswaing Mega-Project in the Marikana-Soutpan community in the periphery of the City of Tshwane. Unlike other Mega Projects designed on vacant land, the Tswaing Mega Project covers an already existing informal area, the Marikana-Soutpan informal settlement. Qualitative research methods informed the research, drawing from three types of primary and secondary data: (1) qualitative interviews, (2) documentation review and (3) participant observation. Research findings describe how the Tswaing Mega Project plan, launched in 2015, experienced delays and was eventually cancelled, with the adoption of the Upgrading of Informal Settlement Programme (UISP) in October 2022. Additionally, the long waiting period for government intervention and the lack of transparency from the government have proven to worsen the state of marginalisation for the Marikana-Soutpan Community. At the completion of this research project, the Marikana-Soutpan community is in for another, possibly long, waiting period as the UISP initiates. Therefore, this research speaks to the analysis that is critical of Mega Projects for offering poorly detailed project plans, lacking transparency, and lacking consideration of the complexities of human settlement development. Based on the findings, it is argued that the now-revoked Tswaing Mega Project has contributed to the further marginalisation of the Marikana-Soutpan community.
Feminized Water Geographies: Harnessing Urban Design Principles as a response to the water needs of women living in the informal settlement known as Gabon, Daveyton
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Mogola, Itumeleng; Mavuso, Nkosilenhle
Feminized water geographies is a concept concerned with the improvement of the livelihoods of women living in urban contexts of water scarcity such as informal settlements (Dixon & Jones, 2006). The complexity of the concept cannot be reduced to a single theoretical thread but is understood and investigated through the understanding that the relationship between women and water is complex and is defined through four theories namely, the Feminization of water which advocates for women’s access to clean and safe water while reducing the laborious tasks that limit their economic, social, and political participation. Secondly, African Ethnographies explores African culture and Black African female identities and the resultant vocabularies and expressions of surviving urban informality, thirdly, urban informality begins to spatialise the water responsibilities of women that occur within contexts of resource deprivation which has an impact on a woman’s urban experience of accessing water. Lastly, the theory of Feminist Geographies strives to improve the livelihoods of women by unpacking the urban, social, cultural, and economic landscape that women have to navigate to survive (Dixon & Jones, 2006). As a result, the need to address the precarious conditions of informal settlements within water-scarce contexts to try to create urban environments that are responsive and sensitised to women’s water needs is important and forms the crux of the research. By harnessing urban design principles including water-sensitive urban design principles that address the spatial implications of water scarcity in contexts of urban informality while being sensitised to women’s needs, the research can begin to explore and answer the possibilities of creating sustainably inclusive spaces.
Foraging for Earth: resurrecting the heritage of ochre through land reparation of an iron ore mine
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2023) O'Maker, Simone; Felix, Sandra
This thesis aims to extract concepts, ideologies and theories viable to the rights of land. To rewrite a set of spatial relations that deeply grapple with the remnants of the Ngwenya mountain, in an iron-ore mine within the Kingdom of Eswatini, as an archaeological, cultural, ecological and geographical site. Foraging for Earth aims to mend its wounds that gives back the earth its dignity. It questions what architecture arises from seeing the land as a living being and to what extent it can form a relationship with a post-mined landscape. The concept of the design is derived from the site’s scar, a palimpsest of narratives rooted to memory, decay, healing and regeneration, and thereby interprets reparative strategies into a living archive that aims to reclaim what the landscape used to be. The program includes an earth reparation facility, a knowledge-sharing centre, an ochre sanctuary, craft studio and a sculpture garden. Constant visual and physical engagement encourages one to be aware of the land’s rich narrative.
Future Proofing Architecture: Intelligent design processes of an AI-Innovation center in Newtown
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Wilson, Liam Robin; Triana-Martinez, Gustavo
In the ever-evolving realm of architecture, tools used by architects and related professionals have transitioned from rudimentary sketches to sophisticated digital simulations. Today, the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) stands to redefine this lineage of tools, offering both challenges and opportunities. This thesis delves into AI’s transformative potential in architectural design processes specifically within a South African context, exploring its influence from conceptualization to the final design stages. Through a systematic methodology, the research herein investigates and compares the conventional architectural design stages, the current state of AI and its practical applications in architecture. I have carefully selected a handful of AI-driven software tools that have been instrumental in forging a generative design process. Central to this exploration, is the design of an AI Innovation Centre for Witwatersrand University in Newtown, Johannesburg. This Centre is not just a building but a manifestation of my core argument: that AI, when understood as a tool in the architect’s evolving toolkit, can profoundly influence design outcomes in a manner that far outreaches human capabilities. This study further importantly addresses the ethical implications of AI in architecture, advocating for a collaborative approach that not only complements human expertise, but that illustrates the pitfalls and certain biases inherent to AI. Through this comprehensive exploration, this thesis underscores the need for architectural spaces to evolve in response to AI-driven operational changes, while ensuring designs remain rooted in human-centric principles.
