Empowering communities : the role of public interest design architects in addressing fundamental human needs through alternative building technologies in Melusi

Abstract

South African cities largely continue to exhibit the enduring scars of apartheid which due to discriminatory housing policies have left stark socio-economic divides in their wake. This is evidenced by the perpetual growth of the national housing backlog, as national supply of low-cost housing has failed to meet the demand of those who need it most. In response to this, government has explored the use of alternative building technologies (ABTs) in the delivery of low-cost housing to meet this growing demand. However, these ABTs have faced low rates of adoption in emerging developments where such solutions have been proposed. Furthermore, national housing policies concerned with the development of informal settlements have yet to acknowledge the role of the architectural profession role in the engagement and upgrading process involving these communities. Public interest design (PID) looks to provide a theoretical underpinning for architects understanding the needs of a project’s end-user to provide work that is socially responsive to its wider environment. Through this understanding of PID, this study applies the human scale development (HSD) framework of Manfred Max-Neef to analysis the needs, satisfiers, and impediments of Melusi’s residents surrounding the building technologies present within the settlement. This is done to expand the discussions surrounding ABTs by recognising the different forms of grassroots design practice (GDP) present within the settlement. This research followed a pragmatic approach through narrative inquiry which featured the use of both quantitative and quantitative data in the form of documented experiences of residents and observations made within the settlement of Melusi. Methods such as surveys and participatory games as research tools formed part of an intensive community engagement process spanning two years alongside a transdisciplinary team of researchers. Key findings noted the opportunities for architects to operate within informal settlement upgrading policies through PID practice models such as GDP. Additionally, the study noted that the needs of subsistence, creation, and understanding were currently being actualised through Melusi’s own forms of localised building technologies. Furthermore, it found that this improved understanding of existent forms of building technologies within the settlement may further expand the definition of ABTs suggesting a modification of the term itself.