Browsing by Subject "Architecture, Planning and Geomatics"

Now showing 1 - 20 of 157
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    3D visualisation of the laetoli footprints on the internet
    (2000) Taylor, Simon
    Bibliography: p. 84-86.
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    A Complementary Architecture: Enhancing the experience of Maynardville Park through a responsive architecture
    (2024) Shepherd, Matthew; Papanicolaou, Stella
    This dissertation aims to preserve and enhance the existing narratives of Maynardville Park. The chosen site exhibits a long-established history of diverse social and cultural intricacies that all deserve careful consideration. The site presents a variety of layers within and around the park, outlining the scope of this inquiry to address the internal happenings and surrounding edges. The objective of this dissertation is to produce a type of responsive architecture that synergises with this particular context. The architectural intervention boarders the park and its urban edge and bridges these two conditions to create a more interactive space. Presenting itself with a variety of both significances and shortcomings, Maynardville Park guides the trains of thought for the theoretical, technological, and architectural positions. The proposed architectural response is meticulously tailored to the specific attributes of Maynardville Park, ensuring its relevance and timelessness. Responsive architecture, by its nature, necessitates a degree of flexibility and user agency, qualities that this design inquiry thoughtfully incorporates into its programming. It collages the various narratives to create a sense of harmony among them. In response to the physical characteristics of Maynardville, the architectural scheme develops a comprehensive urban and architectural strategy that forges multiple responsive edge conditions, designed to attract people to the site. The scheme creates a precedent for future development that addresses its context and initiates positive change for the site.
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    A glade in the kelp forest: socio-spatial opportunities for multi-trophic aquaculture Hout Bay, South Africa
    (2024) Van Der Wat, Nelia; Hindes, Clinton
    This thesis is centred around the ideas of multi-trophic aquaculture (two or more aquatic species are cultivated and harvested from the same area), with a specific focus on implementing a kelp aquaculture framework. Kelp is an ecosystem driver, filter feeder and a versatile product. In South Africa, kelp forests are present along the West Coast due to the upwelling of the Benguela system in which cold, nutrient-rich waters from the Antarctic flow into the Atlantic Ocean. These kelp forests are all in a prolific and stable state, with little-to-no threat. The abundance and under-exploitation of kelp has labelled it as a low-value marine resource, under the Marine Living Resources Act of 1998. Under the same Act mentioned above, quotas of fishing rights have been distributed between the commercial, small-scale and subsistence fisheries. Criticism of this legislation is that it does not actually acknowledge the latter, and commercial fisheries receive disproportionately more quotas than those of small-scale operations. As a result, poaching of high-value marine resources in South Africa has steadily increased over the years. This thesis aims to promote multi-trophic aquaculture as a framework for environmental justice and appropriate resource management of lowvalue marine resources for subsistence and small-scale fisheries. Hout Bay harbour was selected as the case study area because a large proportion of the Hout Bay harbour and surrounds is abandoned and has fallen into disrepair, causing an economic decline in the area. This has greatly impacted the marginalised community of Hangberg who live behind the harbour, and greatly rely on it for jobs, opportunities and food. The West Battery and on the southern boundary of the harbour adjacent to Hangberg was selected as a site for intervention. The site is eroded, neglected and provides little amenity and ecosystem service. Kelp aquaculture was used as an entry point into the project, and the project has evolved from this into a multi-trophic intervention that targets biodiversity and environmental justice concerns. A sensitive approach will be undertaken to conceptualise the programmatic, ecological and spatial qualities of this aquaculture intervention. The result will be a dynamic, sustainable, democratic, productive and delightful landscape intervention that will benefit visitors, small-scale fishing economies and the proliferation of the kelp forest itself.
