Executive Director strengthens relationships with UK research institutions
In line with the Gauteng City-Region Observatory’s (GCRO) internationalisation agenda, the Executive Director, Rashid Seedat, undertook a trip to the United Kingdom (UK) in early June (7 to 11 June 2023) to consolidate existing relationships and to explore potential new partnerships between the GCRO and UK-based research bodies.
The Executive Director met with a number of academics from the Department of Geography at the University of Bristol including Professor Sue Parnell, Dr James Duminy, Dr Rui Zhu and Dr Winnie Wang. A key issue raised by the colleagues at Bristol University was the issue of the “impact agenda”. Universities and research bodies throughout the UK are required to demonstrate the impact of their research work on broader society, including its implication for public policy.
Mr Seedat met with Professor Jean Hartley, the Academic Director for the Centre for Policing Research and Learning at the Open University. The CPRL is a partnership between the Open University and 24 UK police forces to create and use knowledge to improve policing in society. One of the mechanisms employed by the CPRL is an ‘Evidence Café’, which aims to bridge the gap between research and practice, enabling police participants to explore how research might inform their practice, while giving academics access to practice-based insights on research from practitioners. Professor Hartley, along with Emeritus Professor John Benington of Warwick University, have agreed to conduct a GCRO-hosted webinar on the research-policy interface.
Cartogram of London created by UCL students
Mr Seedat met with Dr Carla Wasbourne, associate Professor in the Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP) at the University College of London (UCL). The key focus of STEaPP concerns how scientific knowledge is shared and used in decision making. Mr Seedat and Dr Carla Wasbourne were joined by several STEaPP colleagues and students to share the work being done by the two organisations. STEaPP and the GCRO have a longstanding academic relationship, having collaborated on a number of research outputs.
Dr Carla Washbourne is also the Chairperson of the Steering Committee of the UN-Habitat Global Urban Observatory Network (GUO-Net), in which Seedat also serves as the Vice Chairperson. They discussed measures to steer the network into the future, working alongside the Habitat secretariat. The engagement between Dr Washbourne and Mr Seedat also revolved around preparations for the first global online workshop of the network that was to be held on 5 July 2023.
Mr Seedat met with Dr Carla Wasbourne, associate Professor in the Department of Science, Technology, Engineering and Public Policy (STEaPP) at the University College of London (UCL). The key focus of STEaPP concerns how scientific knowledge is shared and used in decision making. Mr Seedat and Dr Carla Wasbourne were joined by several STEaPP colleagues and students to share the work being done by the two organisations. STEaPP and the GCRO have a longstanding academic relationship, having collaborated on a number of research outputs.
Dr Carla Washbourne is also the Chairperson of the Steering Committee of the UN-Habitat Global Urban Observatory Network (GUO-Net), in which Seedat also serves as the Vice Chairperson. They discussed measures to steer the network into the future, working alongside the Habitat secretariat. The engagement between Dr Washbourne and Mr Seedat also revolved around preparations for the first global online workshop of the network that was to be held on 5 July 2023.
Earlier this year, the London School of Economics (LSE) approached the GCRO to partner with it to host its Executive MSc in Cities focusing on scenario planning for Gauteng, with an emphasis on water and energy. While in London, Mr Seedat participated in a hybrid discussion on the progress that was being made by the students. Read more about the GCRO’s participation here.
He was also hosted by Professor Jenny Robinson at the Department of Geography at UCL. Mr Seedat presented a seminar on the governance crisis to some UCL staff and geography students, and received valuable feedback from staff from the Geography Department, the Bartlett Development Planning Unit and the UCL Urban Lab.
Seminar hosted at the Department of Geography at UCL