19-30 June, 2023; facilitated by Dr Kathryn Ewing and Office for Urban Resilience (O-RU)

The workshop aims to advance the debate on urban development beyond the provision of public services and housing by focusing on intent: what kind of urban life are we creating?

The focus will therefore be on the ways of doing urban development, placing emphasis on considerations that have been overshadowed by the urgency of “delivery”: what socio-natural aspects should be incorporated in urban design? What are the mental barriers preventing us from imagining a substantively different urbanization? What are the historical legacies underpinning negative connotations of urban life? What are the existing forces shaping informal trade and settlements, and how can these be harnessed towards developing a shared vision for urban development?

The workshop will test the usefulness of urban design tools to approach urban development conditions strategically. The emphasis will be in the practical yet reflexive implementation of tactics informed by international experience and calibrated to the local context.

The call for application is CLOSED. You can download the call for applications HERE

The workshop will include publicly-available activities, including two public lectures; and eight seminars with leading experts in urban development.

PUBLIC PROGRAMME

• PUBLIC LECTURE 1: "Urban resilience as a framework" by Office for Urban Resilience (O-RU). Victor Rico and Carolina de Crespo. Tuesday, June 20th, 2023; at 17:00h at Auditorium 1, NUST. For online participation, REGISTER HERE. More information about ORU .
• PUBLIC LECTURE 2: "Urban design as a crossover strategy" by Dr Kathryn Ewing, convener of the Urban design programme at the University of Cape Town and non-executive director at Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU).  Tuesday, June 27th, 2023; at 17:00h at Auditorium 1, NUST. For online participation, REGISTER HERE. More information about Dr Ewing.

PUBLIC SEMINARS

Module 1

DAY 1 | “Inclusive and sustainable urban development in Namibia” by Thomas Haenert, Team leader: Inclusive and Sustainable Urban Development, GIZ. 19 June 2023, 11:00-12:00h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 2 | “Challenging apartheid/colonial legacies in urban development” by Stephanie Roland, PhD Candidate, RMIT University, Australia. 20 June 2023, 11:00-12:30h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 3 | “Urban agriculture in informal settlements” by Kambashu Institute. 21 June 2023, 12:00-13:00h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 4 | “Dryland nature-based solutions for informal settlement upgrading schemes in Africa” by Dr Jessica Thorn, Lecturer in Sustainable Development, School of Geography and Sustainable Development, University of St Andrews, UK; and Adjunct Researcher, University of Namibia. 22 June 2023, 9:00-10:30h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

Module 2

DAY 1 | “Informal settlement upgrading in Namibia” by Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia and the Namibia Housing Action Group. 26 June 2023; 15:30-17:00h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 2 | “Towards adequate housing in Namibia: the revision of the national housing policy” by Dr Phillip Lühl, Associate Dean, School of the Built Environment, NUST; Technical lead of the Task Team for the Revision of the National Housing Policy. 28 June 2023, 9:00-10:30h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 3 | “The township economy and livelihoods in informal settlement upgrading” by Thiresh Govender, Urban Works. 29 June 2023, 15:30-17:00h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

DAY 4 | “Densification and infrastructure in urban areas in Namibia” by Andre Olivier, Managing Director, Bigen Namibia. 30 June 2023, 11:00-12:30h MORE INFORMATION AND REGISTRATION FOR ONLINE PARTICIPATION

Contact: Sara Nakalila sakalila@nust.na

This activity is part of the NUST-GIZ Grant Agreement on Sustainable and Inclusive Urban Development. More information here.