Achieving Together: AeT Intern 2013 Regional “Architectural Student of the Year”

Tasmi Quazi AeT intern Mongezi Ncube from University of KwaZulu-Natal was selected as the regional winner of the 2013 “Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year”. This is the successive year that an AeT intern has won this prestigious student competition, the 2012 winner being, Dennis-Lee Stols.   Mongezi’s thesis explored urban informality as a generator … Read more

An alternate and inclusive retail model for Durban

Compiled by Tasmi Quazi & Zoe Horn Project Leader of Asiye eTafuleni (AeT), Richard Dobson, has written an opinion-editorial article which appeared in the local newspaper, the Sunday Tribune Business KZN supplement, on 8 December 2013 on page 6 under the theme “Planning”. The article was prompted by the need for more open debate about … Read more

Redefining “Clean-up” of informality

Tasmi Quazi & Richard Dobson After a scan of the past month’s news coverage, it is evident that informal workers across various metropolitan cities in South Africa have been experiencing extreme harassment. Some of these have occurred under the guise of inner-city “clean-up” operations which on paper and rhetoric speak of development aims in relation … Read more

AeT’s Renewed Vision: Inclusive Urban Design & Planning as a Driver of Change

Tasmi Quazi The Asiye eTafuleni (AeT) team appeared in the weekly edition of the Mail & Guardian newspaper as one of the highlights of the past 25 years of its annual “Investing in the Future and Drivers of Change” Awards platform. Under 2011, the article shows a picture of the AeT team at the awards … Read more

Can artistic expression dignify the informal economy?

Tasmi Quazi & Richard Dobson After touring the Markets of Warwick, local photographer, Mike Van Heerden, published a captivating album of his experience on the Ocean Driven Media blog.   For AeT, the images portray strong and purposeful individuals engaged in informal livelihood strategies that enable them to support their dependents. Within the arts and … Read more

Collaborative Design: An Alternate Way

Tasmi Quazi Collaborative Design: An Alternate Way, is the title and proposition of an article written by Asiye eTafuleni’s (AeT) Research Officer, as featured in the KZ-NIA Journal 1/2013, from pages 10-13.  It is the feature article in a special journal edition called “Spilt Milk”, an initiative aimed at fostering collaboration and inclusivity between architects … Read more

Promoting Sustainability through Inclusion of Informal Workers at SLE 2013

Written by Megan MacLeod, Photo-essay by Tasmi Quazi Without a doubt, Afrika Ntuli, leader of the cardboard recyclers of Palmer Street, is the star of AeT’s display at Durban’s Exhibition Centre for the 2013 Sustainable Living Exhibition (SLE).  Indeed, he is a little hard to miss, with his homemade cardboard top-hat festooned with a jaunty … Read more

AeT Featured in ‘Spark’ Newsletter for Igniting Local Action

Tasmi Quazi Asiye eTafuleni’s (AeT) work in the realm of inclusive urban planning and design was featured in Spark Newsletter (March 2013, Issue 7, pages 15 and 16). AeT’s work appeared under the theme “Public Participation”, including an excerpt on its Markets of Warwick community tourism project which received a Mayoral Award of Excellence in … Read more

Warwick Junction’s Bovine Head Market featured in Open City Projects

Tasmi Quazi The final piece on the Markets of Warwick Junction written by Kristin Neudorf for Open City Projects features the Bovine Head Market. With her usual perceptive outlook, she writes: “Durban’s Bovine Head Market is a fascinating blend of old customs and modern urban design. As the name implies, the market’s entire existence revolves … Read more