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    A kreol coastal confluence in Mahebourg, Mauritius
    (2024) Auckloo, Rahul Raj; Papanicolaou, Stiliani
    The personal interest of the author and Mauritian cultural dissolution concentre in this architectural research – in the cerebration of a Kreol Coastal Confluence. This design inquiry presents an architecture of mediation as key, which focalises the divergent spheres into the same space - artisanal fishing as the vernacular culture and the contemporary ‘development'. The architectural stance manifests as a re-imagination of an existing artisanal fish landing station in Mahebourg [debarcader]. The proposition is to demolish the current building footprint, retaining vertical structural elements where neccessary, crafting a scheme spatially more efficient and tailored for the existing process stages of artisanal fishing. To draw focus and enrichment into the localized fishing sphere and facilitate a contemporary growth of the community, the intersection of design and making spaces aim to extend the reach of practical, embodied skills and knowledge from the local cohort through to the younger generation. This frames a concentrated incentivised condition that has the capacity to rejuvenate the site's praxis and socio-spatial character. Proposed, is an architectural continuation of this [fishingdesign] intersection - the integration of the community's analogue practices of netting, boat building and processing, serve to influence the tectonic language and making of the building - seeking to prompt a sense of belonging between architecture and people. This architectural proposal is a system that operates between land and sea. The author seeks for a threshold, a new line between land and water amplifying the landscape with the ebb and flow of the ocean - inserting program amidst this change. This broadening of the threshold provides those on land with a smooth transition into the fishing waters, and provides those within, a phased and gradual disembarkment to land.
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    A settlement-level perspective of the spatial relationship between economic performance and population change in South Africa between 2001 and 2011
    (2021) Arnold, Kathryn Anne; Smit, Julian; le Roux, Alize
    Migration has long been an important phenomenon shaping the demographic profile of South Africa, and migration and labour are often considered to be intrinsically linked. The push–pull theory of migration, which still tends to dominate gravity-based migration modelling as well as academic thinking, is grounded on the assumption that migration is a functional and inevitable outcome of spatial inequality. Economic drivers of migration are most frequently used to explain population movements in the South African context, given, especially, that slow and uneven economic growth, economic disparities, inequality and unemployment persist as some of the country's biggest socio-economic challenges. Urban living holds the promise of employment prospects and improved conditions, and thus the basic premise of many micro-level models of migrant decision-making is that migration occurs with the expectation of being better off in doing so. The research design of this study set out to empirically investigate the theoretical perspective of the push–pull model of migration from an economic and settlement-based standpoint, and makes novel contributions to the disciplines of Geography, Geographical Information Science, and Urban and Regional Planning. The ultimate aim was to establish a settlement-level perspective of the spatial relationship between economic output (as a measure of economic performance) and working-age population change in South Africa between the Census years of 2001 and 2011. To support the settlement-level analysis scale, special attention was paid to sourcing fine-resolution economic and population datasets covering both the national spatial extent, as well as the tenyear temporal analysis window, and applying advanced GIS methods and techniques to prepare, align, analyse and visualise these datasets. In addition, traditional non-spatial statistical analyses were also employed to measure and quantify the relationship using a correlation-based research approach. Furthermore, the research also proposed a novel way of classifying settlements in South Africa, according to their economic profiles. Based on the research findings, the study identified eight broad settlement types in South Africa, according to an economically profiled settlement classification typology. Population change in the working-age population was found to have a positive statistically significant association with economic performance at settlement level in South Africa. This relationship proved to be multifaceted, given the complex nature of the South African economic landscape at settlement level, with considerable variability (based on the strength of the relationship) between different settlement types. While none of the settlement types exhibited a very strong relationship between economic performance and population change, several settlement types did indicate a moderate to strong association, while other settlement types were shown to have negligible to weak associations. Furthermore, in certain settlement types, some demographic groups, based on age, gender, employment status, and skill level, were found to have markedly higher associations with the economy than others. In its empirical contribution towards evidence-based decision-making, especially in the domain of urban and regional planning, the research findings are valuable in helping to support future policy and development interventions so that development planning can be more successfully targeted and more sensitive to the local South African context, given that South Africa has an intricate history of labour migration, and labour-force participation is a key factor for individuals to improve their socio-economic status. The study highlights important spatial linkages between economic opportunities and patterns of population change in South Africa, and defines and explores a new perspective of this relationship at settlement level. The results of this study further reinforce the literature, that nuanced and dynamic interplays are evident between the push and pull factors influencing population-change dynamics, in that, on its own, economic performance was not found to be a definitive predictor of population change or migration likelihood at settlement level.
