The first seminar of the newly established Urban Futures Centre took place at the University’s ESBE Boardroom, L3, S4, S Block, ML Sultan, last Wednesday (19 March 2014).

Len Rosenberg, Head of Planning at DUT, gave a brilliant presentation about the history of the Warwick Junction Precinct in which DUT is embedded, how this space could be developed and planned for the future, and DUT’s draft plans for how this space can be developed into an educational and heritage precinct.

The seminar was packed to capacity and had city officials, civil society members, academics from UKZN, DUT students and various DUT staff members attending the presentation.

The seminar given by Len Rosenberg provided excellent insight, through the lens of Durban, about what apartheid cities were all about. The presentation also created a forum for participants to imagine a new city space that takes account of the past while at the same time looks toward a future that is free of apartheid design.

For many of the students that attended, the seminar provided an opportunity to learn about the history and current dynamics of the city of Durban. Students commented that they had no real idea, prior to the seminar, about what Durban’s past was, and how apartheid had led to the engineering of space and social relations. A Durban resident who had come to the seminar to hear more about DUT’s plan for the precinct made the important point that residents living in or near the precinct should be consulted in public forums about future plans that DUT has. The point was well taken and the Urban Futures Centre is happy to provide the space and resources for such engagements to take place.

The seminar series will run once a week. Next week’s seminar will be given by Doung Jahangeer, a Mauritian born architect who now lives in Durban. Doung will be presenting a seminar entitled: The in-between city: Experimenting the urban as a means to articulate the social, economic, spatial, philosophical and poetic territories in a ‘post’ apartheid South Africa. Much of Doung’s thinking has evolved out of walking tours that he conducts through the inner city of Durban, interacting with local people, places and things.

The UFC urges all DUT staff and students to attend these seminars. Any graduate students and staff conducting research on urban spaces should consider presenting as part of this seminar series. The seminars are open and the UFC@DUT welcomes participation from government officials, researchers, civil society actors and individuals interested in the future of cities. Contact Prof Monique Marks at moniquem@dut.ac.za

Waheeda Peters