Heirloom between the tracks— Revealing hybrid landscapes of rest and reflection at Langlaagte Cemetery
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Skudder, Emma Catherine; Hart, Brendan
Situated in a sea of grass alongside the Johannesburg railway lines, lie rows of graves lost in an overgrown landscape. Some marked, some unmarked, all invisible to the passer-by. This landscape is rooted between multi-cultural communities with a heritage dating back to the origins of Johannesburg. Paarlshoop, Langlaagte-North, Mayfair-West and Brixton border its edges, which establishes the core of this research— the site. To understand the intricacies of the site, is to understand the project intent. Where there are graves, there is abandoned heritage, lost memory and forgotten stories. Where there are railway buildings, there is existing community claim to be enriched. Where there are grasses, shrubbery, and treelines there is connection to agricultural pasts. Heirloom between the tracks, bridges the urban lifeways of the site with a heritage-focussed centre weaving together old and new, facilitating the surrounding community and providing a space for memory. With a contextual, history-driven, and postcolonial lens, the beacon of this thesis was using methods of remembrance, acknowledging the site’s unavoidable histories, tying back into the surrounding community through revealing, engaging, and re-inscribing. Spaces of commemoration and recreational landscapes, stitch new narratives onto the site for a multifunctional, small-scale heritage hub. This hub ties together archiving, storytelling and making spaces, with spaces of skills-development and contextually functional service provision. By establishing this site-centred facility, micro-industry, heritage, and identity are re-rooted and fed back into its surrounds, nurturing the existing conditions upon which they reside, establishing an architectural tapestry, a quilt, an heirloom.
In the Era of Global Shocks: A Needs Inquiry on State Provided Housing During and After the Covid-19 Pandemic
(University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024-02) Mogale, Lebogang Lucia; Klug, Neil
South Africa, like many countries of the South is confronted by a housing crisis, especially in Metropolitan areas. This is because Metropolitan areas are experiencing rapid population growth and, in the process, creating a demand for low-income housing. The state-provided low-income housing, implemented as a remedial intervention, has faced spatial, procedural, and administrative scrutiny, among others. Furthermore, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought housing and human settlements into the spotlight, raising both opportunities and challenges with the resilience of state-provided low income housing. The study has used the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic to emphasize and make apparent the various types of housing and settlement needs that should be prioritised to potentially mitigate the impact of future global shocks such as pandemics. Global shocks trigger resilience thinking that is linked to spatial attributes that can potentially reduce and mitigate the impact of disasters and risks. This indicates an opportunity of supporting ‘resilience thinking’ with existing social realities. The study speaks to this gap by diving deep into theoretical discourses of housing needs and practical needs as determined by participants perceptions. This was done by adopting a case study design that follows Wilhelm Dilthey's philosophy of hermeneutics. The Case Study context used was Palm Ridge extension 10 where Breaking New Ground Housing and Military Veteran houses were allocated in November 2019. Interviews were conducted with both municipal officials and beneficiaries of subsidised housing to inquire in-depth about their considerations of housing needs and how they can be met. The findings of the study indicate that there is a correlation between what is perceived as housing needs during the pandemic and some principles of resilience thinking. It identifies two types of housing needs necessary for mitigation, coping, and recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic. The needs identified are technical housing needs which are concerned with the physical structure of a house and settlement, and soft dimensional housing needs which are more symbolic of the relationship residents have with their houses and the overall neighbourhood. Moreover, the study emphasises that the translation of housing needs from theory to practice is to a certain degree challenged by institutional deficiencies. Although state-provided housing is challenged, it has proven a resilient measure in the era of the pandemic when housing insecurities were on the rise. Neighbourhoods like Palm Ridge can potentially adopt evolutionary and transformative resilience due to their flexible nature to cater to changing needs. Therefore, it is apparent that needs inquiry is a complex issue that can be leveraged to stimulate the adoption and development of bottom-up and collaborative responses to shock mitigation.

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