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The course aims to prepare experts in the area of sustainable territorial development in the context of global climate and environmental emergencies. Attending the 11-day summer school were ten international students, four international professors, two national professors and seven national students.

Marloes Reinink, director at Solid Green, spoke about the key concepts of a sustainable city or precinct, highlighting the importance of adapting policies to socio-economic and cultural contexts, and presented three case studies – Waterfall City, Sandton Gate, and Oxford Parks, which is 60% privately owned and 40% governmentally owned.

Some of the guiding principles discussed were:

• streets as public place
• continuity and enclosure
• continuity of character
• navigation landmarks
• streets as ecosystems
• contextual interest
• the interaction between the human scale and the public realm

In the face of South Africa’s commitment to its net-zero targets, transport plays an essential role as it is responsible for a large part of the country’s carbon emissions. Marloes emphasised that creating walkability is the basis of a successful sustainable city. This allows people to access resources and opportunities in a safe, clean, pedestrian-friendly environment. One of the major challenges facing Johannesburg, for example, is that it is a low-density city with poor connectivity. This means that public transport is expensive, and pedestrians are faced with issues of safety and security as well as accessibility.

Marloes also mentioned the documentary Cities on Speed: Bogotá Change, which covers the transformation of Bogotá, Colombia, where investment was prioritised into parks, public areas and affordable public transport that connects residential areas to places where economic opportunities are available.

In the questions posed after her presentation, the group debated a number of issues including green gentrification, crime and safety and the energy transition. Reflecting on the discussion, Marloes says:

Interacting with the students and professors from the STeDe-CCD programme was a very rewarding experience. It is encouraging to see academic and professional institutions from several different countries coming together to further the expertise of our leaders of the future and build networks in pursuit of a better world for all.

The post STeDe-CCD Presentation: Sustainable and Territorial Development appeared first on Solid Green Consulting.

As many of our supporters know, the children who attend our school depend on the meals we provide. For many, breakfast and lunch at our flagship school—Jeppe Park Primary—are their only meals.

Many of our inner-city families cannot afford to stock up with non-perishables. Not only can they not afford these items at regular prices, but the demand created by this pandemic is driving food prices up, placing canned food and hygiene essentials out of reach.

We are appealing to you to once again consider the those most vulnerable in our country. If you are in a position to fund the purchase of food hampers for families in the Streetlight community, please reach out to us, or donate here.

DONATE NOW

Download The Cost of Corona on Inner-city Families pdf.

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The post Streetlight Schools: COVID-19 lockdown Appeal for Support appeared first on Solid Green Consulting.

Many entrepreneurs (including me) start a business without these skills and use trial and error to get things to work. Most people on the course own businesses that have been running between 3-8 years, and everyone found the topics taught during this course absolutely vital.

There was a day on Innovation strategies and how to think outside the box, with the help of tools that identify where in your business you can innovate on processes, products or services. And we were very entertainingly taught about negotiation skills, including the local LOBOLA negotiation Framework (developed by Dr Andy Brough):

1. Listen & Learn
2. Outline the parameters
3. Build a positive climate
4. Open Communication
5. Look for Options
6. Agree on the Agreed

For me, one of the most useful modules was on Financial Management and Marketing Strategy. I have always procrastinated analysing finances as this process does not get me very excited and it often seems too complicated. But Brian Simelane, our lecturer who also runs his own businesses including Learning Sims, managed to keep us engaged and mesmerised for 3 days. I was also fortunate that the mentor assigned to me, Vernon Leas, is a specialist in Financial Management, so I learned a lot and am not so scared of numbers anymore!

The marketing course, taught by Ian Rheeder, who runs the marketing business, Markitects (it’s worthwhile checking out some of his YouTube videos), was entertaining and insightful. Did you know that Brides and Architects are the easiest target groups for Facebook advertisements?! So, if you are an architect and you see Solid Green ads passing by, you know that I have managed to figure out how Facebook ads work.

As the final assignment, we had to develop a business plan, which I used as an opportunity for GreenED, my new venture. Nokwazi Mzobe (Matoyana Consultants) gave us all the right materials and tools to get cracking with the business plan, including a detailed look into the Business Model Canvas, which is a super tool for anyone who wants to start a business.

All in all, it was a great experience; my fellow GIBS small business boosters were great company; and some useful business links were created. I can definitely recommend contacting GIBS about their programmes if you are interested in gaining some useful business skills!

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