By Max Rambau, CORC
On Monday, 18 July 2011, we went to the informal settlement Ruimsig where there was going to be a community meeting between the students of the University of Johannesburg (Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture, Department of Architecture) and the community of Ruimsig for their three weeks’ programme of mapping in the area.
Students of the University of Johannesburg assist the community with the mapping process
As this meeting was on Nelson Mandela’s Birthday, the community and AfriCem, as well as the ISN members and leadership collaborated in a “Mandela Day” Clean-Up Campaign in the morning until after midday.
AfriCem, a cement company brought their trucks and graters and the dirt roads in the area were grated clean.
After the Clean-Up campaign, a meeting was held between the community, the students and local and provincial leaders of the ISN.
We introduced the students and professors to the community. The students and the trained community architects will work together in the three-week-program in the area that has been divided into A, B, C and D.
Each team will have its own arrangements on how they are going to work in their respective areas and they will then have their meetings on Thursdays to report back on their work.
The teams will work in the afternoons because the students involved will also be attending the lectures in the morning. Although the UJ professor had requested to thank the teams it was suggested that this should be done after they had finished work.