GCRO bids farewell to two of its Senior Researchers

GCRO bid farewell to two of its senior researchers, Dr Alexandra Parker and Dr Julia deKadt, at the end of February 2022. Dr Alexandra Parker joined the GCRO in November 2016 as a researcher. She has contributed to and led multiple interdisciplinary research projects and has produced a diverse range of outputs. While she has co-authored 11 academic and GCRO publications since 2016 in a number of key research projects, Alex’s most substantial research contribution has been to grow the GCRO’s research in gender studies. Through the Mothers in the City project, a collaboration with Prof. Margot Rubin at the South African Research Chair in Spatial Analysis and City Planning, and later work as part of GCRO’s COVID-19 project, Alex has elevated issues of gender and intersectionality. Together with Margot, Alex initiated the Network for Gender and Urban Research which has hosted two successful events and will continue to develop.

Dr Alexandra Parker

Alex’s other major contribution has been to pioneer alternative forms of dissemination at the GCRO. In 2017, she curated and produced GCRO’s first international exhibition at the Seoul Biennale on architecture and urbanism as well as producing GCRO’s first explainer video. Alex has actively engaged in disseminating her own research as well as raising the profile of the GCRO to a wide and influential audience, including policy-makers, practitioners, and the general public through the writing of opinion pieces and creating interactive data visualisations. In total, she has produced two international exhibitions, eleven op-ed articles, two videos, and sixteen data visualisations and maps of the month. Over the last five years, she has continued to develop her skills and accolades. She was recognised as one of the top 200 Mail & Guardian Young South Africans in 2017; in 2018 she was promoted to a senior researcher and in November 2019 was awarded a Y-rating (awarded to promising young researchers) by the South African National Research Foundation. Alex said this on her departure: “GCRO has been an incredible place to work not only because of the interesting projects and the many opportunities available but mostly because of all of my fantastic colleagues. I have learnt so much from everyone. Working at GCRO has been truly life changing.”

Dr Julia de Kadt joined the GCRO in 2017, when she was appointed to lead the organisation’s flagship Quality of Life survey. During her time at the GCRO, Julia has substantially developed and strengthened the approach to running this critically important survey, while also continuing to develop her profile in academic research centred around human well-being. She joined the GCRO as the QoL survey’s 5th iteration was about to get underway. In close collaboration with GCRO colleagues and the survey’s service provider, Julia ensured that this challenging project reached a successful conclusion. The survey results were launched in late 2018, at a high-profile public event. Following this, Julia developed and drove a ten-year technical review of the Quality of Life Survey project. She appointed Prof Mark Orkin to serve as the external chair of the review. Following a landscaping process, and a series of interviews with survey practitioners nationwide, she convened a series of four day-long technical workshops. Attended by GCRO staff members, and leading survey experts nationwide, these workshops critically reviewed all aspects of the Quality of Life survey, identifying areas of strength, as well as areas for development. This process laid the groundwork for the 6th iteration of the Quality of Life survey. Although initial plans for the survey were substantially disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, through the efforts of an exceptionally strong and dedicated project team, the survey was successfully completed and launched in September 2021. The project team was able to make use of the delay to introduce additional content about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic into the questionnaire.

Dr Julia de Kadt

In addition to her leadership of the Quality of Life survey, Julia has contributed to work in a range of other areas. She has contributed to projects and outputs on health and education, as well as playing a role in the organisation’s COVID-19 work. She has been active in the International Society of Quality of Life Studies, conceptualised and hosted a webinar series on data collection in the COVID-19 context during the early days of the pandemic. Julia said: “Working at the GCRO has been a unique experience. I’ve been surrounded by enormously skilled colleagues, from a range of disciplinary backgrounds, and with a wide range of expertise. While I’ve benefitted from the opportunity to grow and develop my skills as a specialist in survey design and implementation, I’ve also gained greatly from opportunities to collaborate with many different colleagues on a diverse range of projects. In particular, I’ve developed a much stronger understanding of the complexities of designing research and dissemination activities to maximise the positive impact of this work on human well-being. My time at the GCRO will always have a special place in my heart.”

Alex Parker (left), Rashid Seedat (centre) and Julia de Kadt (right) at the farewell celebration.

A farewell celebration was held in commemoration of both colleagues on the 25 February 2022 for their contributions to the organisation. GCRO wishes both Alex and Julia all of the best in their future endeavours.

Ruth Mohammed (left), Alex Parker, Melinda Swift and Julia de Kadt (right) at the farewell celebration.