The GCRO partners with LSE to host a planning exercise for the Executive MSc in Cities Laboratory

The GCRO was delighted to work with Dr Philipp Rode and his team on the London School of Economics scenario planning exercise for the Executive MSc in Cities Laboratory (EMC Lab) focused on informing strategic land and infrastructure development in South Africa’s Province of Gauteng. With an estimated population of 16 million, this ‘metropolitan’ province, the Gauteng City-region, includes the country’s major cities of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Ekurhuleni. The Lab employed scenario planning techniques and processes and worked closely with Gauteng-based collaborators and representatives of the Gauteng City Region Observatory (GCRO).

The EMC Lab developed strategic planning scenarios and considered how to translate broader scenario planning approaches and frameworks to the Gauteng context and the work of the Gauteng City Region Observatory. The team also drew on a range of international comparator cases, developed ideas for productively engaging with the province’s ‘infrastructural emergency’ and identified required planning capacities for coping with complexity, uncertainty and new risks as part of the region’s spatial development and infrastructure upgrade.

The process

The EMC Lab operated over a period of four months from 02 May to 31 July 2023, structured in three main phases. The scenario workshops were conducted online to allow for all the EMC participants from around the world to engage with South African based experts and practitioners. The team made exceptional use of online technology and the GCRO Executive Director, Mr Rashid Seedat, was able to join the team in person for one of the sessions, adding further value to this collaboration.

The task: Scenario planning for a strategic response to Gauteng’s infrastructure emergency

The aim of the Gauteng EMC Lab was to develop a scenario planning approach that will be tested and refined in the context of the region’s ‘infrastructure emergency’. On the one hand this aims to explore the potential of different scenario planning approaches to be utilised for strategic spatial planning for Gauteng’s metropolitan areas. On the other hand, preliminary outcomes of scenario planning pilots will be presented to inform the current debate on appropriate spatial development responses to the crisis.

We look forward to sharing the EMC Lab participants’ final reports in the near future and wish them well with completing this important work.