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    Action and Reaction: Developing an architecture of movement
    (2014) Emery, Luke; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda
    This dissertation deals with the phenomenon of movement in relation to architecture. What does it entail to create an architecture of movement and what possibilities can this type of design offer us outside of 'conventional' architecture. The research behind the topic bases itself in the theory of Game Design as a tool to structure movement with meaning. Game Design proves itself to be a potent tool in encouraging interactivity, in turn handing over a certain level of control and design over to the players participating. The more control afforded to the players, the more they can affect the outcome and experience of a game. This means games are a medium with the possibility for high replay value as players go back to experience the multiple outcomes of a game. The theory of using Game Design as a tool in architecture is then tested through my own design located on the edge of the Grand Parade in Cape Town. The design aims to create an architecture of multiple outcomes including an 'Everyday' and 'Festival' narratives through the use of movement. Game Design is used as a tool of analysis in order to determine whether the movement is integral to the architecture and its intended function through spatializing the key principles identified in the theory of Game Design. The conclusion drawn is that Game Design is an effective tool in aiding design in architecture. Its value emerges through the fact that it challenges design decisions made within architecture based on how integral they are in relation to the social and programmatic rules and expectations the project attempts to deal with.
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    Adaptive Healing: Exploring therapeutic architecture and the integration of addiction rehabilitation into the Cape Flats, Mitchells Plain
    (2014) Basson, Johan; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda
    This dissertation explores therapeutic architecture and the integration of addiction rehabilitation into the Cape Flats, Mitchells Plain area. This project ultimately introduces the concept of an integrated community rehabilitation and wellness centre in one of the most notorious, unhealthy urban environments in the Western Cape, Mitchells Plain. This will demonstrate that a healing environment can be achieved in any context, urban or rural. A rehabilitation centre that engages with its surrounding community, fostering various levels of controlled interaction between patient and public. An integrated facility that gives back to its community through shared facilities. This investigation also unpacks the existing rehabilitation ecology and the gradual transition process in the formulation of a new hybrid system that combines the various stages of rehabilitation within a centralised facility. The project aims to deinstitutionalize the existing rehabilitation programme through the ‘simulation of a real life’ concept, where the facility will incorporate familiar elements, such as the house, neighbourhood and downtown to replicate the variety of environments in our everyday lives. The design uses ‘nature as therapy through architecture’ with the implementation of various concepts, which includes a raised therapeutic platform and a perimeter planter, serving as an urban filter that defuses the harsh urban context of Mitchells Plain. This project also explores the role of Architectural technology in therapy and ultimately introduces the concept of a highly localised adaptive façade system that allows for individual patient control and to filter the interactive visual relationship between patient and public. Our modern healing facilities have been designed to house apparatus for healing but not to be healing instruments in themselves. Architecture should be considered just as significant as the treatments that it houses.
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    An inquiry into the use of the ecological approach for environmental and land use planning in the Howick sub-region, Natal
    (1971) McCarthy, R T
    The recent and current world-wide public concern on the erosion, destruction and pollution of the natural environment has led to a reassessment of the discipline of Urban and Regional Planning - or Town and Country Planning as it is termed in Britain.
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    An investigation into the role of women in the spatial planning and development of their settlements that are under the custodianship of traditional leaders: A case study of Cala in Sakhisizwe Municipality, Eastern Cape
    (2021) Sigwela, Noziphiwo Margaret; Winkler, Tanja
    This study aims to unpack the planning strategies employed by women who live on communal lands in the rural regions of the Eastern Cape. In South Africa, traditional leaders are the custodians of communal lands. Their patriarchal nature tends to negate gender equalities as envisaged and prescribed in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa through the Bill of Rights. As a result of this patriarchal nature, women find themselves having to navigate spaces which are embedded with customary laws that continue to uplift the status of men over women. The study investigates how women in communal areas access land, deal with social and economic vulnerabilities and, most of all, how they add their voices to the planning and public decision making processes of their communities. Unequal gender relations and structural inequalities are brought to light by means of the research findings presented in this dissertation. Women's involvement public decision making processes is studied in other academic fields, including in politics, anthropology and sociology. However, such studies are not as extensively in the planning field, specifically with respect to planning in rural areas. Planning in South Africa is understood as a study that tends, more often than not, to focus on cities rather than on rural contexts (as research findings demonstrate). The research method employed in this study is the case study research method, and Cala, which is located on communal lands and which falls within the political jurisdiction of the Sakhisizwe Local Municipality, is the case under study. An in depth investigation of the following themes (in turn, resulted in the establishment of subsidiary research questions) is presented in the subsequent chapters: feminism and black feminism; the South African Constitution; the Traditional Authority Act; the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act; communal lands; and lessons from Kenya and Tanzania. Research findings demonstrate a mismatch between the legislation and everyday practices found in Cala. Women are still finding it difficult to navigate traditional spaces. They do not have enough representation in planning and public decision making structures, and, as a result, they remain disadvantaged. In response, planning policy recommendations are presented in the final chapter
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    Analysis of the impact of location factors derived from different techniques on the predictive accuracy of CAMA models
    (2004) Musekiwa, Themba; Whittal, Jennifer
    Includes bibliographical references (leaves 112-115).
