Durban a Cogent African City

Durban is a modern city which expresses the complex dynamics of an African city emerging from a historically colonial foundation. This provided an interesting context for engagement of the UNESCO Chair for Sustainable Urban Quality and Culture Notably in Africa. The institutional agreement between the UNESCO Chair, Sapienza University of Rome and the Durban University of Technology (DUT) was formalised in the year 2013, prior to an international workshop in China and the UIA 2014 in Durban, South Africa. The focus of the Chair and the curriculum outcomes of DUT, with regard to urban culture and the evolution thereof, created a mutually opportune association, with the possibility for contribution to the UIA 2014 conference in Durban. After deliberations and the necessary paperwork, the UNESCO Chair, in Association with DUT, were granted official space on the UIA Programme for presentation at the conference. This was received with much enthusiasm, which drew further interest and participation from students and Professors of Sapienza University of Rome and Tsinghua University of Beijing in China. Further representation of academics from Manipal University in India, School of Architecture University of Florida and Hosei University in Japan added much value to the collaboration in Durban. The city of Durban is one of the most intriguing for architects and urban designers, due to its cultural and economic diversity on one the hand and its political evolution since its colonial formalisation, apartheid influences and its post-apartheid evolution, on the other. It is a city that expresses complex narratives in architectural form and expression, seemingly chaotic, yet within and upon a cogent overall structure. Perhaps, it is that very cogency in urban structure which facilitated its complex evolution, or perhaps not. This paradox forms the crux of the studies and applied research part of this book, and which defined the sites of focus for a collaborative studio workshop.