Professional development visit to German research partner institutions
Dr. Samkelisiwe Khanyile recently undertook a three-week professional development visit to Germany from 16 November to 5 December 2025. The visit comprised two key activities: a teaching exchange at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and a collaborative meeting at the University of Tübingen.
New partnership and teaching at TUM
The first part of the trip is owing to the establishment of a research partnership (supported by an MoU of collaboration) with the Centre for Urbanisation and Peripheralization (CUSP) at the Urban Development and Spatial Planning department at TUM. CUSP is led by Prof. Dr. Lindsay Blair Howe. The partnership aims to actively work collaboratively across the Global North and South, cultivating practices that bridge critical Southern theory with real-world discourses on impactful urban planning and design. The arrangement concerns research collaboration around jointly defined thematic areas, including sustainable urban systems, infrastructure, and socio-spatial transformations, with Dr. Khanyile serving as the primary academic liaison between the two institutions.
As part of this partnership, Dr. Khanyile taught an intensive Geographic Information Systems (GIS) block course from 17 to 28 November to students from Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Engineering programmes. The course progressed from foundational GIS concepts – components, data types, projections, and spatial analysis – through statistical analysis and urban-focused plug-ins, to map interpretation, and was designed to enrich students' studio work and Master's reports. The pedagogical approach integrated contextual examples from South Africa and Munich, connecting technical methods to real-world challenges.
The photo shows Dr. Khanyile teaching during the last lecture of the GIS block course with Master's students in the Urbanism programme at the TUM. (Photo credit: Fritz Schultz).
Dr. Khanyile emphasizes the value of these exchanges in bridging theory and practice. For instance, she reflects on how she regularly stressed the importance of saving work, a habit she had maintained for years because of load shedding. This topic sparked a discussion about the reliability of infrastructure. In another exercise, students transferred data from Google Earth to GIS software, using the northern suburbs as a case study. They observed a high prevalence of swimming pools in that area, which led to deeper conversations about spatial inequality when compared to informal settlements. This discussion highlighted how mapping can both reveal and exacerbate disparities.
Beyond teaching, collaborative outcomes encompassed a draft stakeholder list, grant identification, a year plan, and network mapping to enhance partnership and position both institutions for ongoing research and teaching collaboration.
Research visit with Wits-Tübingen seed grant collaborators
After the completion of teaching activities in Munich, Dr. Khanyile travelled to Tübingen from November 30 to December 5 for a research visit. The purpose of this visit was to collaborate with colleagues at the University of Tübingen on the Wits-Tübingen seed grant project titled "From Data to Dignity: How Climate Knowledge Influences Life Chances," which was awarded in August 2025.
During her time there, Dr. Khanyile worked with Prof. Dr. Olaf Kühne and Dr. Corinna Jenal from the Department of Geography. The team discussed findings from a participatory workshop held in Alexandra township in November 2025. This visit also involved transcribing and digitizing hardcopy maps created during the workshop. Additionally, they explored the possibility of incorporating some of these findings into a semester course in the upcoming months. The discussions shifted towards plans for concluding the project by July 2026 and identifying targeted international funding opportunities to support ongoing collaboration.
Photo shows Dr. Timo Sedelmeier, Mr. Jakob Stock, Mr. David Fuhrmann, Prof. Dr. Dr. Olaf Kühne, Dr. Samkelisiwe Khanyile, Ms. Diana Strauß and Dr. Corinna Jenal outside the University of Tübingen Department of Geography. (Photo credit: Unknown student).
Overall, the professional development visit was highly productive; Dr. Khanyile successfully finalized and submitted one journal manuscript and made significant progress on a second publication during her time in Germany. This visit aligns with the strategic priorities of the GCRO, focusing on international research networks, sustainability and just transitions research, capacity building, and knowledge exchange.