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    Applying sustainable urban drainage systems to urban floods management in area 49 planned settlement in Lilongwe City, Malawi
    (2024) Mkombezi, Edda; Madell, Cecil
    This dissertation presents a research conducted by Edda Mkombezi titled: “Applying Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems to Urban Floods Management in Area 49 Planned Settlement in Lilongwe City, Malawi”. Currently, there is a frequent occurrence of urban floods in Lilongwe City with Area 49 being the most hit neighbourhood which is also the study area for this research. Therefore, this requires management using nature-based solutions such as Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS). The main challenge is that SUDS and urban floods management are not adequately addressed in the current key spatial planning frameworks of Lilongwe City. There is a misalignment of the existing key spatial planning frameworks as far as SUDS implementation and integration are concerned. Thus, there is a need to examine what can be done in order to integrate SUDS into the key spatial planning frameworks. This includes addressing sustainable transition language, promoting participation of residents and re-imagining the role of spatial planning in water governance. The aim of this dissertation is to examine how SUDS can be integrated into the key spatial planning frameworks as a management mechanism for urban floods. This aim was achieved by collecting data through case study and discourse analysis methods. The collected data was then analysed using discourse analysis and content analysis. The results of this study show that there is room for the integration of SUDS in the key spatial planning frameworks but not as an urban flood management measure. Rather SUDS are being proposed as one of the climate-resilient infrastructure that the city needs. On the other hand, residents of Area 49 have their own knowledge and ways of managing urban floods which can be incorporated into the spatial planning frameworks. The language of sustainable transitions used in the key spatial planning frameworks is not comprehensive and misaligned. The knowledge gained from this study can inform policy review and formulation in disaster risk management and how spatial planning can be used in water governance of neighbourhoods in order to have proactive, context and site-specific responses to urban floods.
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    Architectural Healing Spaces: How Design Protects, Rehabilitates Survivors of Abuse
    (2024) Isola, Teegan; Papanicolaou, Stiliani; Steenkamp Aletta
    This dissertation delves into an exploration of the profound potential of architectural interventions in facilitating the healing process for survivors of abuse, with a particular focus on women and children. Acknowledging the significance of environments that promote user comfort, personal control, privacy, sensory engagement, and a connection to nature, the study recognises the pivotal role these factors play in psychological well-being, especially for victims of domestic violence. Motivated by a deep understanding of the impact of domestic violence and trauma, this dissertation is dedicated to the creation of healing spaces for women and children. Its primary objective is to investigate how architecture can actively support the mental healing process of individuals. The project centres on the idea that spatial interventions can act as catalysts for creating dignity, healing, and restoration for survivors of abuse. At the heart of this endeavour is the establishment of a sanctuary, designed to provide women with a safe, nurturing, and empowering environment to recover from past traumas and develop essential life skills, ultimately fostering personal growth and self-sufficiency. The sanctuary offers a range of spaces, including areas for counselling, workshops, communal activities, and private reflection, seamlessly harmonising with the natural surroundings. The project combines therapeutic healing practices with practical skills training, empowering women on their journey to recovery. This comprehensive training covers a diverse array of areas, from business and entrepreneurship to agricultural and computer skills, equipping women to take control of their own healing and future. Set against the backdrop of a women-run farm in the Sandveld region of the Western Cape, the design explores the juxtaposition between refuge and reveal, striving to strike a balance between safety and comfort, while fostering a profound connection with the natural world. Through the strategic layering of spaces, materials that signify both solidity and transparency, and a dedication to integrating the built environment with the natural landscape, the project exemplifies the potential of architecture to serve as a catalyst for healing, restoration, and transformation, offering nurturing not only to its inhabitants but also to the landscape.
