Browsing by Author "Perold, Philippus Rudolf"

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    Development of a Monte Carlo ad hoc routing protocol for connectivity improvement
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2010-03) Perold, Philippus Rudolf; Wolhuter, R.; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Engineering. Dept. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.
    Please refer to full text for abstract.
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    Informal Capacities: Exploring grounded architectural practice in transitions to sustainable urbanism in Cape Town
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2018-12) Perold, Philippus Rudolf; Donaldson, Ronnie; Devisch, Oswald; Verbeeck, Griet; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Geography and Environmental Studies.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The research presented in this dissertation pertains to the role of architectural practice in the in situ upgrading of informal settlements in Cape Town, with in situ upgrading being understood as a transition to sustainable urbanism in terms of socio-technical transition theory. Two ideas guide and structure the research: the notion of ‘in[formal]ity’ as a dialectic whole to replace the dichotomy of formal vs. informal (thereby enabling architectural professionals to develop the informal capacities required to engage constructively with residents in informal settlement upgrading interventions) and the phenomenon of grounded architectural practice (GAP) as unit of analysis. I embark on a hands-on exploration of GAP – engaging with residents through live project case studies undertaken in collaboration with local organisations – so as to arrive at a better understanding of this emergent mode of architectural practice, as well as the informal capacities that architectural professionals require in order to engage with residents in such practice. The empirical data obtained during the case studies is supplemented by an analysis of existing data derived from literature reviews. As a multi-disciplinary extension of third generation activity theory (AT) that enables empirical analyses of work activity, the method of developmental work research draws together the live project case studies and AT mapping, and in doing so provides a framework for the exploration of GAP. This framework incorporates the notion of ‘in[formal]ity’ into AT, mapping the activity systems of residents and local government as networked around the partially shared object of fostering transitions to sustainable urbanism. GAP is then positioned as an intermediate ‘empty stage’ between the live project case studies and the AT mapping, and is used to capture the ideas that emerge. The latter are understood to be the informal capacities that architectural professionals employ when engaging with residents in the co-production and collaborative design of upgrading interventions. These informal capacities offer architectural professionals (who it enables to comprehend the socio-technical regime of local government as well as the informal spatial practice of residents) the opportunity to foster spatial justice by advocating on behalf of these residents in support of the in situ upgrading of their settlements as a transition to sustainable urbanism. As such, this research does not aim to develop a new model for architectural practice – doing so would require a much larger data set than the three live project case studies that inform this research – but rather to explore the informal capacities that are required and developed when engaging in GAP in the specific context of Cape Town. In doing so, I wish to contribute to the influence of this emergent niche-level practice on the regime of conventional architectural practice, thereby encouraging more architectural professionals to engage with residents in supporting informal settlement upgrading as a transition to sustainable urbanism.