Browsing by Author "Thompson, Amy"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Healed. Womxn. Empowered.: creating healing spaces for women in places of conflict in Nyanga
    (2021) Mbekeni, Kazeka Talisa; Thompson, Amy
    Gender-based violence (GBV) is a profound and widespread issue for women in South Africa, and this was demonstrated on the 4th of September, 2019 when womxn marched together to end GBV in South Africa after the death of local UCT student Uyinene "Nene" Mrwetyana. GBV is a significant obstacle for gender equality and female empowerment in South Africa and also has long-lasting psychological effects on the women who survive these events as well as those around them; altering the way they see themselves and others in relation to the world. There is a need for healing spaces for womxn in South Africa. Spaces that make women feel safe (physically and mentally) and empowered. The current healing spaces are mostly found in private clinics/hospitals patient-use (private space) and they are usually focused more on physical health (with the use of medicinal plants) but not centred around improving mental health. Retaining healing spaces in these sorts of environments (private spaces) makes them inaccessible. This project aims to contribute to the field of landscape architecture (and other space-makers) mainly focused on mental health and to encourage that these spaces be made more accessible, an essential part of our everyday lives, and implemented as a design solution for environments that could be detrimental to our mental health. This thesis carefully unpacks the issues around gender-based violence in South Africa (such as safety, representation and memorialization of local women, female empowerment, and mental health) and theories such as ecotherapy and ecopsychology to understand how the landscape can be used to provide a safe and healing environment for local women. Healing typically consists of cognitive restructuring (changing ideas around self-worth) and, in this study, it is explored at two levels. The one, empowerment is looked at more as a visual practice that takes place within the public realm whilst the other, inward-looking, self-discovery and meditative practice is looked at more as an experiential practice that takes place in the private realm. The chosen area of study is Nyanga (located in Cape Town, South Africa) which has been known to be the murder capital of South Africa. This area has also been identified as one of the top 30 GBV hotspots in South Africa with abuse and murder of women and children queer people in South Africa amongst the highest in the world. Zooming in on the Nyanga taxi Interchange precinct as the area that local women in Nyanga occupy most and unpacking the conditions of these used spaces and the key activities within this area which will inform the project and; majority-female informal trade taking place, the day clinic, the vegetable garden, and the under-utilized private land; to properly understand how these could be strategically integrated to create healing spaces for everyday use.
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    Imvotho: Umz'omkhulu Reclamation of Xhosa people's narrative on their relationship with water
    (2021) Liwani, Yonela; Thompson, Amy
    This thesis confronts beliefs and perceptions, enforced over time, about the relationship Xhosa people have to water. Unpacking these assists in reclaiming the narrative origins of assumed myths about indigenous cultural beliefs and associations with nature and allows undocumented cultural narratives that are slowly vanishing to be recorded. The fragmented and vanishing narratives impact on the loss of cultural identity of black people. This fragmentation is felt acutely on the Cape Flats where postcolonial migration from the rural Eastern Cape to urban centres has severed the spiritual and emotional relationships with nature, particularly water. Khayelitsha is used as a case study site to reconnect people to their cultural narratives. The site has a highly polluted storm water attenuation pond in the middle of an informal settlement. The site selection was mostly informed by its direct link to the Xhosa people who have migrated from the Eastern Cape, accessibility for the people that the study is about and its inclusion of the environmental issues that exist on the site that further shift water associations and perceptions of the relationship Xhosa people have with water. This dissertation aims to uncover and examine the indigenous cultural systems that functioned in the rural spaces in Eastern Cape settlements, namely eNgcobo. Studying the landforms of water bodies, especially active water spaces and the systemic activities and human roles that occurred within the landforms, seeks to reconcile a urban language that allows for a healthy cultural connection to this natural system. Additionally, by understanding true cultural relationships that exist between people and natural systems within the traditional rural context it will provide design cues to apply in urban areas that allows urban populations to reconnect with their cultural identity and heal the negative perceptions towards water.
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    Sea + Survival: choreographing dune systems to defend against sea-level rise
    (2021) Sendall, Abigail Victoria; Thompson, Amy
    Sea-level rise is on the forefront of global climate change concerns with an estimated 800 million people at risk of experiencing the devastating social, economic, and environmental impacts of rising seas and storm surges (C40 Cities, n.d.). In particular, coastal towns and cities are under immense pressure as major solutions are needed to ensure the resilience of these spaces. Langebaan, in the Greater Saldanha Region along the Western Cape, South Africa is suffering from the effects of poorly planned linear coastal development that has suffocated the protective dune systems and public beach space. Where, according to the Sea Level Rise and Flood Risk Assessment for a Select Disaster-Prone Area Along the Western Cape Coast Report, Langebaan is specifically mentioned for being highly susceptible to coastal erosion and storm swell damage (Blake & Chimboza, 2011). The town is a fast-growing holiday destination and retirement area, which has led many of the new developments to be privatised, commandeering large portions of the coastal beachfront. The small portion of the beach that is then left for the local communities to enjoy is the most at risk to sea-level rise. It is at this moment where my dissertation lands itself, in the investigation of the pinch-point between human and nature; the human treatment of the coastal 'dunescape', and the ecosystem services of coastal dunes amid a climate crisis. Due to the constrained nature of the coast, sea defences are required to take place offshore, therefore, I propose a land claim in the form of an ecological island. This thesis harnesses the existing ecological systems in and around the area to form a buffer between Langebaan and the sea. The defence system acts to unsuffocate dunes and public space in Langebaan by claiming land for ecological systems and humans. Overall, this thesis illustrates the importance of the envelopment of the human and the natural in reacting to climate change and creates an accessible, sensitive, and meaningful space, revealing the memory of the site.