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    Architectural modernism and apartheid modernity in South Africa a critical inquiry into the work of architect and urban designer Roelof Uytenbogaardt, 1960-2009
    (2010) Murray, Noëleen; Shepherd, Nick
    Roelof Sarel Uytenbogaardt who died in 1998 was, and remains, an important and influential figure in the disciplines of architecture and urban design in South Africa. As a prolific practitioner and academic at the University of Cape Town his influence has been far-reaching. Making use of previously unexamined archival material, this study examines - in detail - the extent of this influence. Importantly the thesis seeks to situate Uytenbogaardt’s work in relation to the rise of apartheid and speculates about the persistence of modernism in contemporary spatial practice. Through examining both the conception and reception of Uytenbogaardt’s buildings and urban plans, the work locates modernist approaches to design prevalent in architecture and urban design as products of apartheid modernity. The controversial and contested nature of Uytenbogaardt’s works provides space for critical analysis and this is evident in the uneven reception of his projects. Architects and urban designers revere him as a ‘master’ while pubic sentiment has very often been strongly negative. This is most strikingly evident in the case of the recent proposed destruction of one of Uytenbogaardt’s most controversial works, the Werdmuller Centre. Constructed in the 1970s after forced removals in Cape Town’s suburb of Claremont, since 2007 architects and urban designers have argued passionately for its retention as an example of ‘timeless’ modernist heritage. Through this and other examples, the thesis explores the complexities presented by professional practice in architecture and urban design in the context of designing buildings for designated publics under apartheid. It argues that the work of practitioners and academics such as Uytenbogaardt is intimately linked to the social crisis of apartheid and that the resultant relationship is one of the complex and interrelated crises of modernist design that persist in post-apartheid South Africa.
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    The architecture of learning environments and community integration
    (2012) Botha, Lezanne; Noero, Jo; Coetzer, Nic
    This thesis is focused on architectural theories and design concepts which will add to the discourse of the what learning environments should or could be in the 21st century. It is based on the idea that spaces for learning need to be more “alive and that architecture can stimulate positive social interaction between people. The current public education system and its related standards, requirements and policies, with regards to physical learning spaces, does not address the present needs of children as it ought to. Many schools in South Africa are not built and designed to function as sustainable buildings and they often do not cater for the economic, environmental or social needs of current and future learners, teachers and community members.
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    Architecture, dance and materiality : using choreology and sensuous materials to enhance the experience of architecture
    (2009) Fleming, Sarah
    For the first semester of this year, we were required to submit two documents, one to do with theory (the thinking of architecture), and one to do with technology (the making of architecture). My theory document, 'Architecture and Dance' and was to do with using the study of dance to enrich the spatial experience of architecture. This project was initially generated by my interest in dance. The technology document, 'Sensuous Materiality in Architecture' was about using sensuous materials to stimulate the haptic senses of the user, and therefore enhance the experience of being in architecture. Since both the documents had similar themes (enriching the experience of the spatial experience of architecture), I have elected to combine these two documents into one. This is now the first section of this project, titled 'Critical Research'. The second (and final) section of this project, titled 'Design Project', is my interpretation of this research in order to design a building. There are three parts to this section, 'Programme', 'Site Research' and 'Concept Design' which will support my final design to be presented at the exam at the end of October.
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    Assessing customary land administration systems for peri-urban land in Ghana
    (2013) Akrofi, Emmanuel Offei; Augustinus, Clarissa
    Customary tenure is the predominant land tenure system in Ghana. It has been practiced for many years. Customary land tenure is built on the foundations of an African concept of land, distinguished by centrality of community, spirituality, and mutual dependence of the individual and the community. Colonization, increased population, rapid urbanisation has placed enormous pressure on customary tenure, especially in peri-urban areas. This study investigates customary administration in peri-urban Ghana. Using critical realism and multimethodology, peri-urban customary tenure in Accra and Kumasi, the fastest growing cities in Ghana, are assessed. A model for assessing functionality for peri-urban customary systems has been developed. The results indicate that functional customary systems adhere to the principles of good governance in customary land administration, although a lot needs to be done to improve accountability, transparency and land rights of women. It was also observed that whether the system has patrilineal or matrilineal inheritance does not have any significant influence on functionality. Further research is recommended to investigate best practices from other tenure systems to improve peri-urban customary tenure without compromising good aspects of customary systems.
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    At Limbe, Malawi: Space-placemaking through the integration of street trading practices
    (2024) Mwawa, Major; Papanicolaou, Stiliani
    This study addresses the current contestation and attitude towards street traders in the global south. It proposes a paradigm shift in the approaches that seek to exclude and marginalise street trading practices from cities, arguing that these practices should co-exist with what is regarded as formal. It suggests that architects should participate and learn from traders, understand their practices and experiences, and use such dynamics as design opportunities to integrate them into the urban fabric rather than suppressing their community-driven advances. It also suggests the need for city councils to effectively engage with traders and provide infrastructure that speaks to their urban realities and practices. The Limbe CBD, on James Street, in Blantyre, Malawi, is the study area for the project, where I engaged with traders and uncovered their spatial practices, experiences, and needs through the theories of everyday life, space-placemaking, and the kinetic city. Mainly, the traders expressed the need to be involved in all decision-making processes directly affecting them and the need for a platform that facilitates this civic engagement. As such, this design dissertation proposes a community hub with a flexible space that can become a market, and a space for meetings, events, and skills training workshops, either by organisations or among themselves, in so doing, also providing a platform for empowerment. In addition, they expressed the need for water supply, effective waste management, surface runoff and flood control solutions, ablutions, and shedding structures. This study covers some of these issues in a master plan and focuses on the hub as its facilitator to turn the area into a conducive environment for trading activities.
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    Atrium defines form
    (2011) Claypole, Sebastian
    The natural environment is deteriorating and electricity demand is outstripping supply partly due to our growing built environment and economy. In response there is a need for energy efficient office space to accommodate economic growth and help with the conservation of the environment. The inner city is a perfect location to achieve this using already deteriorated land and increasing the inner city density to reduce urban sprawl. There is an urgent need for developers to invest into the idea of energy efficiency however this has been restricted because of our economic environment and the need for just usable space. The creation of energy efficient buildings is typically more expensive mainly due to the introduction of new technologies and materials.
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    Bellville public transport interchange
    (2014) De Klerk, Stephan; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda; Meyer, Tiaan
    Public Transport has played a fundamental part in my personal life as it was the mode of transport used to get to friends, part-time work and ultimately university campus over the span of eleven years. Using the South African public railway service on a daily basis for the past six years, it has made me aware of many fundamental architectural problems within this arena, with the biggest concern lying within the public transport interchange precinct; at the coming together of the different modes of public transport. Staying in the Northern Suburbs my entire life, attending Bellville High school and later the University of Cape Town, meant that the Bellville Public Transport Interchange has had a big impact on my idea and conceptions on the functioning of a public transport interchange. Subconsciously studying the Bellville Public Transport Interchange and understanding its functioning over the past eleven years has made me aware of the absence of architectural contribution within its current operational system and has lead me to the investigation of the relationship between architecture and the Bellville public Transport Interchange. The dissertation document that follows seeks to improve the current relationship between architecture and the Bellville Public Transport Interchange through the use of vertical and horizontal architectural layering systems.
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    Building walls, breaking boundaries : a study of difference and inclusion at Deer Park, Cape Town
    (2014) Jankes, Taryn; Coetzer, Nic; Silverman, Melinda
    ‘Building Walls: Breaking Boundaries’ is based on the manner in which difference and diversity meet in the city and how architecture and the built environment can be used as a tool to either facilitate interaction or hinder it. Cape Town is a vibrant multicultural city, endowed with a monumental natural landscape that defines its edges. Despite this, the visual language of the city is one of spatial separation; a result of the enduring legacy of Cape Town’s colonial past and modernist city planning, and further perpetuated by the segregationist programme of the Apartheid regime. Cape Town is a place where a variety of natural features and diverse landscapes and persons are concentrated, but each remains isolated and segregated, resulting in the potential of this diversity being lost. My interest lies in the exclusion of both people and animals from the city. Through contradiction and confrontation, this dissertation investigates what happens when these previously excluded groups are reintroduced back into what society deems normal or acceptable. It explores what changes occur when our neatly compartmentalised lives are injected with the unfamiliar, where the boundaries we define are traversed, and where the walls we built to keep ourselves separate are broken down. In this dissertation report, I will explain how people with mental illness and nature are included through an architectural intervention that reconciles the contrasting programs of a halfway house, a sanctuary for neglected city animals and a gateway building as a public interface for Table Mountain. While I have chosen a specific site and designed a building particular to that site, several other comparable sites have been identified within the city where this concept is relevant and can be applied within site specific opportunities and constraints. However the focus of this dissertation is not an urban scaled intervention but an architectural solution to a site which allows the fullest exploration of the conceptual framework underlying this project.